II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1904 

To provide information on total spending on means-tested welfare programs, 

to provide additional work requirements, and to provide an overall spending limit on means-tested welfare programs. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 17, 2011 

Mr. DEMINT (for himself, Mr. LEE, Mr. VITTER, Mr. PAUL, Mr. SESSIONS, 

Mr. GRAHAM, Mr. INHOFE, and Mr. COBURN) introduced the following 

bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To provide information on total spending on means-tested 

welfare programs, to provide additional work requirements, and to provide an overall spending limit on 

means-tested welfare programs. 

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 ‘‘Welfare Reform Act 

5 of 2011’’. 

6 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

7 The table of contents of this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 


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Sec. 2. Table of contents. 

TITLE I—TANF REFORMS 

Sec. 101. Short title. 

Sec. 102. Elimination of temporary modification of the caseload reduction credit. 

Sec. 103. Reduction in funding of State family assistance grants. 

TITLE II—MODIFICATIONS TO FOOD STAMP PROGRAM 

Sec. 201. Restoration of Act short title and references to the food stamp program. 

Sec. 202. Work requirements. 

Sec. 203. Definition of food. 

Sec. 204. Termination of benefit increase. 

TITLE III—REPORTING OF MEANS-TESTED WELFARE SPENDING 

IN PRESIDENT’S BUDGET SUBMISSION 

Sec. 301. Additional information in President’s budget submission. 

TITLE IV—AGGREGATE CAP FOR MEANS-TESTED WELFARE 

SPENDING 

Sec. 401. Definition of means-tested welfare spending. 

Sec. 402. Reports to budget committees. 

Sec. 403. Content of concurrent resolutions on the budget. 

Sec. 404. Allocations of means-tested welfare spending. 

Sec. 405. Reconciliation. 

TITLE V—GRANTS TO PROMOTE SELF-SUFFICIENCY 

Sec. 501. Grants to States. 

TITLE VI—PROHIBITION ON FUNDING OF ABORTION 

Sec. 601. Prohibition on funding for abortions. 

Sec. 602. Prohibition on funding for health benefits plans that cover abortion. 

Sec. 603. Prohibition on tax benefits relating to abortion. 

Sec. 604. Construction relating to separate coverage. 

Sec. 605. Construction relating to the use of non-Federal funds for health coverage. 

Sec. 606. Treatment of abortions related to rape, incest, or preserving the life 

of the mother. 

1 TITLE I—TANF REFORMS 

2 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE. 

3 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Welfare Reform Res4 toration Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 102. ELIMINATION OF TEMPORARY MODIFICATION OF 

2 THE CASELOAD REDUCTION CREDIT. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 407(b)(3)(A)(i) of the So4 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 607(b)(3)(A)(i)) is amended 

5 by striking ‘‘(or if the immediately preceding fiscal year 

6 is fiscal year 2008, 2009, or 2010, then, at State option, 

7 during the emergency fund base year of the State with 

8 respect to the average monthly assistance caseload of the 

9 State (within the meaning of section 403(c)(9)), except 

10 that, if a State elects such option for fiscal year 2008, 

11 the emergency fund base year of the State with respect 

12 to such caseload shall be fiscal year 2007))’’. 

13 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 2101 of 

14 the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 

15 (123 Stat. 448–449; Public Law 111–5) is amended— 

16 (1) in subsection (a)(2), by striking ‘‘, except 

17 that paragraph (9) of such subsection shall remain 

18 in effect until October 1, 2011, but only with respect 

19 to section 407(b)(3)(A)(i) of such Act’’; and 

20 (2) by striking subsection (d)(2). 

21 SEC. 103. REDUCTION IN FUNDING OF STATE FAMILY AS22 SISTANCE GRANTS. 

23 Section 403(a)(1)(C) of the Social Security Act (42 

24 U.S.C. 603(a)(1)(C)) is amended by striking ‘‘2003 

25 $16,566,542,000’’ and inserting ‘‘2011 and each sucVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:08 Nov 19, 2011 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1904.IS S1904

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1 ceeding fiscal year $15,566,042,000, notwithstanding any 

2 other provision of law’’. 

3 TITLE II—MODIFICATIONS TO 

4 FOOD STAMP PROGRAM 

5 SEC. 201. RESTORATION OF ACT SHORT TITLE AND REF6 ERENCES TO THE FOOD STAMP PROGRAM. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Effective June 18, 2008, sections 

8 4001 and 4002 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy 

9 Act of 2008 (Public Law 110–246; 122 Stat. 1853) and 

10 the amendments made by those sections are repealed. 

11 (b) APPLICATION.—The Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 

12 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.) and each provision of law amended 

13 by section 4001 or 4002 of the Food, Conservation, and 

14 Energy Act of 2008 (Public Law 110–246; 122 Stat. 

15 1853), shall be applied and administered as if those sec16 tions and the amendments made by those sections had not 

17 been enacted. 

18 SEC. 202. WORK REQUIREMENTS. 

19 (a) DECLARATION OF POLICY.—Section 2 of the 

20 Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2011) is amended by 

21 adding at the end the following: ‘‘Congress further finds 

22 that it should also be the purpose of the food stamp pro23 gram to increase employment, to encourage healthy mar24 riage, and to promote prosperous self-sufficiency, which 

25 means the ability of households to maintain an income 


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1 above the poverty level without services and benefits from 

2 the Federal Government.’’. 

3 (b) DEFINITIONS.—Section 3 of the Food Stamp Act 

4 of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2012) is amended by adding at the end 

5 the following: 

6 ‘‘(w) ABLE-BODIED, WORK-ELIGIBLE ADULT.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘able-bodied, 

8 work-eligible adult’ means an individual who— 

9 ‘‘(A) is more than 18, and less than 63, 

10 years of age; 

11 ‘‘(B) is not physically or mentally incapa12 ble of work; and 

13 ‘‘(C) is not the full-time caretaker of a dis14 abled adult dependent. 

15 ‘‘(2) PHYSICALLY OR MENTALLY INCAPABLE OF

16 WORK.—For purposes of paragraph (1)(B), the term 

17 ‘physically or mentally incapable of work’ means an 

18 individual who— 

19 ‘‘(A) currently receives benefits under the 

20 supplemental security income program estab21 lished under title XVI of the Social Security 

22 Act (42 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.) or another pro23 gram that provides recurring benefits to indi24 viduals because the individual is disabled and 

25 unable to work; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) has been medically certified as phys2 ically or mentally incapable of work and who 

3 has a credible pending application for enroll4 ment in the supplemental security income pro5 gram established under title XVI of the Social 

6 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.) or an7 other program that provides recurring benefits 

8 to individuals because the individual is disabled 

9 and unable to work. 

10 ‘‘(x) FAMILY HEAD.—The term ‘family head’ 

11 means— 

12 ‘‘(1) a biological parent who is lawfully present 

13 in the United States and resides within a household 

14 with 1 or more dependent children who are the bio15 logical offspring of the parent; or 

16 ‘‘(2) in the absence of a biological parent, a 

17 step parent, adoptive parent, guardian, or adult rel18 ative who resides with and provides care to the 1 or 

19 more children and is lawfully present in the United 

20 States. 

21 ‘‘(y) FAMILY UNIT.—The term ‘family unit’ means— 

22 ‘‘(1) an adult residing without dependent chil23 dren; 

24 ‘‘(2) a single-headed family with dependent chil25 dren; or 


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1 ‘‘(3) a married couple family with dependent 

2 children. 

3 ‘‘(z) FAMILY WITH DEPENDENT CHILDREN.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘family with de5 pendent children’ means a unit consisting of a fam6 ily head, 1 or more dependent children, and, if appli7 cable, the married spouse of the family head, all of 

8 whom share meals and reside within a single house9 hold. 

10 ‘‘(2) MULTIPLE FAMILIES IN A HOUSEHOLD.— 

11 There may be more than 1 family with dependent 

12 children in a single household. 

13 ‘‘(aa) MARRIED COUPLE FAMILY WITH DEPENDENT

14 CHILDREN.—The term ‘married couple family with de15 pendent children’ means a family with dependent children 

16 that has both a family head and the married spouse of 

17 the family head residing with the family. 

