It's up to us to see that they do. We must hold our elected lawmakers accountable. TSCL, our members and their families, friends, and supporters will not allow the Notch Issue to quietly die away, but continue to press for enactment of Notch Reform legislation. .Depending on the size of COLAs and the amount of the Medicare Part B premium increase in following years, it may well take Sally another year, possibly even longer, to see any increase in her net benefit. Meanwhile Sally's other household costs have made big jumps. .Terry Newell currently teaches leadership, decision - making, and ethics courses for a variety of organizations. He is the former dean of the Federal Executive Institute in Charlottesville, Virginia, and was the director of the Horace Mann Learning Center, the training arm of the U.S. Department of Education. .Just as today, in 1977 the federal budget was in deficit, and Social Security was facing a funding crisis. The new benefit formula changes first affected seniors who turned 62 in 1979 just two years later. Seniors born from 1917 through 1926 wound up receiving lower benefits than other retirees with almost identical work and earnings records. Although reductions of about 10 percent for average earners were expected at the time of the changes, Notch babies were often affected by disparities of 20 percent or more, because a phase-in benefit formula failed. .There are reports that the Senate is now targeting roughly Dec. 18 as its adjournment date, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is still looking to confirm judicial nominees this week while other members of the Senate work to find compromises on both the government funding legislation and a new coronavirus economic stimulus bill. .This week, lawmakers in the House remained in their home districts to continue the summer recess. They are expected to return to Capitol Hill on Tuesday, September 4th. In the meantime, many Members of Congress will be attending local events and hosting town hall meetings in their home districts. The Senior Citizens League encourages its supporters to attend these events and to ask important questions of their elected officials, like the following five... .Although Congress has often enacted "clean bill" debt limit increases, and may do so again, lawmakers have also paid for increases with other types of changes, including changes to Social Security and Medicare. In a 2015 debt limit deal, Congress ended a benefit claiming option that was one of the few ways married couples could maximize their benefits. The change affected some people who were already 62 and entitled to benefits. It cost those affected, thousands in Social Security income that they were depending on getting. .These bills would enable retired school teachers, university employees and thousands of civil servants to receive all of the Social Security pensions for which they are entitled. A Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) have long limited the full aid that these beneficiaries merit. .In a statement that was released shortly thereafter, White House spokesperson Brandi Hoffine said, "Today, two judges of the 5th Circuit chose to misinterpret the facts and the law in denying the government's request for a stay. As the powerful dissent from Judge Higginson recognizes, President Obama's immigration executive actions are fully consistent with the law."