I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4140 

To provide for a one-time supplementary payment to beneficiaries of Social 

Security and Veterans benefits, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 1, 2015 

Mr. GUINTA (for himself and Ms. SINEMA) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to 

the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs, Transportation and Infrastructure, 

Appropriations, Energy and Commerce, and Financial Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To provide for a one-time supplementary payment to beneficiaries of Social Security and Veterans benefits, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Saving the Earnings 

5 and Noting the Investment of Our Retired Seniors Act 

6 of 2015’’ or the ‘‘SENIORS Act of 2015’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

2 It is the sense of Congress that— 

3 (1) seniors, especially those on a fixed income, 

4 who were promised social security benefits, paid into 

5 the system, and now rely on those benefits, receive 

6 a proper cost-of-living increase to fulfill their needs; 

7 and 

8 (2) Congress, in coordination with the heads of 

9 the Social Security Administration, the Railroad Re10 tirement Board, the Department of Veterans Affairs, 

11 and the Department of Labor, should develop a leg12 islative solution to ensure that the cost-of-living ad13 justment formula for Social Security adequately re14 flects beneficiaries’ needs. 

15 SEC. 3. ONE-TIME SUPPLEMENTARY PAYMENT TO BENE16 FICIARIES OF SOCIAL SECURITY AND VET17 ERANS BENEFITS. 

18 (a) AUTHORITY TO MAKE PAYMENTS.— 

19 (1) ELIGIBILITY.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph 

21 (4)(C), the Secretary of the Treasury shall dis22 burse a payment equal to the amount described 

23 in subsection (e) to each individual who, for any 

24 month during the 3-month period ending with 

25 the month which ends prior to the month that 

26 includes the date of the enactment of this Act, 


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1 is entitled to a benefit payment described in 

2 clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of subparagraph (B), or 

3 is eligible for a SSI cash benefit described in 

4 subparagraph (C). 

5 (B) BENEFIT PAYMENT DESCRIBED.—For 

6 purposes of subparagraph (A): 

7 (i) TITLE II BENEFIT.—A benefit pay8 ment described in this clause is a monthly 

9 insurance benefit payable under title II of 

10 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 401 et 

11 seq.). 

12 (ii) RAILROAD RETIREMENT BEN13 EFIT.—A benefit payment described in this 

14 clause is a monthly annuity or pension 

15 payment payable under subsection (a), (c), 

16 or (d) of section 2 of the Railroad Retire17 ment Act of 1974 (45 U.S.C. 231a). 

18 (iii) VETERANS BENEFIT.—A benefit 

19 payment described in this clause is a pay20 ment made by the Secretary of Veterans 

21 Affairs for a benefit under the laws admin22 istered by the Secretary— 

23 (I) that is covered by section 

24 5312 of title 38, United States Code; 


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1 (II) for which there was an in2 crease in rates made pursuant to the 

3 Veterans’ Compensation Cost-of-Liv4 ing Adjustment Act of 2014 (Public 

5 Law 113–181); or 

6 (III) that would otherwise be in7 creased pursuant to an increase in 

8 benefit amounts payable under title II 

9 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

10 401 et seq.). 

11 (C) SSI CASH BENEFIT DESCRIBED.—A 

12 SSI cash benefit described in this subparagraph 

13 is a supplemental security income benefit pay14 able under title XVI of the Social Security Act 

15 (42 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.). 

16 (2) NO DOUBLE PAYMENTS.—An individual 

17 shall be paid only 1 payment under this section, re18 gardless of whether the individual is entitled to, or 

19 eligible for, more than 1 benefit payment described 

20 in paragraph (1). 

21 (3) LIMITATION.—A payment under this section 

22 shall not be made in the case of any individual 

23 whose date of death occurs before the date on which 

24 the individual is certified under subsection (b) to re25 ceive a payment under this section. 


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1 (4) TIMING AND MANNER OF PAYMENTS.— 

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the 

3 Treasury shall commence disbursing payments 

4 under this section at the earliest practicable 

5 date but in no event later than 120 days after 

6 the date of enactment of this Act. The Sec7 retary of the Treasury may disburse any pay8 ment electronically to an individual in such 

9 manner as if such payment was a benefit pay10 ment to such individual under the applicable 

11 program described in subparagraph (B) or (C) 

12 of paragraph (1). 

13 (B) NOTICE.— 

14 (i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of 

15 the Treasury shall provide written notice, 

16 sent by mail to each individual receiving a 

17 payment under this section, explaining that 

18 the payment represents a one-time benefit 

19 increase to the benefit payment described 

20 in paragraph (1) to which the individual is 

21 entitled. 

22 (ii) PUBLIC NOTICE.—The Secretary 

23 of the Treasury, in consultation with the 

24 Commissioner of Social Security and the 

25 Secretary of Veterans Affairs, shall publish 


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1 on a public Web site information about the 

2 payments authorized under this subsection, 

3 including— 

4 (I) information on eligibility for 

5 such payments; 

6 (II) information on the time7 frame in which such payments will be 

8 distributed; and 

9 (III) other relevant information. 

