I work for a school district and will receive a pension upon retirement. I have not paid enough into social security to have any benefits of my own, so I'm not concerned about the WEP. I have three plan choices, with my husband receiving no benefits, half benefits, and full benefits if I die first. Of course, the monthly pension is greatest with no spousal benefits (roughly $3200, $3000, and $2850 respectively under the three scenarios). My husband will receive social security benefits of about $2600 per month. Due to GPO reductions, does it still make sense for me to choose a pension option with spousal benefits? We do not have any debt, and we have 401K and IRA savings that should provide investment income to match our pension and social security incomes.

Hi,

Your husband's Social Security retirement benefits would not be subject to any offset due to receipt of a spousal or widower's benefit from your non-covered pension fund. So yes, it makes sense to consider a pension option with spousal benefits, but I can't tell you which of your options would be best.

You may want to consider subscribing to our Maxifi program (https://maxifiplanner.com/retirement-planning-maxifi).

Best, Jerry