Social Security: Bills in the 107th Congress

Social Security: Bills in the 107th Congress

Order Code RS21281
Updated January 7, 2003
CRS Report for Congress
Received through the CRS Web
Social Security: Bills in the 107th Congress
Geoffrey Kollmann
Specialist in Social Legislation
Domestic Social Policy Division
Summary
This report lists the bills that were introduced in the 107th Congress that directly
affected the Social Security program, and provides a summary table listed by subject.
Social Security Bills Introduced in the 107th Congress
Two hundred and nine bills were introduced in the 107th Congress that directly or
indirectly affected the Social Security program. This report lists those that directly
affected old-age and survivors insurance benefits under Title II of the Social Security Act.
It first describes those bills on which legislative action has occurred. It then presents a
table that includes bills that would reform the system or otherwise address its financing
problems, change its budget status, or increase or reduce benefits, and groups them into
categories reflecting their general purpose. Footnotes to the table list reports from the
Congressional Research Service that discuss the bills or subject matter.
Bills on Which Legislative Action Has Occurred
H.R. 2 (Herger) Reserves Social Security and Medicare surpluses for debt
reduction until reform is passed. Passed House, February 13, 2001, by a vote of 407-2.
H.Con.Res. 282 (Shaw) Expresses the sense of the Congress that Social Security
reform legislation should guarantee current-law benefits to current and future retirees,
without raising taxes. Passed House, December 12, 2001, by a vote of 415-5.
H.R. 4069 (Shaw) Makes miscellaneous enhancements in Social Security spousal
benefits. Passed House, May 14, 2002, by a vote of 418-0.
H.R. 4070 (Shaw) Provides additional safeguards for Social Security and
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients with representative payees and enhances
other program protections. Passed House, June 26, 2002, by a vote of 425-0. Passed
Senate, November 18, 2002, by voice vote.
Table 1. Social Security Bills in 107th Congress
Congressional Research Service ˜ The Library of Congress

CRS-2
General purpose of bill
Creates voluntary or
Attempts to enhance
mandatory personal
Creates personal accounts,
solvency or income of
accounts in place of part or
but does not alter current
current systema
all of current systema
system
H.R. 2771
Kolbe
H.R. 849
Sessions
H.R. 2110
Petri
H.R. 2935
Frank
H.R. 2771
Kolbe
S. 2693
Dorgan
H.R. 3315
DeFazio
H.R. 3497
Shaw
H.R. 3497
Shaw
H.R. 3535
DeMint
H.R. 3535
DeMint
H.R. 4022
Matsui
H.R. 4023
Matsui
H.R. 4023
Matsui
H.R. 4024
Matsui
H.R. 4024
Matsui
H.R. 5252
Waxman
H.R. 5734
N. Smith
S.5
Gramm
Alters Social Security’s
Alters system’s investment
budget treatment
Liberalizes or ends Social
policiesb
(including “lock box” bills)c Security earnings testd
H.R. 96
Hall
H.R. 2
Herger
H.R. 1731
Sessions
H.R. 166
Royce
H.R. 56
Ross
H.R. 3497
Shaw
H.R. 219
Paul
H.R. 120
Holt
H.R. 1320
Sabo
H.R. 373
Rogers
H.R. 3315
DeFazio
H.R. 560
Ross
H.R. 816
Andrews
H.R. 1065
Andrews
H.R. 1204
Adam Smith
H.R. 1207
Bartlett
S. 21
Daschle
Alters Social Security’s
Deals with Social Security
Addresses Social Security
disability provisions
numbers and privacy
“notch” issuee
H.R. 344
Frank
H.R. 220
Paul
H.R. 80
Emerson
H.R. 481
Stark
H.R. 2036
Shaw
H.R. 97
Hall
H.R. 498
Ehrlich
H.R. 4513
Markey
H.R. 853
Wexler
H.R. 509
Mink
S. 848
Feinstein
H.R. 870
Clement
H.R. 569
Andrews
S. 1014
Bunning
S. 825
Reid
H.R. 2850
Deal
S. 1055
Feinstein
H.R. 3133
Cantor
S. 3100
Feinstein
H.R. 3265
Platts
H.R. 5667
G. Green
S. 682
McCain
S. 2942
Crapo

