Dear Editor:

On Friday, Dec. 20, the Senate, in a final vote, eliminated the provisions of the law that had been in place since it was passed in 1983 under Ronald Reagan. This law had cut fully-earned Social Security benefits if you also had retired with a pension as a teacher, firefighter, policeman or other public sector employee.

I’m one of those who had my fully-paid Social Security benefit cut because I had a fully-paid-for teacher’s retirement before I entered private business when I was 40.

Imagine my surprise to learn, upon applying for SS at 65, that my earned benefit would be cut by 30%. I complained, I made calls, but to no avail. It was cut, and I’ve lived with that for the last 20 years.

I’d like to thank Senator Susan Collins and Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio, and others, for paying attention, quietly year after year.

Like others who have been affected by this unfair law for the last 40 years, I won’t get back the 20 years of lost Social Security benefits that I had paid for.

But at least, what I had earned will be restored in future payments, starting in January. Thousands of Mainers like me, be they retired teachers, or police, or firefighters, will feel finally some future financial relief from the reversal of an unfair system under which they had retired.

Bruce MacDonald

Boothbay