ArcaMax

I have been saving up some emails from readers who want to know how other government benefits might affect their eligibility for Social Security, or vice versa. In other words, they wonder if their Social Security benefits impact whatever other government benefits they might be due.

I can always deal with that first issue. In other words, I can tell you what happens to Social Security if you get another government benefit. On the other hand, I usually can't tell you what might happen to your other benefit when you get Social Security. For that answer, you'd have to talk to someone at the agency that manages whatever other government benefit you are talking about.

Q: I am about to turn 62 and want to file for my Social Security, but I am getting unemployment insurance. Can I get both at the same time?

A: There is no Social Security law that prevents you from getting unemployment benefits and Social Security benefits at the same time. But as I said above, you would have to ask someone at your unemployment agency if their rules let you do that.

Q: I am 60 years old. I have several medical problems, and I am in the process of filing for Social Security disability benefits. I am also filing for unemployment benefits. Will one benefit offset the other?

A: As I said in the prior answer, the Social Security laws say you can get Social Security and unemployment at the same time. But you are in a whole different boat than the guy who asked the prior question. He is filing for retirement benefits. You are filing for disability benefits. And if I was processing your disability claim, I'd be looking at your allegation of a disability very skeptically. Why? Well, to get disability benefits, you are telling the Social Security Administration that you are unable to work because of some disabling condition. But at the same time, you are telling the unemployment agency that you are ready, willing and able to work, but you just can't find a job. I hope you see the conundrum there. And even though I don't know their rules, if I were your unemployment benefit adjudicator, I'd also be very skeptical.

Q: I am getting worker's compensation benefits, and I am now in the process of filing for Social Security disability benefits. Will I be able to get both benefits at the same time?

A: The answer is yes, but with some qualifications. There is a law that says the combination of your Social Security disability benefits and your worker's compensation payments cannot exceed 80% of the average monthly income you had before you became disabled. (There is a complicated formula they use to come up with that 80% figure that I really don't understand; just know that it ends up with a maximum of around 80%.)

Anyway, if the combined benefits exceed that level, one or the other gets reduced to take you down to the 80% rate. Which benefit gets cut varies from state to state. But it's been my experience that most of the time, it is your Social Security check that gets reduced.

Q: Can I get disability from the Veterans Administration and a disability benefit from Social Security at the same time?

A: You can get Social Security disability benefits while getting a disability check from the VA at the same time. And I'm pretty sure your VA check won't be reduced if you get Social Security. But to be sure, you'd have to ask of someone at the VA.

Q: I get VA disability, but I was turned down for Social Security disability. Why? How can one government agency say I'm disabled but another government agency says I'm not?

A: Because each government agency has its own legal definition of "disability." For example, the VA has degrees of disability. In other words, you might be classified as "50% disabled" by that agency. Or it could be 10%. Or 70%. Each case is different. But to get Social Security disability benefits, the law says you must be 100% disabled. Or to be more precise, it says your disability must be so severe that you are unable to do any kind of work, or that your condition is terminal.

Q: I am retired military and get a military retirement pension. I am about to turn 62 and plan to file for Social Security. Will that military pension affect my Social Security?

A: No, it won't. You can get Social Security and military retirement at the same time. But once again, you've got to talk to the military retirement people to see what happens when you start getting Social Security. I'm pretty sure nothing happens, but it doesn't hurt to ask.

Q: I get a teacher's retirement pension from the state of Texas. If my husband dies, I'm told I won't get any of his Social Security. Why?

A: A Social Security retirement pension has always offset any widow's benefits you might be due -- dollar for dollar.

By the same token, the government pension offset law says your teacher's retirement pension also will offset any widow's benefits due. But the GPO law cuts you a deal. Instead of a dollar-for-dollar offset, your teacher's pension is only a two-thirds offset. In other words, an amount equal to two-thirds of your teacher's pension will be deducted from any widow's benefits you might be due from Social Security.

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If you have a Social Security question, Tom Margenau has two books with all the answers. One is called "Social Security -- Simple and Smart: 10 Easy-to-Understand Fact Sheets That Will Answer All Your Questions About Social Security." The other is "Social Security: 100 Myths and 100 Facts." You can find the books at Amazon.com or other book outlets. Or you can send him an email at thomas.margenau@comcast.net. To find out more about Tom Margenau and to read past columns and see features from other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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