The Social Security Administration (SSA) has released the GPO and WEP notification form that public employers outside of Social Security must distribute to new employees starting Jan. 1.

The notice includes information about the effect the government pension offset (GPO) and windfall elimination provision (WEP) could have on the retirement income of non-covered workers. GPO reduces or eliminates Social Security spousal and survivor's benefits for most retirees who collect pensions from jobs that were not covered by the program while WEP slashes Social Security retirement benefits for most individuals who are eligible for them in addition to pensions from non-covered jobs.

The notice requirement was included in a bill (H.R. 743) signed into law in March that closed the GPO "last-day loophole." The new law also will require employers to have new employees sign the notice and to forward a copy of it to the retirement system that will cover the worker, though it is unclear what the retirement system is supposed to do with the signed notices.

More information about the notice requirement is available on the SSA Web site.