U.S. Representative Zach Nunn (IA-03) on Thursday introduced bipartisan legislation to stop the government from punishing Iowa seniors for the mistakes made by D.C. bureaucrats. The bipartisan Social Security Overpayment Relief Act, which is co-led by U.S. Representative Kristen McDonald Rivet (MI-08), would prohibit the Social Security Administration (SSA) from reclaiming overpayments older than 10 years unless there is fraud involved.
“When the government created Social Security, it made a promise to Iowa’s retirees. I’m 100% committed to protecting that promise,” said Rep. Nunn. “While we need to root out waste, fraud, and abuse within our federal government, we can’t risk doing that on the backs of seniors on a fixed income. I’ll continue to do everything in my power to protect the benefits Iowans count on.”
Currently, an indefinite lookback period allows the SSA to collect funds from a recipient for an overpayment error going back decades, resulting in collection notices totaling tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. Some seniors have been asked to return thousands of dollars—money they depend on for groceries, medicine, and housing.
“When the government comes to collect after decades of mispayments, it can throw a senior citizen into a financial crisis due to no fault of their own,” said Rep. McDonald Rivet. “While families are struggling to keep up with high prices, this legislation is an important step towards protecting Michigan seniors’ and their hard-earned retirements.”
The bipartisan Social Security Overpayment Relief Act would limit the overpayment lookback period to ten years for Social Security, Social Security Disability Insurance, and Supplemental Security Income recipients. The lookback period limit would not apply to those who committed fraud or other crimes.
U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) have introduced companion legislation in the Senate. Text of the bill can be found here.