10 (C) DEADLINE.—No payments shall be 

11 disbursed under this section after December 31, 

12 2016, regardless of any determinations of enti13 tlement to, or eligibility for, such payments 

14 made after such date. 

15 (b) IDENTIFICATION OF RECIPIENTS.—The Commis16 sioner of Social Security, the Railroad Retirement Board, 

17 and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall certify the in18 dividuals entitled to receive payments under this section 

19 and provide the Secretary of the Treasury with the infor20 mation needed to disburse such payments. A certification 

21 of an individual shall be unaffected by any subsequent de22 termination or redetermination of the individual’s entitle23 ment to, or eligibility for, a benefit specified in subpara24 graph (B) or (C) of subsection (a)(1). 

25 (c) TREATMENT OF PAYMENTS.— 


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1 (1) PAYMENT NOT CONSIDERED INCOME FOR

2 PURPOSES OF TAXATION.—A payment under sub3 section (a) shall not be considered as gross income 

4 for purposes of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

5 (2) PAYMENTS PROTECTED FROM ASSIGN6 MENT.—The provisions of section 207 of the Social 

7 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 407) and section 14(a) of 

8 the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 (45 U.S.C. 

9 231m(a)) shall apply to any payment made under 

10 subsection (a) as if such payment was a benefit pay11 ment to such individual under the applicable pro12 gram described in subsection (a)(1)(B). 

13 (3) TREATMENT UNDER SOCIAL SECURITY

14 ACT.— 

15 (A) NO EFFECT ON FAMILY MAXIMUM.— 

16 For purposes of section 203(a) of the Social Se17 curity Act (42 U.S.C. 403(a)), a payment under 

18 subsection (a) shall be disregarded in deter19 mining reductions in benefits under such sec20 tion. 

21 (B) PAYMENT NOT A GENERAL BENEFIT

22 INCREASE.—For purposes of section 215(i) of 

23 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 415(i)), a 

24 payment under subsection (a) shall not be re25 garded as a general benefit increase. 


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1 (4) PAYMENTS SUBJECT TO RECLAMATION.— 

2 Any payment made under this section shall, in the 

3 case of a payment by direct deposit which is made 

4 after the date of the enactment of this Act, be sub5 ject to the reclamation provisions under subpart B 

6 of part 210 of title 31, Code of Federal Regulations 

7 (relating to reclamation of benefit payments). 

8 (d) PAYMENT TO REPRESENTATIVE PAYEES AND FI9 DUCIARIES.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—In any case in which an in11 dividual who is entitled to a payment under sub12 section (a) and whose benefit payment or cash ben13 efit described in paragraph (1) of that subsection is 

14 paid to a representative payee or fiduciary, the pay15 ment under subsection (a) shall be made to the indi16 vidual’s representative payee or fiduciary and the en17 tire payment shall be used only for the benefit of the 

18 individual who is entitled to the payment. 

19 (2) APPLICABILITY.— 

20 (A) PAYMENT ON THE BASIS OF A TITLE

21 II BENEFIT OR SSI BENEFIT.—Section 

22 1129(a)(3) of the Social Security Act (42 

23 U.S.C. 1320a–8(a)(3)) shall apply to any pay24 ment made on the basis of an entitlement to a 

25 benefit specified in paragraph (1)(B)(i) or 


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1 (1)(C) of subsection (a) in the same manner as 

2 such section applies to a payment under title II 

3 or XVI of such Act. 

4 (B) PAYMENT ON THE BASIS OF A RAIL5 ROAD RETIREMENT BENEFIT.—Section 13 of 

6 the Railroad Retirement Act (45 U.S.C. 231l) 

7 shall apply to any payment made on the basis 

8 of an entitlement to a benefit specified in para9 graph (1)(B)(ii) of subsection (a) in the same 

10 manner as such section applies to a payment 

11 under such Act. 

12 (C) PAYMENT ON THE BASIS OF A VET13 ERANS BENEFIT.—Sections 5502, 6106, and 

14 6108 of title 38, United States Code, shall 

15 apply to any payment made on the basis of an 

16 entitlement to a benefit specified in paragraph 

17 (1)(B)(iii) of subsection (a) in the same manner 

18 as those sections apply to a payment under that 

19 title. 

20 (e) PAYMENT AMOUNT.—The amount described in 

21 this subsection, with respect to an individual who is enti22 tled to a benefit payment described in clause (i), (ii), or 

23 (iii) of subparagraph (B) of subsection (a)(1) or eligible 

24 for a SSI cash benefit described in subparagraph (C) of 

25 such subsection, is the amount that is equal to 12 percent 


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1 of the amount of such benefit payment or SSI cash benefit 

2 payable to the individual for the month of November 2015. 

3 (f) APPROPRIATION.—Out of any sums in the Treas4 ury of the United States not otherwise appropriated, the 

5 following sums are appropriated for the period of fiscal 

6 years 2016 through 2017, to remain available until ex7 pended, to carry out this section: 

8 (1) For the Secretary of the Treasury, such 

9 sums as may be necessary for administrative costs 

10 incurred in carrying out this section. 