18 ‘‘(bb) MARRIED SPOUSE OF THE FAMILY HEAD.— 

19 The term ‘married spouse of the family head’ means the 

20 lawfully married spouse of the family head who— 

21 ‘‘(1) resides with the family head and depend22 ent children; and 

23 ‘‘(2) is lawfully present in the United States. 

24 ‘‘(cc) MEMBER OF A FAMILY.—The term ‘member of 

25 a family’ means the family head, married spouse if 


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1 present, and all dependent children within a family with 

2 dependent children 

3 ‘‘(dd) MONTHLY POTENTIAL WORK ACTIVATION

4 POPULATION.—The term ‘monthly potential work activa5 tion population’ means the sum of— 

6 ‘‘(1) all able-bodied, work-eligible adults without 

7 dependents who have received food stamp benefits 

8 and have maintained less than 60 hours of paid em9 ployment during a month; 

10 ‘‘(2) all work-eligible single-headed families with 

11 dependent children that have received food stamp 

12 benefits during the month and have maintained less 

13 than 120 hours of paid employment by the family 

14 head during the month; and 

15 ‘‘(3) all work-eligible married couples with de16 pendent children that have received food stamp ben17 efits during the month and have maintained less 

18 than 120 combined hours of paid employment be19 tween the family head and the married spouse, 

20 summed together and counted jointly, during the 

21 month. 

22 ‘‘(ee) MONTHLY WORK ACTIVATION PARTICI23 PANTS.—The term ‘monthly work activation participants’ 

24 means the sum of— 


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1 ‘‘(1) all able-bodied, work-eligible adults without 

2 dependents who have received food stamp benefits 

3 and have maintained— 

4 ‘‘(A) less than 60 hours of paid employ5 ment during a month; and 

6 ‘‘(B) more than 60 hours of combined paid 

7 employment and work activation activity during 

8 the month; 

9 ‘‘(2) all work-eligible single-headed families with 

10 dependent children that have received food stamp 

11 benefits during the month and include a family head 

12 who has maintained— 

13 ‘‘(A) less than 120 hours of paid employ14 ment during the month; and 

15 ‘‘(B) more than 120 hours of combined 

16 paid employment and work activation activity 

17 during the month; and 

18 ‘‘(3) all work-eligible married couples with de19 pendent children who have received food stamp bene20 fits during the month, and have maintained— 

21 ‘‘(A) less than 120 combined hours of paid 

22 employment between the family head and the 

23 spouse, combined, during the month; and 

24 ‘‘(B) more than 120 hours of combined 

25 paid employment and work activation activity 


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1 between the family head and the married 

2 spouse, combined, during the month. 

3 ‘‘(ff) SINGLE-HEADED FAMILY WITH DEPENDENT

4 CHILDREN.—The term ‘single-headed family with depend5 ent children’ means a family with dependent children 

6 that— 

7 ‘‘(1) contains a family head residing with the 

8 family; but 

9 ‘‘(2) does not have a married spouse of the 

10 family head residing with the family. 

11 ‘‘(gg) WORK ACTIVATION.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘work activation’ 

13 means— 

14 ‘‘(A) supervised job search; 

15 ‘‘(B) community service activities; 

16 ‘‘(C) education and job training for indi17 viduals who are family heads or married 

18 spouses of family heads; 

19 ‘‘(D) workfare under section 20; or 

20 ‘‘(E) drug or alcohol treatment. 

21 ‘‘(2) SUPERVISED JOB SEARCH.—For purposes 

22 of paragraph (1)(A), the term ‘supervised job 

23 search’ means a job search program that has the fol24 lowing characteristics: 


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1 ‘‘(A) The job search occurs at an official 

2 location where the presence and activity of the 

3 recipient can be directly observed, supervised, 

4 and monitored. 

5 ‘‘(B) The recipient’s entry, time on site, 

6 and exit from the official job search location are 

7 recorded in a manner that prevents fraud. 

8 ‘‘(C) The recipient is expected to remain 

9 and undertake job search activities at the job 

10 search center, except for brief, authorized de11 partures for specified off-site interviews. 

12 ‘‘(D) The quantity of time the recipient is 

13 observed and monitored engaging in job search 

14 at the official location is recorded for purposes 

15 of compliance with section 29. 

16 ‘‘(hh) WORK ACTIVATION RATIO.—The term ‘work 

17 activation ratio’ means the quotient obtained by divid18 ing— 

19 ‘‘(1) the number of work activation participants 

20 in a month; by 

21 ‘‘(2) the monthly potential work activation pop22 ulation for the month. 

23 ‘‘(ii) WORK ACTIVITIES.—The term ‘work activities’ 

24 means— 

25 ‘‘(1) paid employment; 


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1 ‘‘(2) work activation; or 

2 ‘‘(3) a combination of both paid employment 

3 and work activation. 

4 ‘‘(jj) WORK-ELIGIBLE ADULT WITHOUT DEPEND5 ENT CHILDREN.—The term ‘work-eligible adult without 

6 dependent children’ means an individual who— 

7 ‘‘(1) is an able-bodied, work-eligible adult; and 

8 ‘‘(2) is not a family head or the married spouse 

9 of a family head. 

10 ‘‘(kk) WORK-ELIGIBLE FAMILY UNIT.—The term 

11 ‘work-eligible family unit’ means— 

12 ‘‘(1) an able-bodied, work-eligible adult without 

13 dependent children; 

14 ‘‘(2) a work-eligible single-headed family with 

15 dependent children; or 

16 ‘‘(3) a work-eligible married couple family with 

17 dependent children. 

18 ‘‘(ll) WORK-ELIGIBLE MARRIED COUPLE FAMILY

19 WITH DEPENDENT CHILDREN.—The term ‘work-eligible 

20 married couple family with dependent children’ means a 

21 married couple with dependent children that contains at 

22 least 1 work-eligible, able-bodied adult who is— 

23 ‘‘(1) the family head; or 

24 ‘‘(2) the married spouse of the family head. 


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1 ‘‘(mm) WORK-ELIGIBLE SINGLE-HEADED FAMILY

2 WITH DEPENDENT CHILDREN.—The term ‘work-eligible 

3 single-headed family with dependent children’ means a 

4 single-headed family with dependent children that has a 

5 family head who is an able-bodied, work-eligible adult.’’. 

6 (c) CONDITIONS OF PARTICIPATION.—Section 6 of 

7 the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2015(d)) is 

8 amended by striking subsection (d) and inserting the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(d) CONDITIONS OF PARTICIPATION.— 

11 ‘‘(1) WORK REQUIREMENTS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—No able-bodied, work13 eligible adult shall be eligible to participate in 

14 the food stamp program if the individual— 

15 ‘‘(i) refuses, at the time of application 

16 and every 12 months thereafter, to register 

17 for employment in a manner prescribed by 

18 the Secretary; 

19 ‘‘(ii) refuses without good cause to ac20 cept an offer of employment, at a site or 

21 plant not subject to a strike or lockout at 

22 the time of the refusal, at a wage not less 

23 than the higher of— 

24 ‘‘(I) the applicable Federal or 

25 State minimum wage; or 


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1 ‘‘(II) 80 percent of the wage that 

2 would have applied had the minimum 

3 hourly rate under section 6(a)(1) of 

4 the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

5 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(a)(1)) been ap6 plicable to the offer of employment; 

7 ‘‘(iii) refuses without good cause to 

8 provide a State agency with sufficient in9 formation to allow the State agency to de10 termine the employment status or the job 

11 availability of the individual; or 

12 ‘‘(iv) voluntarily— 

13 ‘‘(I) quits a job; or 

14 ‘‘(II) reduces work effort and, 

15 after the reduction, is working less 

16 than 30 hours per week, unless an17 other adult in the same family unit in18 creases employment at the same time 

19 by an amount that is at least equal to 

20 the reduction in work effort by the 

21 first adult. 

