WASHINGTON – Today, Senators Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) introduced the bipartisan Social Security Overpayment Relief Act to limit the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) overpayment lookback period to ten years. This bill protects Social Security recipients – including 1.4 million Arizonans – from the burden of having to pay back funds that arise from overpayment errors on the part of SSA. Companion legislation was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Congresswoman Kristen McDonald Rivet (MI-8) and Congressman Zach Nunn (IA-3).
“Seniors shouldn’t have to pay for the government’s mistakes, especially not mistakes that happened decades ago,” said Senator Gallego. “That’s why I’m introducing this bipartisan, commonsense legislation to ensure that Arizona seniors aren’t blindsided by massive repayment amounts through no fault of their own. I’m proud to work across the aisle to protect retirees from unnecessary financial hardship.”
“Seniors are being blindsided by bills demanding tens of thousands of dollars for overpayments made by the government. They shouldn’t be on the hook for someone else’s mistake,” said Dr. Cassidy.
“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 Congresswoman 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.”
“When the government created Social Security, it made a promise to Iowa’s retirees. I’m 100% committed to protecting that promise,” said Congressman 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 In over 124,605 seniors receive.”
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.
This legislation would limit that period to ten years for Social Security, Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients. The lookback period limit would not apply to those who committed fraud or other crimes.
Read the full text of the legislation HERE.
3/13/25