Congressman Zach Wamp said that Wednesday's passage of the Senior Citizens? Freedom to Work Act (H.R. 5) is a big step toward letting nearly 15,000 Tennessee seniors keep working without losing their Social Security benefits.

"We voted to end the so-called "earnings penalty" which causes you to lose a dollar in Social Security benefits for every three dollars you earn over $17,000 after you turn 65," Wamp said. "For instance, if you make $20,000, you'll loose $1,000 of your Social Security benefits because of the penalty that we want to end. If you make enough money, you can lose ALL your benefits."

The "earnings penalty" applies to people aged 65 to 69 who continue working past the normal retirement age and also draw Social Security. Once a citizen reaches 70, there's no "earnings penalty," and he or she can make an unlimited amount of money with losing Social Security benefits.

"More than 1.1 million Americans and nearly 15,000 Tennesseans lose all or part of their Social Security benefits because of the 'earnings penalty,'" Wamp said. "This is totally unfair, and it makes absolutely no sense in today?s economy. The earnings limit was imposed when Social Security was begun in 1935. The limit was put there to encourage seniors to retire because we were in the middle of the Great Depression, and millions of younger folks needed the jobs that would be freed up by the retirements. But in today's economy, jobs are going unfilled in many parts of the country; and our work force needs the skills, abilities and experience that many seniors WANT to contribute.

"As we enter the 21st Century, it's high time that we did away with the economic relic of the 1930s known as the 'earnings penalty,'" Wamp said.

The bill, a major priority of the Republican Party, passed the House on a 422 to 0 vote. It now goes to the U.S. Senate. President Clinton has indicated he will sign it.