11 (2) For the Commissioner of Social Security— 

12 (A) such sums as may be necessary for 

13 payments to individuals certified by the Com14 missioner of Social Security as entitled to re15 ceive a payment under this section; and 

16 (B) such sums as may be necessary to the 

17 Social Security Administration’s Limitation on 

18 Administrative Expenses for costs incurred in 

19 carrying out this section. 

20 (3) For the Railroad Retirement Board— 

21 (A) such sums as may be necessary for 

22 payments to individuals certified by the Rail23 road Retirement Board as entitled to receive a 

24 payment under this section; and 


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1 (B) such sums as may be necessary to the 

2 Railroad Retirement Board’s Limitation on Ad3 ministration for administrative costs incurred in 

4 carrying out this section. 

5 (4)(A) For the Secretary of Veterans Affairs— 

6 (i) such sums as may be necessary for the 

7 Compensation and Pensions account, for pay8 ments to individuals certified by the Secretary 

9 of Veterans Affairs as entitled to receive a pay10 ment under this section; and 

11 (ii) such sums as may be necessary for the 

12 Information Systems Technology account and 

13 the General Operating Expenses account for ad14 ministrative costs incurred in carrying out this 

15 section. 

16 (B) The Department of Veterans Affairs Com17 pensation and Pensions account shall hereinafter be 

18 available for payments authorized under subsection 

19 (a)(1)(A) to individuals entitled to a benefit payment 

20 described in subsection (a)(1)(B)(iii). 

21 SEC. 4. OFFSETS. 

22 (a) RESCISSION OF FUNDS IN U.S. ENRICHMENT

23 CORPORATION FUND.—All balances under ‘‘United States 

24 Enrichment Corporation Fund’’ are hereby permanently 

25 rescinded. No amounts may be rescinded from amounts 


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1 that were designated by the Congress as an emergency re2 quirement pursuant to a concurrent resolution on the 

3 budget or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit 

4 Control Act of 1985. 

5 (b) SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER REQUIRED TO CLAIM

6 THE REFUNDABLE PORTION OF THE CHILD TAX CRED7 IT.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 24(d) of the Internal 

9 Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the 

10 end the following new paragraph: 

11 ‘‘(5) IDENTIFICATION REQUIREMENT WITH RE12 SPECT TO TAXPAYER AND QUALIFYING CHILD.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) shall 

14 not apply to any taxpayer for any taxable year 

15 unless the taxpayer includes on the return of 

16 tax for such taxable year the taxpayer’s social 

17 security number. 

18 ‘‘(B) JOINT RETURNS.—In the case of a 

19 joint return, the requirement of subparagraph 

20 (A) shall be treated as met if the social security 

21 number of either spouse is included on such re22 turn. 

23 ‘‘(C) LIMITATION.—Subparagraph (A) 

24 shall not apply to the extent that the tentative 

25 minimum tax (as defined in section 


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1 55(b)(1)(A)) exceeds the credit allowed under 

2 section 32.’’. 

3 (2) OMISSIONS TREATED AS MATHEMATICAL OR

4 CLERICAL ERROR.—Section 6213(g)(2)(I) of such 

5 Code is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(I) an omission of a correct social secu7 rity number required under section 24(d)(5) 

8 (relating to refundable portion of child tax cred9 it), or a correct TIN under section 24(e) (relat10 ing to child tax credit), to be included on a re11 turn,’’. 

12 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 24(e) 

13 of such Code is amended by inserting ‘‘WITH RE14 SPECT TO QUALIFYING CHILDREN’’ after ‘‘IDENTI15 FICATION REQUIREMENT’’ in the heading thereof. 

16 (4) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

17 by this section shall apply to taxable years beginning 

18 after December 31, 2015. 

19 (c) RESCISSION OF FUNDS FOR THE MAKING HOME

20 AFFORDABLE PROGRAM.—Of the amounts obligated, but 

21 not expended, under the Emergency Economic Stabiliza22 tion Act of 2008 for the Making Home Affordable Pro23 gram of the Department of the Treasury, the Secretary 

24 of the Treasury shall transfer $2,500,000,000 to the gen25 eral fund of the Treasury. 


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1 (d) RESCISSION OF FUNDS FOR THE DOE ATVM 

2 LOAN PROGRAM.—Of the funds made available by section 

3 129 of the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and 

4 Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009, Public Law 110– 

5 329, the unobligated balance is hereby rescinded. 

6 SEC. 5. REPORT. 

7 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

8 of this Act, the heads of the Social Security Administra9 tion, the Railroad Retirement Board, the Department of 

10 Veterans Affairs, and the Department of Labor shall joint11 ly submit a report to Congress that includes a legislative 

12 solution to ensure that the cost-of-living adjustment for13 mula for Social Security adequately reflects beneficiary’s 

14 needs. 

Æ 


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