22 ‘‘(B) FAMILY UNIT INELIGIBILITY.—If an 

23 able-bodied, work-eligible adult is ineligible to 

24 participate in the food stamp program because 

25 of subparagraph (A), no other member of the 


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1 family unit to which that adult belongs shall be 

2 eligible to participate. 

3 ‘‘(C) DURATION OF INELIGIBILITY.—An 

4 able-bodied, work-eligible adult who becomes in5 eligible under subparagraph (A), and members 

6 of the family unit who become ineligible under 

7 subparagraph (B), shall remain ineligible for 3 

8 months after the date on which ineligibility 

9 began. 

10 ‘‘(D) RESTORATION OF ELIGIBILITY.—At 

11 the end of the 3-month period of ineligibility 

12 under subparagraph (c), members of a work-eli13 gible family unit may have their eligibility to 

14 participate in the food stamp program restored, 

15 if— 

16 ‘‘(i) the family unit is no longer a 

17 work-eligible family unit; or 

18 ‘‘(ii) the adult members of the family 

19 unit begin and maintain any combination 

20 of paid employment and work activation 

21 sufficient to meet the appropriate stand22 ards for resumption of benefits in section 

23 29(c)(2). 

24 ‘‘(2) STRIKE AGAINST A GOVERNMENT.—For 

25 the purpose of subparagraph (A)(iv), an employee of 


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1 the Federal Government, a State, or a political sub2 division of a State, who is dismissed for partici3 pating in a strike against the Federal Government, 

4 the State, or the political subdivision of the State 

5 shall be considered to have voluntarily quit without 

6 good cause. 

7 ‘‘(3) STRIKING WORKERS INELIGIBLE.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

9 subparagraphs (B) and (C) and notwith10 standing any other provision of law, no member 

11 of a family shall be eligible to participate in the 

12 food stamp program at any time that any able13 bodied, work-eligible adult member of the 

14 household is on strike as defined in section 501 

15 of the Labor Management Relations Act, 1947 

16 (29 U.S.C. 142), because of a labor dispute 

17 (other than a lockout) as defined in section 2 

18 of the National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 

19 152). 

20 ‘‘(B) PRIOR ELIGIBILITY.— 

21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clauses 

22 (ii), a family unit shall not lose eligibility 

23 to participate in the food stamp program 

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1 ily unit going on strike if the household 

2 was eligible immediately prior to the strike. 

3 ‘‘(ii) NO INCREASED ALLOTMENT.—A 

4 family unit described in clause (i) shall not 

5 receive an increased allotment as the result 

6 of a decrease in the income of the 1 or 

7 more striking members of the household. 

8 ‘‘(C) REFUSAL TO ACCEPT EMPLOY9 MENT.—Ineligibility described in subparagraph 

10 (A) shall not apply to any family unit that does 

11 not contain a member on strike, if any of the 

12 members of the family unit refuses to accept 

13 employment at a plant or site because of a 

14 strike or lockout.’’. 

15 (d) ELIGIBILITY OF STUDENTS WITH DEPENDENT

16 CHILDREN.—Section 6(e) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 

17 (7 U.S.C. 2015(e)) is amended by striking paragraph (8) 

18 and inserting the following: 

19 ‘‘(8) is enrolled full-time in an institution of 

20 higher education, as determined by the institution, 

21 and— 

22 ‘‘(A) is a single parent with responsibility 

23 for the care of a dependent child under 12 

24 years of age; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) is a family head or married spouse of 

2 a family head in a married couple family with 

3 dependent children and has a dependent child 

4 under age 12 residing in the home.’’. 

5 (e) WORK REQUIREMENT.—Section 6 of the Food 

6 Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2015) is amended by strik7 ing subsection (o) and inserting the following: 

8 ‘‘(o) FULFILLMENT OF EMPLOYMENT AND WORK

9 ACTIVATION REQUIREMENTS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If 1 or more adults within 

11 a work-eligible family unit are required by the State 

12 agency to participate in work activation under sec13 tion 29, no member of the family unit shall be eligi14 ble for food stamp benefits unless the family unit 

15 complies with the employment and work activation 

16 standards. 

17 ‘‘(2) SANCTIONS AND RESUMPTION OF BENE18 FITS.—If 1 or more adults within a work-eligible 

19 family unit who are required by the State agency to 

20 participate in work activation under section 29 dur21 ing a given month fail to comply with the work acti22 vation standards, benefits for all members of the 

23 family unit— 

24 ‘‘(A) shall be terminated in accordance 

25 with section 29(c)(1); and 


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1 ‘‘(B) may be resumed upon compliance 

2 with section 29(c)(2).’’. 

3 (f) EXCLUSION.—Section 6 of the Food Stamp Act 

4 of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2015) is amended by adding at the end 

5 the following: 

6 ‘‘(r) MINOR CHILDREN.—No child less than age 18 

7 years of age may participate in the food stamp program 

8 unless the child is a member of a family with dependent 

9 children and resides with an adult who is— 

10 ‘‘(1) the family head of the same family of 

11 which the child is also a member; 

12 ‘‘(2) eligible to participate, and participating, in 

13 the food stamp program as a member of the same 

14 household as the child; and 

15 ‘‘(3) lawfully residing, and eligible to work, in 

16 the United States.’’. 

17 (g) HEARING AND DETERMINATION.—Section 

18 11(e)(10) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 

19 2020(e)(10)) is amended by striking ‘‘: Provided’’ and all 

20 that follows through ‘‘hearing;’’ at the end and inserting 

21 a semicolon. 

22 (h) WORK REQUIREMENTS AND ACTIVATION PRO23 GRAM.—The Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et 

24 seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 29. WORK REQUIREMENTS AND ACTIVATION PRO2 GRAM. 

3 ‘‘(a) EMPLOYMENT AND WORK ACTIVATION STAND4 ARDS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A family unit with adult 

6 members that is required to participate in work acti7 vation under subsection (b) during a full month of 

8 participation in the food stamp program shall fulfill 

9 the following levels of work activity during that 

10 month: 

11 ‘‘(A) Each able-bodied, work-eligible adult 

12 without dependent children shall be required to 

13 perform work activities for at least 60 hours 

14 per month. 

15 ‘‘(B) Each family head of a work-eligible 

16 single-headed family with dependent children 

17 shall be required to perform work activities for 

18 at least 120 hours per month. 

19 ‘‘(C) Subject to paragraph (2), in each 

20 work-eligible married couple family with de21 pendent children, the family head and married 

22 spouse shall be required to perform work activi23 ties that when added together for the 2 adults 

24 equal at least 120 hours per month. 

25 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) SINGLE JOINT OBLIGATION.—The 

2 120-hour requirement under paragraph (1)(C) 

3 shall be a single joint obligation for the married 

4 couple as a whole in which the activities of both 

5 married partners shall be combined together 

6 and counted jointly. 

7 ‘‘(B) RELATIONSHIP TO PAID EMPLOY8 MENT AND WORK ACTIVATION.—For purposes 

9 of meeting the 120-hour requirement, the paid 

10 employment and work activation of the family 

11 head shall be added to the paid employment 

12 and work activation of the married spouse, and 

13 the requirement shall be fulfilled if the sum of 

14 the work activities of the 2 individuals equals or 

15 exceeds 120 hours per month. 

16 ‘‘(C) OPTIONS.—The work requirement for 

17 a work-eligible married couple family with de18 pendent children may be fulfilled— 

19 ‘‘(i) by 120 or more hours of work ac20 tivity by the family head; 

21 ‘‘(ii) by 120 or more hours of work 

22 activities by the married spouse; or 

23 ‘‘(iii) if the combined work activities 

24 of the family head and married spouse 


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1 which when added together equal or exceed 

2 120 hours. 

3 ‘‘(D) NO SEPARATE WORK ACTIVATION RE4 QUIREMENT.—Neither the family head nor the 

5 married spouse in a married couple with de6 pendent children shall be subject to a separate 

7 work activation requirement as individuals. 

