Senior Tax Relief Act of 1999

Summary: Senior Tax Relief Act of 1999 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to repeal the tax increase on social security benefits enacted by the Revenue Reconciliation Act of 1993. 
Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to remove the limitation on the amount of outside income which a beneficiary may earn (earnings test) without incurring a reduction in benefits. 
Amends the IRC to repeal the estate tax, gift tax, and the tax on generation-skipping transfers.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Senior Tax Relief Act of 1999''.

SEC. 2. REPEAL OF 1993 INCREASE IN TAX ON SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFITS.

    (a) In General.--Paragraph (2) of section 86(a) of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to social security and tier 1 railroad 
retirement benefits) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
sentence:
        ``This paragraph shall not apply to any taxable year beginning 
        after December 31, 1998.''
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Paragraph (3) of section 871(a) of such Code is amended 
        by striking ``85 percent'' in subparagraph (A) and inserting 
        ``50 percent''.
            (2)(A) Subparagraph (A) of section 121(e)(1) of the Social 
        Security Amendments of 1983 (Public Law 98-21) is amended--
                    (i) by striking ``(A) There'' and inserting 
                ``There'';
                    (ii) by striking ``(i)'' immediately following 
                ``amounts equivalent to''; and
                    (iii) by striking ``, less (ii)'' and all that 
                follows and inserting a period.
            (B) Paragraph (1) of section 121(e) of such Act is amended 
        by striking subparagraph (B).
            (C) Paragraph (3) of section 121(e) of such Act is amended 
        by striking subparagraph (B) and by redesignating subparagraph 
        (C) as subparagraph (B).
            (D) Paragraph (2) of section 121(e) of such Act is amended 
        in the first sentence by striking ``paragraph (1)(A)'' and 
        inserting ``paragraph (1)''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 1998.

SEC. 3. REMOVAL OF LIMITATION UPON THE AMOUNT OF OUTSIDE INCOME WHICH A 
              SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFICIARY MAY EARN WHILE RECEIVING 
              BENEFITS.

