Protecting Our Widows and Widowers in Retirement Act

HR 3926, the Protecting Our Widows and Widowers in Retirement Act (POWR Act), increases Social Security benefits for surviving spouses in households where both spouses earned retirement benefits. It changes the calculation so widows and widowers who worked and earned their own benefits will receive 75% of the sum of their own retirement benefit plus the deceased spouse’s primary benefit amount, rather than a fixed percentage. The bill also ensures Supplemental Security Income (SSI) eligibility and benefit amounts remain unaffected by these changes. The provisions apply to benefits payable after December 2023.