8 ‘‘(b) PRO RATA REDUCTION IN EMPLOYMENT AND

9 WORK ACTIVATION STANDARD DURING A PARTIAL

10 MONTH.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A work-eligible family unit 

12 shall be subject to a pro-rated work activity stand13 ard, if the family unit— 

14 ‘‘(A) receives a pro-rated monthly allot15 ment during the initial month of enrollment 

16 under section 8(c); and 

17 ‘‘(B) is required by the State to participate 

18 in the work activation program during that 

19 month. 

20 ‘‘(2) PRO-RATED WORK ACTIVITY STANDARD.— 

21 For purposes of paragraph (1), the term ‘pro-rated 

22 work activity standard’ means a standard that 

23 equals a number of hours of work activity of a fam24 ily unit that bears the same proportion to the em25 ployment and work activation requirement for the 


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1 family unit for a full month under subsection (a) as 

2 the proportion that— 

3 ‘‘(A) the pro-rated monthly allotment re4 ceived by the household for the partial month 

5 under section 8(c); bears to 

6 ‘‘(B) the full allotment the same household 

7 would receive for a complete month. 

8 ‘‘(3) REQUIREMENT.—For purposes of fulfilling 

9 the pro-rated work activity requirement during an 

10 initial month of enrollment in the food stamp pro11 gram, only those hours of adult work activity that 

12 occurred during the portion of the month in which 

13 the family unit was participating in the food stamp 

14 program shall be counted. 

15 ‘‘(c) SANCTION FOR NONCOMPLIANCE.— 

16 ‘‘(1) STANDARD.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If 1 or more members 

18 of a work-eligible family unit are required to 

19 participate in the work activation program 

20 under subsection (e) in a calendar month and 

21 the 1 or more individuals fail to fulfill the work 

22 activity standard under subsection (a) or (b) for 

23 that month— 

24 ‘‘(i) no member of the family unit 

25 shall be eligible to receive food stamp beneVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:08 Nov 19, 2011 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1904.IS S1904

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24 

•S 1904 IS

1 fits during the subsequent calendar month; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(ii) except as provided in subpara4 graph (B), the State agency shall not pro5 vide the food stamp benefit payment for all 

6 members of the family unit that otherwise 

7 would have been issued at the beginning of 

8 the next month. 

9 ‘‘(B) ADMINISTRATIVE DELAY OF SANC10 TION.— 

11 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as pro12 vided in clauses (ii) and (iii), if it is admin13 istratively infeasible for the State to not 

14 provide the food stamp benefit that would 

15 be issued at the beginning of the first 

16 month after the month of noncompliance, 

17 the State shall not provide the payment to 

18 all members of the family unit that other19 wise would have been made at the begin20 ning of the second month after the month 

21 of noncompliance. 

22 ‘‘(ii) DEADLINE.—The sanction of 

23 benefits shall occur not later than 32 days 

24 after the end of the month of noncompli25 ance. 


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•S 1904 IS

1 ‘‘(iii) RELATIONSHIP OF PAYMENTS

2 TO MEMBERS OF THE FAMILY UNIT.—At 

3 least 1 monthly payment to all members of 

4 the family unit shall be not provided for 

5 each month of noncompliance under sub6 paragraph (A). 

7 ‘‘(2) RESUMPTION OF BENEFITS AFTER SANC8 TION.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If a family unit has 

10 had the monthly benefit of the family unit not 

11 provided due to noncompliance with a work ac12 tivity requirement under subsection (b), the 

13 family unit shall not be eligible to receive future 

14 benefits under the food stamp program, until— 

15 ‘‘(i) the 1 or more work-eligible mem16 bers of the family unit have participated in 

17 the work activation program under sub18 section (e) for at least 4 consecutive subse19 quent weeks and fulfilled the work activity 

20 standard for the family unit for that same 

21 4-week period; or 

22 ‘‘(ii) the family unit no longer con23 tains any able-bodied, work-eligible adults. 

24 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—The resumed benefits 

25 cannot restore or compensate for the benefits 


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•S 1904 IS

1 that were not provided due to the sanction im2 posed under paragraph (1). 

3 ‘‘(d) WORK ACTIVATION IS NOT EMPLOYMENT.— 

4 Participation in work activation activities under this sec5 tion shall— 

6 ‘‘(1) not be considered to be employment; and 

7 ‘‘(2) not be subject to any law pertaining to 

8 wages, compensation, hours, or conditions of employ9 ment under any law administered by the Secretary 

10 of Labor. 

11 ‘‘(e) WORK ACTIVATION PROGRAM.— 

12 ‘‘(1) PROGRAM.—Each State participating in 

13 the food stamp program shall carry out a work acti14 vation program. 

15 ‘‘(2) PURPOSE.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The goal of each work 

17 activation program shall be to increase the em18 ployment of able-bodied, work-eligible adult 

19 food stamp recipients. 

20 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENT.—To accomplish the 

21 goal, each State shall require able-bodied adult 

22 food stamp recipients who are unemployed or 

23 under-employed to engage in work activation. 

24 ‘‘(3) TARGET WORK ACTIVATION RATIOS.— 


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•S 1904 IS

1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Beginning on the date 

2 that is 180 days after the date of enactment of 

3 this section, a State shall engage able-bodied 

4 food stamp recipients in work activation each 

5 month in sufficient numbers to meet the fol6 lowing monthly target work activation ratios: 

7 ‘‘(i) In 2012, the monthly target work 

8 activation ratio shall be 4 percent. 

9 ‘‘(ii) In 2013 and each subsequent 

10 year, the monthly target work activation 

11 ratio shall be 7 percent. 

12 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION ON EDUCATION AND

13 TRAINING AS A COMPONENT OF WORK ACTIVA14 TION.—For purposes of compliance by the 

15 State with the work activation ratios, not more 

16 than 20 percent of the monthly work activation 

17 participants counted by the State may be en18 gaged in employment and training as a means 

19 of fulfilling the employment and work activation 

20 standards of the participants. 

21 ‘‘(4) WORK ACTIVATION PRIORITY POPU22 LATIONS.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the 

24 work activation programs, a State shall give 


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•S 1904 IS

1 priority to participation by the following recipi2 ent groups: 

3 ‘‘(i) Work-eligible adults without de4 pendent children. 

5 ‘‘(ii) Work-eligible adults who are also 

6 recipients of housing assistance. 

7 ‘‘(iii) Other work-eligible recipients at 

8 the time of initial application for food 

9 stamp benefits. 

10 ‘‘(B) PARTICIPATION SHARE.—Except as 

11 provided in subparagraph (C), at least 80 per12 cent of the participants in a work activation 

13 program shall belong to at least 1 of the 3 pri14 ority groups listed in subparagraph (A). 

15 ‘‘(C) EXCEPTION.— 

16 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The percentage 

17 requirement in subparagraph (B) shall not 

18 apply if the number of recipients in the 3 

19 priority groups in the State is insufficient 

20 to meet that requirement. 

21 ‘‘(ii) PRIORITY.—In circumstances de22 scribed in clause (i), the State shall con23 tinue to give priority to any recipients who 

24 belong to 1 of the 3 priority groups. 


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•S 1904 IS

1 ‘‘(5) REIMBURSABLE EXPENSES OF PARTICI2 PANTS.— 

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A State agency shall 

4 provide payments or reimbursements to partici5 pants in work activation carried out under this 

6 section for— 

7 ‘‘(i) the actual costs of transportation 

8 and other actual costs (other than depend9 ent care costs) that are reasonably nec10 essary and directly related to participation 

11 in the work activation components of the 

12 program; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) the actual costs of such depend14 ent care expenses as are determined by the 

15 State agency to be necessary for the par16 ticipation of an individual in the work acti17 vation components of the program (other 

18 than an individual who is the caretaker rel19 ative of a dependent in a family receiving 

20 benefits under part A of title IV of the So21 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.)) 

22 in a local area in which an employment, 

23 training, or education program under title 

24 IV of that Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is 

25 in operation, on the condition that no such 


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•S 1904 IS

1 payment or reimbursement shall exceed the 

2 applicable local market rate. 