    (a) Repeal of Provisions Relating to Deductions on Account of 
Work.--
            (1) In general.--Subsections (b), (c)(1), (d), (f), (h), 
        (j), and (k) of section 203 of the Social Security Act (42 
        U.S.C. 403) are repealed.
            (2) Conforming amendments.--Section 203 of such Act (as 
        amended by subsection (a)) is further amended--
                    (A) in subsection (c), by redesignating such 
                subsection as subsection (b), and--
                            (i) by striking ``Noncovered Work Outside 
                        the United States or'' in the heading;
                            (ii) by redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), 
                        and (4) as paragraphs (1), (2), and (3), 
                        respectively;
                            (iii) by striking ``For purposes of 
                        paragraphs (2), (3), and (4)'' and inserting 
                        ``For purposes of paragraphs (1), (2), and 
                        (3)''; and
                            (iv) by striking the last sentence;
                    (B) in subsection (e), by redesignating such 
                subsection as subsection (c), and by striking 
                ``subsections (c) and (d)'' and inserting ``subsection 
                (b)'';
                    (C) in subsection (g), by redesignating such 
                subsection as subsection (d), and by striking 
                ``subsection (c)'' each place it appears and inserting 
                ``subsection (b)''; and
                    (D) in subsection (l), by redesignating such 
                subsection as subsection (e), and by striking 
                ``subsection (g) or (h)(1)(A)'' and inserting 
                ``subsection (d)''.
    (b) Additional Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Provisions relating to benefits terminated upon 
        deportation.--Section 202(n)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 
        U.S.C. 402(n)(1)) is amended by striking ``Section 203 (b), 
        (c), and (d)'' and inserting ``Section 203(b)''.
            (2) Provisions relating to exemptions from reductions based 
        on early retirement.--
                    (A) Section 202(q)(5)(B) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
                402(q)(5)(B)) is amended by striking ``section 
                203(c)(2)'' and inserting ``section 203(b)(1)''.
                    (B) Section 202(q)(7)(A) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
                402(q)(7)(A)) is amended by striking ``deductions under 
                section 203(b), 203(c)(1), 203(d)(1), or 222(b)'' and 
                inserting ``deductions on account of work under section 
                203 or deductions under section 222(b)''.
            (3) Provisions relating to exemptions from reductions based 
        on disregard of certain entitlements to child's insurance 
        benefits.--
                    (A) Section 202(s)(1) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
                402(s)(1)) is amended by striking ``paragraphs (2), 
                (3), and (4) of section 203(c)'' and inserting 
                ``paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of section 203(b)''.
                    (B) Section 202(s)(3) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
                402(s)(3)) is amended by striking ``The last sentence 
                of subsection (c) of section 203, subsection (f)(1)(C) 
                of section 203, and subsections'' and inserting 
                ``Subsections''.
            (4) Provisions relating to suspension of aliens' 
        benefits.--Section 202(t)(7) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 402(t)(7)) 
        is amended by striking ``Subsections (b), (c), and (d)'' and 
        inserting ``Subsection (b)''.
            (5) Provisions relating to benefits increased on account of 
        delayed retirement.--Section 202(w)(2)(B)(ii) of such Act (42 
        U.S.C. 402(w)(2)(B)(ii)) is amended by striking ``or 203(c)''.
            (6) Provisions relating to reductions in benefits based on 
        maximum benefits.--Section 203(a)(3)(B)(iii) of such Act (42 
        U.S.C. 403(a)(3)(B)(iii)) is amended by striking ``and 
        subsections (b), (c), and (d)'' and inserting ``and subsection 
        (b)''.
            (7) Provisions relating to penalties for misrepresentations 
        concerning earnings for periods subject to deductions on 
        account of work.--Section 208(a)(1)(C) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
        408(a)(1)(C)) is amended by striking ``under section 203(f) of 
        this title for purposes of deductions from benefits'' and 
        inserting ``under section 203 for purposes of deductions from 
        benefits on account of work''.
            (8) Provisions taking into account earnings in determining 
        benefit computation years.--Clause (I) in the next to last 
        sentence of section 215(b)(2)(A) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
        415(b)(2)(A)) is amended by striking ``no earnings as described 
        in section 203(f)(5) in such year'' and inserting ``no wages, 
        and no net earnings from self-employment (in excess of net loss 
        from self-employment), in such year''.
            (9) Provisions relating to rounding of benefits.--Section 
        215(g) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 415(g)) is amended by striking 
        ``and any deduction under section 203(b)''.
            (10) Provisions relating to earnings taken into account in 
        determining substantial gainful activity of blind 
        individuals.--The second sentence of section 223(d)(4) of such 
        Act (42 U.S.C. 423(d)(4)) is amended by striking ``if section 
        102 of the Senior Citizens' Right to Work Act of 1996 had not 
        been enacted'' and inserting the following: ``if the amendments 
        to section 203 made by section 102 of the Senior Citizens' 
        Right to Work Act of 1996 and by section 3 of the Senior Tax 
        Relief Act of 1999 had not been enacted''.
            (11) Provisions defining income for purposes of SSI.--
        Section 1612(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1382a(a)) is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``as determined under section 
                203(f)(5)(C)'' in paragraph (1)(A) and inserting ``as 
                defined in the last two sentences of this subsection''; 
                and
                    (B) by adding at the end (after and below paragraph 
                (2)(F)) the following new sentences:
``For purposes of paragraph (1)(A), the term `wages' means wages as 
defined in section 209, but computed without regard to the limitations 
as to amounts of remuneration specified in paragraphs (1), (6)(B), 
(6)(C), (7)(B), and (8) of section 209(a). In making the computation 
under the preceding sentence, (A) services which do not constitute 
employment as defined in section 210, performed within the United 
States by an individual as an employee or performed outside the United 
States in the active military or naval services of the United States, 
shall be deemed to be employment as so defined if the remuneration for 
such services is not includible in computing the individual's net 
earnings or net loss from self-employment for purposes of title II, and 
(B) the term `wages' shall be deemed not to include (i) the amount of 
any payment made to, or on behalf of, an employee or any of his or her 
dependents (including any amount paid by an employer for insurance or 
annuities, or into a fund, to provide for any such payment) on account 
of retirement, or (ii) any payment or series of payments by an employer 
to an employee or any of his or her dependents upon or after the 
termination of the employee's employment relationship because of 
retirement after attaining an age specified in a plan referred to in 
section 209(m)(2) or in a pension plan of the employer.''.
            (12) Repeal of deductions on account of work under the 
        railroad retirement program.--Section 2 of the Railroad 
        Retirement Act of 1974 (45 U.S.C. 231a) is amended by striking 
        subsections (f) and (g)(2).
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments and repeals made by this 
section shall apply with respect to taxable years ending on or after 
the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 4. REPEAL OF ESTATE AND GIFT TAXES.

    (a) In General.--Subtitle B of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
(relating to estate, gift, and generation-skipping taxes) is hereby 
repealed.
    (b) Effective Date.--The repeal made by subsection (a) shall apply 
to estates of decedents dying, and transfers made, after the date of 
the enactment of this Act.