CRS-3
General purpose of bill
Alters Social Security taxes
for purposes other than to
Establishes bi-partisan
Restores benefits for
restore solvency
Social Security commission
college students
H.R. 1573
Owens
H.R. 14
Portman
H.R. 410
Andrews
H.R. 1069
DeMint
Expresses sense of
Liberalizes benefits for
Repeals some/all of taxation Congress about Social
spouses, children, and
of Social Security benefitsf
Security issue
childcare giversg
H.R. 122
S. Johnson
H.R. 4780
Matsui
H.R. 319
Allen
H.R. 192
Stump
H.R. 5541
Shows
H.R. 2698
Andrews
H.R. 209
Sweeney
H.Res. 128
DeLauro
H.R. 3023
Duncan
H.R. 1018
Toomey
H.Res. 425
Thurman
H.R. 3325
Lowey
H.R. 1532
Weiner
H.Res. 493
Jefferson
H.R. 3326
Lowey
H.R. 2106
Larson
H.J.Res. 26
G. Taylor
H.R. 3327
Lowey
H.R. 2548
Doolittle
H.C.Res. 120
Mark Green
H.R. 3328
Lowey
H.R. 4789
Paul
H.C.Res. 214
Shaw
H.R. 3315
DeFazio
H.R. 4790
Paul
H.C.Res. 229
Graves
H.R. 3497
Shaw
H.R. 5568
Weldon
H.C.Res. 282
Shaw
H.R. 4069
Shaw
S. 181
Shelby
H.Res. 128
DeLauro
H.R. 4671
Matsui
S. 237
Hutchinson
S.Res. 230
Corzine
H.R. 4743
Lowey
S.J.Res. 2
Gramm
S. 2533
G. Smith
Liberalizes “windfall”
Liberalizes “government
Authorizes benefits for the
benefits provisionh
pension offset” provisioni
month of deathj
H.R. 848
Sandlin
H.R. 664
Jefferson
H.R. 210
Sweeney
H.R. 1073
Frank
H.R. 2638
McKeon
H.R. 1091
Mink
H.R. 2638
McKeon
H.R. 3497
Shaw
H.R. 1464
Holden
S. 1523
Feinstein
S. 611
Mikulski
H.R. 2845
Andrews
S. 2521
Kerry
S. 1523
Feinstein
H.R. 5404
Russell
S. 882
Mikulski
Makes changes to
Requires that Social
Expands eligibility for
representative payee
Security benefits be made a
lump sum death benefit
provisionsl
“legal guarantee”
H.R. 266
Duncan
H.R. 3332
Shaw
H.R. 832
W. Jones
H.R. 2378
Clement
H.R. 4070
Shaw
H.R. 3135
DeMint
H.R. 3119
Hastings
S. 693
Grassley
S. 806
Hutchinson
S. 1558
Santorum
Alters COLAs by Revising
Consumer Price Index
Denies benefits to fugitive Reduces “user fee” assessed
(CPI)k
felonsm
on attorneys
H.R. 390
Weiner
S. 2387
Santorum
S. 2700
Lincoln
H.R. 2035
Sanders
H.R. 4070
Shaw
H.R. 4070
Shaw
Source: Derived from on-line Legislative Information System; bills introduced as of November 20, 2002.
a For discussion, see CRS Issue Brief IB98048, Social Security Reform.
b For discussion, see CRS Report RS20607, Social Security: Trust Fund Investment Practices, and CRS
Report 91-129, Social Security: Investing the Surplus.

CRS-4
c For discussion, see CRS Report RS20165, Social Security, Medicare, and Public Debt Reduction “Lock
Boxes,” and CRS Report 98-422, Social Security and the Federal Budget: What Does Social
Security Being “Off Budget” Mean?
d For discussion, see CRS Report 98-789, Social Security: Proposed Changes to the Earnings Test.
e For discussion, see CRS Report 95-188, The Social Security Notch Issue.
f For discussion, see CRS Report RL30581, Social Security: Taxation of Benefits.
g For discussion, see CRS Report RS21228, Social Security Benefit Enhancements for Women Act of 2002.
h For discussion, see CRS Report 98-35, The Windfall Benefit Provision.
i For discussion, see CRS Report RS20148, Social Security: The Government Pension Offset.
j For discussion, see CRS Report 93-792, Social Security Benefits Are Not Paid For the Month of Death.
k For discussion, see CRS Report RS20060, A Separate Consumer Price Index for the Elderly? and CRS
Report 97-33, The CPI and the “True”Cost of Living.
l For discussion, see CRS Report RS21225, Social Security Protection Act of 2002 (H.R. 4070).
m For discussion, see CRS Report RS20325, Efforts to Prevent Prisoners and Fugitives from Receiving
Benefits from the Social Security Administration.