3 ‘‘(B) VOUCHERS.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In lieu of pro5 viding reimbursements for dependent care 

6 expenses under subparagraph (A)(ii), a 

7 State agency may, at the option of the 

8 State agency, arrange for dependent care 

9 through providers by providing vouchers to 

10 the household to allow the recipient to 

11 choose between all lawful providers. 

12 ‘‘(ii) VALUE OF VOUCHERS.—The 

13 value of a voucher shall not exceed the av14 erage local market rate. 

15 ‘‘(C) VALUE OF SERVICES.—The value of 

16 any dependent care services provided for or ar17 ranged under subparagraph (A) or (B), or any 

18 amount received as a payment or reimburse19 ment under subparagraph (A), shall— 

20 ‘‘(i) not be treated as income for the 

21 purposes of any other Federal or federally 

22 assisted program that bases eligibility for, 

23 or the amount of benefits on, need; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) not be claimed as an employ25 ment-related expense for the purposes of 


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•S 1904 IS

1 the credit provided under section 21 of the 

2 Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

3 ‘‘(6) PENALTIES FOR INADEQUATE STATE PER4 FORMANCE.— 

5 ‘‘(A) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph: 

6 ‘‘(i) NON-PERFORMANCE MONTH.— 

7 The term ‘non-performance month’ means 

8 a month in which a State fails to engage 

9 food stamp recipients in work activation in 

10 sufficient numbers to meet or exceed the 

11 appropriate target work activation ratio 

12 under paragraph (3). 

13 ‘‘(ii) PENALTY MONTH.—The term 

14 ‘penalty month’ means a month in which a 

15 State is penalized for the failure. 

16 ‘‘(B) PENALTY.—If, in a month, a State 

17 fails to engage food stamp recipients in work 

18 activation in sufficient numbers to meet or ex19 ceed the appropriate work activation ratio 

20 under paragraph (3), the Federal food stamp 

21 funding provided to the State in a subsequent 

22 penalty month shall be reduced in accordance 

23 with this paragraph. 


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•S 1904 IS

1 ‘‘(C) TIMING.—The penalty month shall be 

2 not later than 4 months after the non-perform3 ance month. 

4 ‘‘(D) REDUCTION.—The amount of Fed5 eral food stamp funding a State shall receive 

6 for the penalty month shall equal the product 

7 obtained by multiplying— 

8 ‘‘(i) the amount of Federal food 

9 stamp funds the State would otherwise 

10 have received; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) the quotient obtained by divid12 ing— 

13 ‘‘(I) the actual monthly work ac14 tivation ratio achieved by the State in 

15 the penalty month; by 

16 ‘‘(II) the target monthly work ac17 tivation ratio for the penalty month. 

18 ‘‘(7) REWARDS TO STATES FOR REDUCING GOV19 ERNMENT DEPENDENCE.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If, in any future year, 

21 a State reduces the food stamp caseload of the 

22 State below the levels that existed in calendar 

23 year 2006, the State shall receive a financial re24 ward for reducing dependence. 


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•S 1904 IS

‘‘(B) AMOUNT.—The reward shall equal 1 1 ⁄4

2 of the savings to the Federal Government for 

3 that year that resulted from the caseload reduc4 tion. 

5 ‘‘(C) USE OF REWARD.—A State may use 

6 reward funding under this paragraph for any 

7 purpose chosen by the State that— 

8 ‘‘(i) provides benefits or services to in9 dividuals with incomes below 200 percent 

10 of the Federal poverty level; 

11 ‘‘(ii) improves social outcomes in low12 income populations; 

13 ‘‘(iii) encourages healthy marriage; or 

14 ‘‘(iv) increases self-sufficiency and re15 duces dependence. 

16 ‘‘(8) AUTHORIZATION OF FUNDING.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to 

18 be appropriated to the Secretary to provide 

19 funds to State governments for the purpose of 

20 carrying out work activation programs in ac21 cordance with this section $2,500,000,000 for 

22 fiscal year 2012 and each subsequent fiscal 

23 year. 

24 ‘‘(B) ALLOCATION AMONG STATES.—The 

25 total amount appropriated under subparagraph 


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•S 1904 IS

1 (A) for a fiscal year shall be allocated among 

2 the States in accordance with the proportion of 

3 each State’s share of total funding for the food 

4 stamp program under this Act in fiscal year 

5 2007.’’. 

6 (i) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

7 (1) Section 5 of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 

8 (7 U.S.C. 2014) is amended— 

9 (A) in subsection (a), in the second sen10 tence, by striking ‘‘, 6(d)(2),’’; 

11 (B) in subsection (d)(14), by striking ‘‘sec12 tion 6(d)(4)(I)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 29’’; 

13 (C) in subsection (e)(3)(B)(ii), by striking 

14 ‘‘subsection (d)(3)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 29’’; 

15 and 

16 (D) in the first sentence of subsection 

17 (g)(3), by striking ‘‘section 6(d)’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘section 29’’. 

19 (2) Section 7(i)(1) of the Food Stamp Act of 

20 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2016(i)(1)) is amended by striking 

21 ‘‘section 6(o)(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 6(o)’’. 

22 (3) Section 11(e) of the Food Stamp Act of 

23 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2020(e)) is amended— 

24 (A) by striking paragraph (19); and 


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•S 1904 IS

1 (B) by redesignating paragraphs (20) 

2 through (23) as paragraphs (19) through (22), 

3 respectively. 

4 (4) Section 16 of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 

5 (7 U.S.C. 2025) is amended— 

6 (A) in subsection (b)(4), by striking ‘‘sec7 tion 6(d)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 29’’; and 

8 (B) by striking subsection (h). 

9 (5) Section 17 of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 

10 (7 U.S.C. 2026) is amended— 

11 (A) in subsection (b)— 

12 (i) in paragraph (1)(B)(iv)(III)— 

13 (I) by striking item (bb); and 

14 (II) by redesignating items (cc) 

15 through (jj) as items (bb) through 

16 (ii), respectively; 

17 (ii) in paragraph (2), by striking the 

18 second sentence; and 

19 (iii) in paragraph (3)(B), in the first 

20 sentence, by striking ‘‘section 6(d)’’ and 

21 inserting ‘‘section 29,’’; and 

22 (B) by striking subsection (g). 

23 (6) Section 20 of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 

24 (7 U.S.C. 2029) is amended— 

25 (A) in subsection (b)— 


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•S 1904 IS

1 (i) by striking paragraph (1); and 

2 (ii) by redesignating paragraphs (2) 

3 through (6) as paragraphs (1) through (5), 

4 respectively; 

5 (B) by striking subsection (f); and 

6 (C) by redesignating subsection (g) as sub7 section (f). 

8 (7) Section 22(b) of the Food Stamp Act of 

9 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2031(b)) is amended by striking 

10 paragraph (4). 

11 (8) Section 26(f)(3)(E) of the Food Stamp Act 

12 of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2036(f)(3)(E)) is amended by 

13 striking ‘‘(22), and (23)’’ and inserting ‘‘(21), and 

14 (22)’’. 

15 (9) Section 501(b)(2)(E) of the Workforce In16 vestment Act of 1998 (20 U.S.C. 9271(b)(2)(E)) is 

17 amended by striking ‘‘section 6(d)’’ and all that fol18 lows through the end and inserting ‘‘section 29 of 

19 the Food Stamp Act of 1977.’’. 

20 (10) Section 112(b)(8)(A)(iii) of the Workforce 

21 Investment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 

22 2822(b)(8)(A)(iii)) is amended by striking ‘‘section 

23 6(d)(4)’’ and all that follows through ‘‘(7 U.S.C. 

24 2015(d)(4))’’ and inserting ‘‘section 29 of the Food 

25 Stamp Act of 1977’’. 


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•S 1904 IS

1 (11) Section 121(b)(2)(B)(ii) of the Workforce 

2 Investment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 

3 2841(b)(2)(B)(ii)) is amended by striking ‘‘section 

4 6(d)(4)’’ and all that follows through the end and in5 serting ‘‘section 29 of the Food Stamp Act of 

6 1977;’’. 

