Notch Fairness Act of 1997

Summary: Notch Fairness Act of 1997 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to revise the formula for the computation of minimum old age insurance benefits for individuals who reached age 65 in or after 1979 and to whom applies the 15-year transition period for the changes in benefit computation rules enacted in the Social Security Amendments of 1977. 
Sets forth a schedule of additional benefit increases for such beneficiaries (and related beneficiaries), with percentages declining from 55 percent to five percent and keyed to the year an individual became eligible for such benefits between 1979 and 1988. 
Allows such beneficiaries, in the alternative, to receive lump sum payments over four years totaling $5,000. 
Specifies offsetting nondefense and discretionary spending reductions the Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall make over a four-year period for the increase in direct spending estimated to result from enactment of this Act.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Notch Fairness Act of 1997''.

SEC. 2. NEW GUARANTEED MINIMUM PRIMARY INSURANCE AMOUNT WHERE 
              ELIGIBILITY ARISES DURING TRANSITIONAL PERIOD.

    (a) In General.--Section 215(a) of the Social Security Act is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (4)(B), by inserting ``(with or without 
        the application of paragraph (8))'' after ``would be made'', 
        and by striking ``1984'' in clause (i) and inserting ``1989''; 
        and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(8)(A) In the case of an individual described in paragraph (4)(B) 
(subject to subparagraphs (F) and (G) of this paragraph), the amount of 
the individual's primary insurance amount as computed or recomputed 
under paragraph (1) shall be deemed equal to the sum of--
            ``(i) such amount, and
            ``(ii) the applicable transitional increase amount (if 
        any).
    ``(B) For purposes of subparagraph (A)(ii), the term `applicable 
transitional increase amount' means, in the case of any individual, the 
product derived by multiplying--
            ``(i) the excess under former law, by
            ``(ii) the applicable percentage in relation to the year in 
        which the individual becomes eligible for old-age insurance 
        benefits, as determined by the following table:

