Hello. My understanding of the Windfall Elimination Provision is that it causes a person's Social Security retirement benefit rate to be calculated using a less generous calculation method if the person is also receiving a pension based on their earnings that were exempt from Social Security taxes. I am receiving a small pension from about 10 years' work at a municipal agency. While I was there they withheld OASDI from each paycheck, which I understood to be for Social Security, and all my earnings from that job show up in my Social Security earnings record. Does it sound like I am safe from the WEP reduction when I apply for my Social Security retirement benefit?

Hi. Yes. The Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) only applies if a person receives a pension based on their earnings that weren't subject to Social Security taxes. If you paid Social Security taxes on your earnings on which your municipal pension is based, then that pension wouldn't cause any reduction in your Social Security benefits. OASDI is an abbreviation for Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance, which is the formal name for the Social Security program.

Best, Jerry