7 SEC. 203. DEFINITION OF FOOD. 

8 Section 3(k) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 

9 U.S.C. 2012(k)) is amended by inserting before the period 

10 at the end the following: ‘‘, except that a food, food prod11 uct, meal, or other item described in this subsection shall 

12 be considered a food under this Act only if it is a bare 

13 essential (as determined by the Secretary)’’. 

14 SEC. 204. TERMINATION OF BENEFIT INCREASE. 

15 Section 101(a)(2) of division A of the American Re16 covery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111– 

17 5; 123 Stat. 120; 124 Stat. 2394; 124 Stat. 3265) is 

18 amended by striking ‘‘after October 31, 2013’’ and insert19 ing ‘‘on the date of enactment of the Welfare Reform Act 

20 of 2011’’. 


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•S 1904 IS

1 TITLE III—REPORTING OF 

2 MEANS-TESTED WELFARE 

3 SPENDING IN PRESIDENT’S 

4 BUDGET SUBMISSION 

5 SEC. 301. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION IN PRESIDENT’S 

6 BUDGET SUBMISSION. 

7 Section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, is 

8 amended by adding at the end the following new para9 graph: 

10 ‘‘(37) the total level of spending on means-test11 ed welfare programs by the Federal Government and 

12 the total level of spending on means-tested welfare 

13 programs by all State and local governments and the 

14 Federal Government for the most recent fiscal year 

15 for which such data is available and estimated levels 

16 for the fiscal year during which the budget submis17 sion of the President is made, for the fiscal year be18 ginning on October 1 of the calendar year during 

19 which the budget submission is made, and for each 

20 of the nine ensuing fiscal years, and for purposes of 

21 this paragraph, means-tested welfare programs shall 

22 mean those programs defined in section 401 of the 

23 Welfare Reform Act of 2011.’’. 


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•S 1904 IS

1 TITLE IV—AGGREGATE CAP FOR 

2 MEANS-TESTED WELFARE 

3 SPENDING 

4 SEC. 401. DEFINITION OF MEANS-TESTED WELFARE SPEND5 ING. 

6 Section 3 of the Congressional Budget and Impound7 ment Control Act of 1974 is amended by adding at the 

8 end the following new paragraph: 

9 ‘‘(11)(A) The term ‘means-tested welfare 

10 spending’ refers to any Federal program that is de11 signed to specifically provide assistance or benefits 

12 exclusively to low-income Americans, but is not such 

13 a program if it— 

14 ‘‘(i) is based on earned eligibility; 

15 ‘‘(ii) is not need-based; 

16 ‘‘(iii) is a program designed exclusively or 

17 primarily for veterans of military service; or 

18 ‘‘(iv) offers universal or near universal eli19 gibility to the working population and their de20 pendents. 

21 Community and economic development programs 

22 targeted to low-income communities or populations 

23 shall be considered means-tested welfare programs 

24 for purposes of this paragraph. 


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•S 1904 IS

1 ‘‘(B) For purposes of subparagraph (A), the 

2 following Federal programs shall be considered to be 

3 means-tested welfare spending: 

4 ‘‘(i) CASH AND GENERAL PROGRAMS.— 

5 ‘‘(I) Supplemental Security Income. 

6 ‘‘(II) Earned Income Tax Credit (Re7 fundable Portion). 

8 ‘‘(III) Refundable Child Credit. 

9 ‘‘(IV) Temporary Assistance to Needy 

10 Families. 

11 ‘‘(V) Title IV–E Foster Care. 

12 ‘‘(VI) Title IV–E Adoption Assist13 ance. 

14 ‘‘(VII) General Assistance to Indians. 

15 ‘‘(VIII) Assets for Independence. 

16 ‘‘(ii) MEDICAL.— 

17 ‘‘(I) Medicaid. 

18 ‘‘(II) State Children’s Health Insur19 ance Program. 

20 ‘‘(III) Indian Health Services. 

21 ‘‘(IV) Consolidated Health Centers/ 

22 Community Health Centers. 

23 ‘‘(V) Maternal and Child Health. 

24 ‘‘(VI) Healthy Start. 


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•S 1904 IS

1 ‘‘(VII) Refundable Premiums and Out 

2 of Pocket Subsidies under the Patient Pro3 tection and Affordable Health Care Act 

4 (PPACA). 

5 ‘‘(iii) FOOD.— 

6 ‘‘(I) Food Stamps Program. 

7 ‘‘(II) School Lunch Program. 

8 ‘‘(III) Women, Infant and Children 

9 (WIC) Food Program. 

10 ‘‘(IV) School Breakfast. 

11 ‘‘(V) Child Care Food Program. 

12 ‘‘(VI) Nutrition Program for the El13 derly, Nutrition Service Incentives. 

14 ‘‘(VII) Summer Food Service Pro15 gram. 

16 ‘‘(VIII) Commodity Supplemental 

17 Food Program. 

18 ‘‘(IX) Temporary Emergency Food 

19 Program. 

20 ‘‘(X) Needy Families. 

21 ‘‘(XI) Farmer’s Market Nutrition 

22 Program. 

23 ‘‘(XII) Special Milk Program. 

24 ‘‘(iv) HOUSING.— 

25 ‘‘(I) Section 8 Housing (HUD). 


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•S 1904 IS

1 ‘‘(II) Public Housing (HUD). 

2 ‘‘(III) State Housing Expenditures. 

3 ‘‘(IV) Home Investment Partnership 

4 Program (HUD). 

5 ‘‘(V) Homeless Assistance Grants 

6 (HUD). 

7 ‘‘(VI) Rural Housing Insurance Fund 

8 (Agriculture). 

9 ‘‘(VII) Rural Housing Service (Agri10 culture). 

11 ‘‘(VIII) Housing for the Elderly 

12 (HUD). 

13 ‘‘(IX) Native American Housing 

14 Block Grants (HUD). 

15 ‘‘(X) Other Assisted Housing Pro16 grams (HUD). 

17 ‘‘(XI) Housing for Persons with Dis18 abilities (HUD). 

19 ‘‘(v) ENERGY AND UTILITIES.— 

20 ‘‘(I) Low-Income Home Energy As21 sistance. 

22 ‘‘(II) Universal Service Fund—Sub23 sidized Phone Service for Low-Income Per24 sons. 

25 ‘‘(III) Weatherization. 


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•S 1904 IS

1 ‘‘(vi) EDUCATION.— 

2 ‘‘(I) Pell Grants. 

3 ‘‘(II) Title I Grants to Local Edu4 cation Authorities. 

5 ‘‘(III) Special Programs for Disadvan6 taged (TRIO). 

7 ‘‘(IV) Supplemental Education Oppor8 tunity Grants. 

9 ‘‘(V) Migrant Education. 

10 ‘‘(VI) Gear-Up. 

11 ‘‘(VII) Education for Homeless Chil12 dren and Youth. 

13 ‘‘(VIII) Leveraging Educational As14 sistance Partnership (LEAP) Program. 

15 ‘‘(IX) Even Start. 

16 ‘‘(vii) TRAINING.— 

17 ‘‘(I) Job Corps. 

18 ‘‘(II) Youth Opportunity Grants 

19 (under the Workforce Investment Act). 

20 ‘‘(III) Adult Employment and Train21 ing (under the Workforce Investment Act). 

22 ‘‘(IV) Senior Community Service Em23 ployment. 

24 ‘‘(V) Food Stamp Employment and 

25 Training Program. 


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•S 1904 IS

1 ‘‘(VI) Migrant Training. 

2 ‘‘(VII) YouthBuild. 

3 ‘‘(VIII) Native American Training. 

4 ‘‘(viii) SERVICES.— 

5 ‘‘(I) Title XX Social Services Block 

6 Grant. 

7 ‘‘(II) Community Service Block 

8 Grant. 

9 ‘‘(III) Social Services for Refugees, 

10 Asylees, and Humanitarian Cases. 

11 ‘‘(IV) Title III Aging Americans Act. 

12 ‘‘(V) Legal Services Block Grant. 

13 ‘‘(VI) Family Planning. 

14 ‘‘(VII) Emergency Food and Shelter. 

