Data / Federal rules / 2025-17475
Eligibility for an Annuity and Family Relationships
The Railroad Retirement Board published this final rule in the Federal Register on September 11, 2025. It took effect on October 27, 2025. Comments closed on October 14, 2025.
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What the agency says
The Railroad Retirement Board amends its regulations to remove facially unlawful provisions that define when the spouse, divorced spouse, surviving divorced spouse, or remarried widow(er) of a railroad employee may receive an annuity under the Railroad Retirement Act for having the employee's minor child in care. As currently written, the regulations treat male spouses less favorably than female spouses by terminating annuity entitlement when the child turns age 16 instead of age 18 as for female spouses. If enforced, this disparity would violate the right to equal protection secured by the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
Key facts
- Document number
- 2025-17475
- Type
- Final rule
- Action
- Direct final rule
- Agency
- Railroad Retirement Board
- Published
- September 11, 2025
- Takes effect
- October 27, 2025
- Comments due
- October 14, 2025
- Dates
- This rule is effective October 27, 2025 without further action, unless adverse comment is received by October 14, 2025. If adverse comment is received, the Railroad Retirement Board will publish a timely withdrawal of the rule in the Federal Register.
- Regulation ID (RIN)
- 3220-AB84
- Code of Federal Regulations
- 20 CFR 216; 20 CFR 222
- Topics
- Claims; Railroad retirement; Reporting and recordkeeping requirements
- Pages
- 2
Other documents from the Railroad Retirement Board
| Document | Type | Published |
|---|---|---|
| Jurisdiction Determinations 2026-16251 | Final rule | Aug 10 |
| Determining Disability 2026-16250 | Final rule | Aug 10 |
| Civil Monetary Penalty Inflation Adjustment 2026-12805 | Final rule | Jun 25 |
| Annuity Beginning and Ending Dates 2026-10078 | Final rule | May 20 |
| Plan of Operation During a National Emergency; Delegations of Authority and Lines of Succession 2025-11467 | Final rule | Jun 23, 2025 |
| Regulations Under the Administrative False Claims Act 2025-10935 | Final rule | Jun 16, 2025 |
| Evidence of Disability 2025-00515 | Final rule | Jan 16, 2025 |
| Evidence of Disability 2024-21777 | Final rule | Sep 25, 2024 |
Everything from the Railroad Retirement Board · Rules on claims · Rules on railroad retirement · Rules on reporting and recordkeeping requirements · Published in September 2025
Read from the Federal Register API, last updated 2026-10-24. The document on federalregister.gov is the official record; dates and dockets can change through later corrections. Free to reuse with credit to SpecStream under CC BY 4.0.