Texas Congressman Lloyd Doggett has introduced a resolution (H.RES. 987) to discharge the WEP/GPO Repeal bill (H.R. 147) from the Social Security Subcommittee and have it go to the floor of the House of Representatives for a vote. Texas is one of the states, along with Massachusetts, whose public retirees are being hurt by the WEP (Windfall Elimination Provision) and the GPO (Government Pension Offset).

Rep. Doggett is a Democrat from Austin, Texas. He is a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, of which the Social Security Subcommittee is a part.

“We call upon our members, throughout the country, to contact their respective Congressman now and urge them to sign on as a co-sponsor to House Resolution 987,” continues White. “Remember the Congress ends its current session on December 31 and starts all over again in ‘07. So please act now!”

Need 218 Signers To Resolution

By way of background, H.R. 147, originally sponsored by Republican Congressman “Buck” McKeon from California (another WEP/GPO state), repeals both the WEP and GPO laws and has 323 co-sponsors, which represents almost 75% of the entire House of Representatives (435 congressmen). The entire Mass. delegation  in the Congress supports H.R. 147.

H.R. 147 is in the Social Security Subcommittee, which is chaired by Republican Congressman Jim McCrery of Shreveport, Louisiana. It is noteworthy that Louisiana is another state impacted by the WEP/GPO. Also, Congressman Richard Neal from Springfield is a member of the Subcommittee.

H.RES. 987 orders that H.R. 147 be discharged from the Subcommittee and be sent to the House floor for a vote. A discharge petition, like H.RES. 987, is considered a somewhat controversial approach to getting a vote on a bill.

“The Resolution needs 218 signers in order for the discharge to be successful,” reports Legislative Chairman Bill Hill. “Obviously, this is much less than the 323 who originally signed onto the Repeal bill itself.

“However, please understand it’s traditionally much harder to get signers on a discharge petition, even among those who signed onto the original bill that you’re trying to get discharged. You can’t assume that the magic number of 218, needed for the discharge, will easily be reached here.

“Therefore, it’s worth repeating what Ralph earlier asked of you. Please contact your congressman now. And, ask them not only to sign the petition but also get their fellow congressmen to do the same.”