15 ‘‘(VIII) Healthy Marriage and Re16 sponsible Fatherhood Grants. 

17 ‘‘(IX) Americorps VISTA. 

18 ‘‘(ix) CHILD CARE AND CHILD DEVELOP19 MENT.— 

20 ‘‘(I) Headstart. 

21 ‘‘(II) Childcare and Child Develop22 ment Block Grant. 

23 ‘‘(III) Child Care Block Grant (under 

24 Temporary Assistance to Needy Families 

25 Program). 


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•S 1904 IS

1 ‘‘(x) COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT.— 

2 ‘‘(I) Community Development Block 

3 Grant. 

4 ‘‘(II) Economic Development Adminis5 tration. 

6 ‘‘(III) Appalachian Regional Develop7 ment. 

8 ‘‘(IV) Empowerment Zones, Enter9 prise Communities, Renewal Communities. 

10 ‘‘(V) Urban Development Block 

11 Grant. 

12 ‘‘(C) For purposes of this paragraph, the term 

13 ‘means-tested welfare spending’ shall not include— 

14 ‘‘(i) the Social Security Disability Insur15 ance program; 

16 ‘‘(ii) Medicare; 

17 ‘‘(iii) retirement insurance benefits and 

18 survivor benefits under the Social Security pro19 gram; 

20 ‘‘(iv) any program designed exclusively or 

21 primarily for veterans of military service; 

22 ‘‘(v) unemployment insurance benefits pro23 vided under title K; and 


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•S 1904 IS

1 ‘‘(vi) programs designed specifically to pro2 vide benefits to workers to compensate for job3 related injuries or illnesses. 

4 ‘‘(D) For purposes of this paragraph, the term 

5 ‘spending on means-tested welfare programs’ shall 

6 mean the full cost of benefits and services provided 

7 by the program, as well as the administrative costs 

8 for operating the program, subject to the limitations 

9 in subparagraph (E). 

10 ‘‘(E)(i) For purposes of this paragraph only the 

11 refundable portion of the following tax credits shall 

12 be counted as means-tested welfare expenditures: 

13 ‘‘(I) The earned income tax credit. 

14 ‘‘(II) The child tax credit. 

15 ‘‘(III) The making work pay tax credit. 

16 ‘‘(ii) For purposes of this paragraph only the 

17 refundable portion of the premium and out of pocket 

18 health care subsidies to be paid under the Patient 

19 Protection and Affordable Health Care Act shall be 

20 counted as means-tested welfare expenditures; the 

21 refundable portion of these subsidies shall mean the 

22 portion of the credit which is paid to an individual 

23 in excess of the amount of Federal income tax owed 

24 by the individual. 


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•S 1904 IS

1 ‘‘(iii) For purposes of this paragraph only the 

2 costs of the free and reduced price segments of the 

3 school lunch and school breakfast programs shall be 

4 included. 

5 ‘‘(F) For purposes of this paragraph expendi6 tures by State and local governments of funds that 

7 are: 

8 ‘‘(i) obtained by the State and local gov9 ernment from taxes, fees, or other sources of 

10 revenue established by the State or local gov11 ernment; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) are not received as any form of grant 

13 from the Federal Government, 

14 shall not be considered as Federal means-tested wel15 fare spending even if such state and local expendi16 tures take the form of contributions to Federal pro17 grams listed or defined in subparagraphs (A) and 

18 (B). 

19 ‘‘(12) The limits established by this paragraph 

20 shall not be in effect in a fiscal year if the average 

21 monthly unemployment rate in the preceding fiscal 

22 year exceeded 7.5 percent.’’. 


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•S 1904 IS

1 SEC. 402. REPORTS TO BUDGET COMMITTEES. 

2 Section 202(e)(1) of the Congressional Budget Act 

3 of 1974 is amended by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(1)’’ and 

4 by inserting at the end the following new subparagraph: 

5 ‘‘(B) The Director shall include in each report 

6 submitted to the Committees on the Budget of the 

7 House of Representatives and the Senate under sub8 paragraph (A) the information described in clause 

9 (ii) beginning on the earlier of— 

10 ‘‘(i) the first fiscal year that begins after 

11 the date of enactment of this subparagraph and 

12 after any monthly rate of unemployment during 

13 the immediately preceding fiscal year is below 

14 7.5 percent; or 

15 ‘‘(ii) fiscal year 2015. 

16 ‘‘(C) The Director shall include the following 

17 information for the fiscal year commencing on Octo18 ber 1 of the year in which the report is submitted 

19 and for each of the ensuing 4 fiscal years: 

20 ‘‘(i) The Congressional Budget Office base21 line level of Federal spending for aggregate 

22 means-tested welfare programs. 

23 ‘‘(ii) The aggregate level of Federal means24 tested welfare spending computed by taking the 

25 aggregate level of means-tested welfare spend26 ing for fiscal year 2007 and adjusting that for 


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•S 1904 IS

1 inflation according to the procedures specified 

2 in clause (iii). 

3 ‘‘(D) In preparing the report required by this 

4 subparagraph— 

5 ‘‘(i) spending on means-tested medical as6 sistance programs shall be adjusted for inflation 

7 according to the price index for personal con8 sumption expenditures for health products and 

9 services as calculated by the Bureau of Eco10 nomic Analysis; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) spending for all other means-tested 

12 programs shall be adjusted for inflation accord13 ing to the weighted price index for personal 

14 consumption expenditures excluding health 

15 products and services as calculated by the Bu16 reau of Economic Analysis.’’. 

17 SEC. 403. CONTENT OF CONCURRENT RESOLUTIONS ON 

18 THE BUDGET. 

19 Section 301 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 

20 is amended by adding at the end the following new sub21 section: 

22 ‘‘(j) MEANS-TESTED WELFARE SPENDING.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The concurrent resolution 

24 on the budget for the applicable fiscal year shall set 

25 forth the appropriate level for aggregate means-testVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:08 Nov 19, 2011 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00049 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1904.IS S1904

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1 ed welfare spending for the first fiscal year of that 

2 concurrent resolution and for at least each of the 4 

3 ensuing fiscal years beginning on the earlier of— 

4 ‘‘(A) the first fiscal year that begins after 

5 the date of enactment of this subsection and 

6 after any monthly rate of unemployment during 

7 the immediately preceding fiscal year is below 

8 7.5 percent; or 

9 ‘‘(B) fiscal year 2015. 

10 ‘‘(2) SETTING LEVEL.—The level described in 

11 paragraph (2) shall not exceed the aggregate level of 

12 Federal means-tested welfare spending for fiscal 

13 year 2007, adjusted for inflation as follows: 

14 ‘‘(A) Spending on means-tested medical as15 sistance programs shall be adjusted for inflation 

16 according to the price index for personal con17 sumption expenditures for health products and 

18 services as calculated by the Bureau of Eco19 nomic Analysis. 

20 ‘‘(B) Spending for all other means-tested 

21 programs shall be adjusted for inflation accord22 ing to the weighted price index for personal 

23 consumption expenditures excluding health 

24 products and services as calculated by the Bu25 reau of Economic Analysis.’’. 


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1 SEC. 404. ALLOCATIONS OF MEANS-TESTED WELFARE 

2 SPENDING. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 302 of the Congressional 

4 Budget Act of 1974 is amended by adding at the end the 

5 following new subsection: 

6 ‘‘(h) MEANS-TESTED WELFARE SPENDING LIMIT.— 

7 ‘‘(1) FURTHER DIVISION OF AMOUNTS.—For 

8 any concurrent resolution on the budget for which 

9 levels for aggregate means-tested welfare spending 

10 are set forth under section 301(j), in the House of 

11 Representatives and the Senate, the amounts allo12 cated under subsection (a) shall be further divided 

13 to establish an allocation of— 

14 ‘‘(A) total new budget authority and total 

15 outlays for discretionary means-tested welfare 

16 spending in appropriation measures for the first 

17 fiscal year of the resolution on the budget; and 

18 ‘‘(B) total new budget authority and total 

19 outlays for mandatory means-tested welfare 

20 spending for the first fiscal year of the resolu21 tion on the budget and at least each of the en22 suing 4 fiscal years to all other committees of 

23 the House of Representatives and the Senate 

24 that have jurisdiction over legislation providing 

25 mandatory means-tested welfare spending. 