                  ``If the individual
                                                                       
                becomes eligible for
                                                         The applicable
                such benefits in:
                                                         percentage is:
                  1979...............................       55 percent 
                  1980...............................       45 percent 
                  1981...............................       35 percent 
                  1982...............................       32 percent 
                  1983...............................       25 percent 
                  1984...............................       20 percent 
                  1985...............................       16 percent 
                  1986...............................       10 percent 
                  1987...............................        3 percent 
                  1988...............................        5 percent.
    ``(C) For purposes of subparagraph (B), the term `excess under 
former law' means, in the case of any individual, the excess of--
            ``(i) the applicable former law primary insurance amount, 
        over
            ``(ii) the amount which would be such individual's primary 
        insurance amount if computed or recomputed under this section 
        without regard to this paragraph and paragraphs (4), (5), and 
        (6).
    ``(D) For purposes of subparagraph (C)(i), the term `applicable 
former law primary insurance amount' means, in the case of any 
individual, the amount which would be such individual's primary 
insurance amount if it were--
            ``(i) computed or recomputed (pursuant to paragraph 
        (4)(B)(i)) under section 215(a) as in effect in December 1978, 
        or
            ``(ii) computed or recomputed (pursuant to paragraph 
        (4)(B)(ii)) as provided by subsection (d),
(as applicable) and modified as provided by subparagraph (E).
    ``(E) In determining the amount which would be an individual's 
primary insurance amount as provided in subparagraph (D)--
            ``(i) subsection (b)(4) shall not apply;
            ``(ii) section 215(b) as in effect in December 1978 shall 
        apply, except that section 215(b)(2)(C) (as then in effect) 
        shall be deemed to provide that an individual's `computation 
        base years' may include only calendar years in the period after 
        1950 (or 1936 if applicable) and ending with the calendar year 
        in which such individual attains age 61, plus the 3 calendar 
        years after such period for which the total of such 
        individual's wages and self-employment income is the largest; 
        and
            ``(iii) subdivision (I) in the last sentence of paragraph 
        (4) shall be applied as though the words `without regard to any 
        increases in that table' in such subdivision read `including 
        any increases in that table'.
    ``(F) This paragraph shall apply in the case of any individual only 
if such application results in a primary insurance amount for such 
individual that is greater than it would be if computed or recomputed 
under paragraph (4)(B) without regard to this paragraph.
    ``(G)(i) This paragraph shall apply in the case of any individual 
subject to any timely election to receive lump sum payments under this 
subparagraph.
    ``(ii) A written election to receive lump sum payments under this 
subparagraph, in lieu of the application of this paragraph to the 
computation of the primary insurance amount of an individual described 
in paragraph (4)(B), may be filed with the Commissioner of Social 
Security in such form and manner as shall be prescribed in regulations 
of the Commissioner. Any such election may be filed by such individual 
or, in the event of such individual's death before any such election is 
filed by such individual, by any other beneficiary entitled to benefits 
under section 202 on the basis of such individual's wages and self-
employment income. Any such election filed after December 31, 1998, 
shall be null and void and of no effect.
    ``(iii) Upon receipt by the Commissioner of a timely election filed 
by the individual described in paragraph (4)(B) in accordance with 
clause (ii)--
            ``(I) the Commissioner shall certify receipt of such 
        election to the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Secretary of 
        the Treasury, after receipt of such certification, shall pay 
such individual, from amounts in the Federal Old-Age and Survivors 
Insurance Trust Fund, a total amount equal to $5,000, in 4 annual lump 
sum installments of $1,250, the first of which shall be made during 
fiscal year 1999 not later than July 1, 1999, and
            ``(II) subparagraph (A) shall not apply in determining such 
        individual's primary insurance amount.
    ``(iv) Upon receipt by the Commissioner as of December 31, 1998, of 
a timely election filed in accordance with clause (ii) by at least one 
beneficiary entitled to benefits on the basis of the wages and self-
employment income of a deceased individual described in paragraph 
(4)(B), if such deceased individual has filed no timely election in 
accordance with clause (ii)--
            ``(I) the Commissioner shall certify receipt of all such 
        elections received as of such date to the Secretary of the 
        Treasury, and the Secretary of the Treasury, after receipt of 
        such certification, shall pay each beneficiary filing such a 
        timely election, from amounts in the Federal Old-Age and 
        Survivors Insurance Trust Fund, a total amount equal to $5,000 
        (or, in the case of 2 or more such beneficiaries, such amount 
        distributed evenly among such beneficiaries), in 4 equal annual 
        lump sum installments, the first of which shall be made during 
        fiscal year 1999 not later than July 1, 1999, and
            ``(II) solely for purposes of determining the amount of 
        such beneficiary's benefits, subparagraph (A) shall be deemed 
        not to apply in determining the deceased individual's primary 
        insurance amount.''.
    (b) Effective Date and Related Rules.--
            (1) Applicability of amendments.--
                    (A) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph 
                (2), the amendments made by this Act shall be effective 
                as though they had been included or reflected in 
                section 201 of the Social Security Amendments of 1977.
                    (B) Applicability.--No monthly benefit or primary 
                insurance amount under title II of the Social Security 
                Act shall be increased by reason of such amendments for 
                any month before July 1999. The amendments made this 
                section shall apply with respect to benefits payable in 
                months in any fiscal year after fiscal year 2002 only 
                if the corresponding decrease in adjusted discretionary 
                spending limits for budget authority and outlays under 
                section 3 of this Act for fiscal years prior to fiscal 
                year 2003 is extended by Federal law to such fiscal 
                year after fiscal year 2002.
            (2) Recomputation to reflect benefit increases.--In any 
        case in which an individual is entitled to monthly insurance 
        benefits under title II of the Social Security Act for June 
        1999, if such benefits are based on a primary insurance amount 
        computed--
                    (A) under section 215 of such Act as in effect (by 
                reason of the Social Security Amendments of 1977) after 
                December 1978, or
                    (B) under section 215 of such Act as in effect 
                prior to January 1979 by reason of subsection (a)(4)(B) 
                of such section (as amended by the Social Security 
                Amendments of 1977),
        the Commissioner of Social Security (notwithstanding section 
        215(f)(1) of the Social Security Act) shall recompute such 
        primary insurance amount so as to take into account the 
        amendments made by this Act.

SEC. 3. OFFSET THROUGH REDUCTIONS IN DISCRETIONARY SPENDING LIMITS.

    Whenever the Director of the Office of Management and Budget 
estimates this legislation under section 252(d)(2) of the Balanced 
Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, the Director shall 
decrease the adjusted discretionary spending limits for budget 
authority and outlays for each of fiscal years 1999 through 2002 set 
forth in section 251(c) of such Act by the increase in direct spending 
estimated to result from enactment of this legislation for that fiscal 
year. For fiscal year 1999, the decrease shall be in the nondefense 
category and for all other fiscal years shall be in the discretionary 
category. For purposes of section 252(b) of such Act, an amount equal 
to that decrease in the discretionary spending limit for outlays for 
each such fiscal year shall be treated as direct spending legislation 
decreasing the deficit for that fiscal year.