Full List of Republicans Who Voted Against New Social Security Benefits

The House of Representatives voted to increase Social Security benefits for millions of Americans this week with a bipartisan majority, but a substantial number of Republicans voted against the measure to help pensioners and their spouses get full benefits.
The Social Security Fairness Act was approved by the House in a vote 327-75 vote Tuesday, effectively eliminating the windfall elimination provision (WEP) and the government pension offset (GPO).
Historically, both of these have lowered monthly Social Security payments for public service workers, police officers, firefighters, teachers and their spouses, based on the pensions they receive in tandem with Social Security.
“Educators who do not earn Social Security in public schools but who work part-time or during the summer in jobs covered by Social Security have reduced benefits, even though they pay into the system for enough quarters to receive benefits,” said the bill’s co-sponsors, GOP Representative Garret Graves of Louisiana and Democratic Representative Abigail Spanberger of Virginia, in a statement.
Around 3 million Americans are affected by the WEP and GPO combined. If the Senate also approves the Social Security Fairness Act and President Joe Biden signs it, these millions could see substantially higher monthly benefits.
“This could mean slightly larger checks for many people who are struggling with the rising cost of living, particularly with grocery prices soaring,” Kevin Thompson, a finance expert and the founder and CEO of 9i Capital Group, told Newsweek. “This change would provide some relief to retirees feeling the pinch of inflation.”
While most House Democrats and 136 House Republicans voted to get rid of the WEP and GPO, 71 Republicans voted against the legislation:
The pushback against the bill centered on the law’s eventual costs, which could further affect the Social Security Administration’s projected funding shortfall. Currently, the agency is predicted to run out of money for full payments by as early as 2035.
If fully enacted, the Social Security Fairness Act is estimated to cost $196 billion over the next decade.
“We’re gonna accelerate the insolvency of the Social Security trust fund,” Jodey Arrington, a Texas Republican, said Tuesday. “We should be responsible in how we do this. We should consider retirees in every state, and we should consider future retirees.”
Some Democrats also voted against the Social Security Fairness Act because of these concerns.
“I am proud to join them in the fight to repeal these unjust provisions, but it must be responsibly paid for to prevent automatic benefit cuts down the road,” Representative John Larsen, a Connecticut Democrat, said in a statement. “I could not vote for the bills on the Floor tonight because they are not paid for and therefore put Americans’ hard-earned benefits at risk.”