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1 ‘‘(2) POINT OF ORDER.—It shall not be in 

2 order in the House of Representatives or the Senate 

3 to consider any bill, joint resolution, or amendment 

4 if— 

5 ‘‘(A) the enactment of such bill or resolu6 tion as reported; 

7 ‘‘(B) the adoption and enactment of such 

8 amendment; or 

9 ‘‘(C) the enactment of such bill or resolu10 tion in the form recommended in such con11 ference report, 

12 would cause the applicable allocation of new budget 

13 authority or outlays made under subparagraph (A) 

14 or (B) of paragraph (1) for a fiscal year to be ex15 ceeded.’’. 

16 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 302(b) of 

17 the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 is amended by 

18 striking ‘‘under subsection (a)’’ and inserting ‘‘under sub19 sections (a) and (h)’’. 

20 SEC. 405. RECONCILIATION. 

21 Section 310(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 

22 1974 is amended as follows: 

23 (1) Strike ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph (3) and 

24 strike the period at the end of paragraph (4) and in25 sert ‘‘; and’’. 


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1 (2) Redesignate paragraph (4) as paragraph 

2 (5), and in paragraph (5) as redesignated, strike 

3 ‘‘and (3)’’ and insert ‘‘(3), and (4)’’. 

4 (3) After paragraph (3), insert the following 

5 new paragraph: 

6 ‘‘(4) specify the total amount by which new 

7 budget authority for such fiscal year for mandatory 

8 means-tested welfare spending contained in laws, 

9 bills, and resolutions within the jurisdiction of a 

10 committee is to be changed and direct that com11 mittee to determine and recommend changes to ac12 complish a change of such total amount, which 

13 amount shall be the amount by which the Congres14 sional Budget Office baseline level of spending for 

15 aggregate mandatory means-tested welfare programs 

16 exceeds the allocation made pursuant to section 

17 302(h)(1)(B) for such fiscal year.’’. 

18 TITLE V—GRANTS TO PROMOTE 

19 SELF-SUFFICIENCY 

20 SEC. 501. GRANTS TO STATES. 

21 (a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this title is to encour22 age States to develop policies to promote self-sufficiency 

23 and prosperity and to reduce poverty and Government de24 pendence. 


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1 (b) GRANTS.—The Social Security Act is amended by 

2 adding at the end the following: 

3 ‘‘TITLE XXII—GRANTS TO STATES 

4 TO PROMOTE SELF-SUFFI5 CIENCY AND PROSPERITY 

6 AND TO REDUCE DEPEND7 ENCE 

8 ‘‘SEC. 2201. GRANTS TO STATES. 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may provide 

10 grants to States to reward reductions in poverty and Gov11 ernment dependence and increases in self-sufficiency. 

12 ‘‘(b) ALLOCATION OF GRANTS TO STATES.—For each 

13 fiscal year for which funds are made available under sub14 section (e), the Secretary shall make a grant in an amount 

15 equal to $100,000,000 to each of the 3 States with the 

16 greatest percentage increases in the self-sufficiency ratio 

17 of the State for the preceding fiscal year over the self18 sufficiency ratio of the State for fiscal year 2007, as com19 pared with the changes in that ratio for each other State, 

20 subject to subsection (c). 

21 ‘‘(c) LIMITATION ON ELIGIBILITY FOR GRANTS.—A 

22 State shall not be eligible for a grant under this title for 

23 a fiscal year unless the self-sufficiency ratio of the State 

24 for the fiscal year is greater than the self-sufficiency ratio 

25 of the State for fiscal year 2007. 


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1 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this title: 

2 ‘‘(1) The term ‘self-sufficient family’ means a 

3 family (including a 1-person family) whose combined 

4 income, excluding receipt of means-tested welfare 

5 spending (as defined in section 3(11)(A) of the Con6 gressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 

7 1974), exceeds the poverty line (within the meaning 

8 of section 673(2) of the Omnibus Budget Reconcili9 ation Act of 1981, including any revision required by 

10 such section applicable to a family of the size in11 volved). 

12 ‘‘(2) The term ‘self-sufficiency ratio’ means, 

13 with respect to a State and a fiscal year— 

14 ‘‘(A) the number of self-sufficient families 

15 residing in the State during the fiscal year that 

16 are headed by able-bodied individuals who have 

17 not attained 63 years of age; divided by 

18 ‘‘(B) the total number of families residing 

19 in the State during the fiscal year that are 

20 headed by able-bodied individuals who have not 

21 attained 63 years of age. 

22 ‘‘(3) The term ‘State’ means the 50 States and 

23 the District of Columbia. 

24 ‘‘(e) LIMITATIONS ON AUTHORIZATION OF APPRO25 PRIATIONS.—For grants under this title, there are authorVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:08 Nov 19, 2011 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00055 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1904.IS S1904

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1 ized to be appropriated to the Secretary $300,000,000 for 

2 fiscal year 2012 and each succeeding fiscal year.’’. 

3 TITLE VI—PROHIBITION ON 

4 FUNDING OF ABORTION 

5 SEC. 601. PROHIBITION ON FUNDING FOR ABORTIONS. 

6 No funds authorized or appropriated by Federal law, 

7 and none of the funds in any trust fund to which funds 

8 are authorized or appropriated by Federal law, shall be 

9 expended for any abortion. 

10 SEC. 602. PROHIBITION ON FUNDING FOR HEALTH BENE11 FITS PLANS THAT COVER ABORTION. 

12 None of the funds authorized or appropriated by Fed13 eral law, and none of the funds in any trust fund to which 

14 funds are authorized or appropriated by Federal law, shall 

15 be expended for health benefits coverage that includes cov16 erage of abortion. 

17 SEC. 603. PROHIBITION ON TAX BENEFITS RELATING TO 

18 ABORTION. 

19 For taxable years beginning after the date of the en20 actment of this section, no credit shall be allowed under 

21 the internal revenue laws with respect to amounts paid 

22 or incurred for an abortion or with respect to amounts 

23 paid or incurred for a health benefits plan (including pre24 mium assistance) that includes coverage of abortion. 


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1 SEC. 604. CONSTRUCTION RELATING TO SEPARATE COV2 ERAGE. 

3 Nothing in this title shall be construed as prohibiting 

4 any individual, entity, or State or locality from purchasing 

5 separate abortion coverage or health benefits coverage 

6 that includes abortion so long as such coverage is paid 

7 for entirely using only funds not authorized or appro8 priated by Federal law and such coverage shall not be pur9 chased using matching funds required for a federally sub10 sidized program, including a State’s or locality’s contribu11 tion of Medicaid matching funds. 

12 SEC. 605. CONSTRUCTION RELATING TO THE USE OF NON13 FEDERAL FUNDS FOR HEALTH COVERAGE. 

14 Nothing in this title shall be construed as restricting 

15 the ability of any non-Federal health benefits coverage 

16 provider from offering abortion coverage, or the ability of 

17 a State or locality to contract separately with such a pro18 vider for such coverage, so long as only funds not author19 ized or appropriated by Federal law are used and such 

20 coverage shall not be purchased using matching funds re21 quired for a federally subsidized program, including a 

22 State’s or locality’s contribution of Medicaid matching 

23 funds. 


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1 SEC. 606. TREATMENT OF ABORTIONS RELATED TO RAPE, 

2 INCEST, OR PRESERVING THE LIFE OF THE 

3 MOTHER. 

4 The limitations established in this title shall not apply 

5 to an abortion— 

6 (1) if the pregnancy is the result of an act of 

7 rape or incest; or 

8 (2) in the case where a woman suffers from a 

9 physical disorder, physical injury, or physical illness 

10 that would, as certified by a physician, place the 

11 woman in danger of death unless an abortion is per12 formed, including a life-endangering physical condi13 tion caused by or arising from the pregnancy itself. 

Æ 


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