RRB Fixes Its Own Unlawful Disability Pay Rule—Finally
Published Date: 8/10/2026
Rule
Summary
The Railroad Retirement Board amends its regulations to update the amount of monthly allowable earnings for a disability annuitant to reflect the formula in section 2(e)(4) of the Railroad Retirement Act. The existing regulation is no longer consistent with the statutory formula in the Railroad Retirement Act for the maximum monthly allowable earnings for a disability annuitant and is therefore facially unlawful.
Analyzed Economic Effects
3 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 1 costs, 1 mixed.
Monthly/Annual Earnings Limits Indexed
If you receive a Railroad Retirement disability annuity, the rule updates how the monthly allowable earnings amount is set using the statutory formula tied to the national average wage index. For calendar year 2026 the monthly allowable earnings limit is $1,320 and the annual allowable earnings limit is $15,840; the monthly amount for years 2008 and later is the larger of the prior year's amount or $700 times the specified wage-index ratio, rounded to the nearest $10.
Reporting, Penalties, End-of-Year Deductions
If you receive a disability annuity you must report any work and earnings to the Board, and you must report earnings over the monthly allowable amount before accepting the annuity for the second month after the first month of excess. If you fail to report on time, the Board may deduct penalty amounts (first failure equals one month's annuity; later failures equal annuity amounts for each offending month), and at year-end the Board will repay withheld annuities if annual earnings are less than or equal to the annual allowable amount or deduct a number of months of annuity based on excess annual earnings divided by the monthly allowable amount (remainders ≥ one-half of a month increase the months deducted).
Annual Reporting Figure Corrected After 2026
The Board will stop including an extra one-half monthly amount in its reported annual allowable earnings figure and will correct notices and correspondence beginning with calendar year 2027. For 2026 the statutory annual amount is $15,840, though the Board historically reported $16,500 to reflect an extra one-half month; that reporting practice will be corrected for 2027 and future annual notices.
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Key Dates
Related Federal Register Documents
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Next: 2026-16251, Jurisdiction Determinations
The Railroad Retirement Board amends its regulations to reflect statutory amendments granting jurisdiction to the Board to pay benefits under the Railroad Retirement Act and under Title II of the Social Security Act to railroad employees and auxiliary beneficiaries who have less than ten years of railroad service, but at least five years after 1995. The amendment also adds divorced spouses to the list of auxiliary beneficiaries to whom the Board will pay benefits in accordance with controlling law. The existing regulation is no longer consistent with the statutory criteria in the Railroad Retirement Act for jurisdictional determinations and is therefore facially unlawful.