I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 179 

To amend the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to 

transfer certain funds to the Multiemployer Health Benefit Plan and 

the 1974 United Mine Workers of America Pension Plan, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 3, 2017 

Mr. MCKINLEY (for himself, Mr. MICHAEL F. DOYLE of Pennsylvania, Mr. 

BOST, Ms. FUDGE, Mr. MOONEY of West Virginia, Mr. JENKINS of West 

Virginia, and Ms. KAPTUR) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the 

Committee on Ways and Means, 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 amend the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act 

of 1977 to transfer certain funds to the Multiemployer 

Health Benefit Plan and the 1974 United Mine Workers 

of America Pension Plan, 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 ‘‘Miners Protection Act 

5 of 2017’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. REINSTATEMENT OF MULTIEMPLOYER HEALTH 

2 BENEFIT PLAN PROVISIONS OF SURFACE 

3 MINING CONTROL AND RECLAMATION ACT 

4 OF 1977. 

5 Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the Surface 

6 Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 

7 1201 et seq.) is amended to read as if section 167 of the 

8 Continuing Appropriations Act, 2017, as amended by sec9 tion 101(3) of division A of Public Law 114–254, were 

10 not enacted. 

11 SEC. 3. INCLUSION OF CERTAIN RETIREES IN THE MULTI12 EMPLOYER HEALTH BENEFIT PLAN. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 402 of the Surface Min14 ing Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 

15 1232) is amended— 

16 (1) in subsection (h)(2)(C)— 

17 (A) by striking ‘‘A transfer’’ and inserting 

18 the following: 

19 ‘‘(i) TRANSFER TO THE PLAN.—A 

20 transfer’’; 

21 (B) by redesignating clauses (i) and (ii) as 

22 subclauses (I) and (II), respectively, and mov23 ing such subclauses 2 ems to the right; and 

24 (C) by striking the matter following such 

25 subclause (II) (as so redesignated) and insert26 ing the following: 


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1 ‘‘(ii) CALCULATION OF EXCESS.—The 

2 excess determined under clause (i) shall be 

3 calculated by taking into account only— 

4 ‘‘(I) those beneficiaries actually 

5 enrolled in the Plan as of the date of 

6 the enactment of the Miners Protec7 tion Act of 2017 who are eligible to 

8 receive health benefits under the Plan 

9 on the first day of the calendar year 

10 for which the transfer is made, other 

11 than those beneficiaries enrolled in 

12 the Plan under the terms of a partici13 pation agreement with the current or 

14 former employer of such beneficiaries; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(II) those beneficiaries whose 

17 health benefits, defined as those bene18 fits payable directly following death or 

19 retirement or upon a finding of dis20 ability by an employer in the bitu21 minous coal industry under a coal 

22 wage agreement (as defined in section 

23 9701(b)(1) of the Internal Revenue 

24 Code of 1986), would be denied or reVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 Jan 11, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H179.IH H179

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1 duced as a result of a bankruptcy pro2 ceeding commenced in 2012 or 2015. 

3 ‘‘(iii) ELIGIBILITY OF CERTAIN RETIR4 EES.—Individuals referred to in clause 

5 (ii)(II) shall be treated as eligible to re6 ceive health benefits under the Plan. 

7 ‘‘(iv) REQUIREMENTS FOR TRANS8 FER.—The amount of the transfer other9 wise determined under this subparagraph 

10 for a fiscal year shall be reduced by any 

11 amount transferred for the fiscal year to 

12 the Plan, to pay benefits required under 

13 the Plan, from a voluntary employees’ ben14 eficiary association established as a result 

15 of a bankruptcy proceeding described in 

16 clause (ii). 

17 ‘‘(v) VEBA TRANSFER.—The admin18 istrator of such voluntary employees’ bene19 ficiary association shall transfer to the 

20 Plan any amounts received as a result of 

21 such bankruptcy proceeding, reduced by an 

22 amount for administrative costs of such as23 sociation.’’; and 

24 (2) in subsection (i)— 


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1 (A) by redesignating paragraph (4) as 

2 paragraph (5); and 

3 (B) by inserting after paragraph (3) the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘(4) ADDITIONAL AMOUNTS.— 

6 ‘‘(A) CALCULATION.—If the dollar limita7 tion specified in paragraph (3)(A) exceeds the 

8 aggregate amount required to be transferred 

9 under paragraphs (1) and (2) for a fiscal year, 

10 the Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer an 

11 additional amount equal to the difference be12 tween such dollar limitation and such aggregate 

13 amount to the trustees of the 1974 UMWA 

14 Pension Plan to pay benefits required under 

15 that plan. 

16 ‘‘(B) CESSATION OF TRANSFERS.—The 

17 transfers described in subparagraph (A) shall 

18 cease as of the first fiscal year beginning after 

19 the first plan year for which the funded per20 centage (as defined in section 432(i)(2) of the 

21 Internal Revenue Code of 1986) of the 1974 

22 UMWA Pension Plan is at least 100 percent. 

23 ‘‘(C) PROHIBITION ON BENEFIT IN24 CREASES, ETC.—During a fiscal year in which 

25 the 1974 UMWA Pension Plan is receiving 


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1 transfers under subparagraph (A), no amend2 ment of such plan which increases the liabilities 

3 of the plan by reason of any increase in bene4 fits, any change in the accrual of benefits, or 

5 any change in the rate at which benefits become 

6 nonforfeitable under the plan may be adopted 

7 unless the amendment is required as a condi8 tion of qualification under part I of subchapter 

9 D of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

10 1986. 

11 ‘‘(D) TREATMENT OF TRANSFERS FOR

12 PURPOSES OF WITHDRAWAL LIABILITY UNDER

13 ERISA.—The amount of any transfer made 

14 under subparagraph (A) (and any earnings at15 tributable thereto) shall be disregarded in deter16 mining the unfunded vested benefits of the 

17 1974 UMWA Pension Plan and the allocation 

18 of such unfunded vested benefits to an employer 

19 for purposes of determining the employer’s 

20 withdrawal liability under section 4201. 

21 ‘‘(E) REQUIREMENT TO MAINTAIN CON22 TRIBUTION RATE.—A transfer under subpara23 graph (A) shall not be made for a fiscal year 

24 unless the persons that are obligated to con25 tribute to the 1974 UMWA Pension Plan on 


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1 the date of the transfer are obligated to make 

2 the contributions at rates that are no less than 

3 those in effect on the date which is 30 days be4 fore the date of enactment of the Miners Pro5 tection Act of 2017. 

6 ‘‘(F) ENHANCED ANNUAL REPORTING.— 

7 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the 

8 90th day of each plan year beginning after 

9 the date of enactment of the Miners Pro10 tection Act of 2017, the trustees of the 

11 1974 UMWA Pension Plan shall file with 

12 the Secretary of the Treasury or the Sec13 retary’s delegate and the Pension Benefit 

14 Guaranty Corporation a report (including 

15 appropriate documentation and actuarial 

16 certifications from the plan actuary, as re17 quired by the Secretary of the Treasury or 

18 the Secretary’s delegate) that contains— 

19 ‘‘(I) whether the plan is in en20 dangered or critical status under sec21 tion 305 of the Employee Retirement 

22 Income Security Act of 1974 and sec23 tion 432 of the Internal Revenue Code 

24 of 1986 as of the first day of such 

25 plan year; 


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1 ‘‘(II) the funded percentage (as 

2 defined in section 432(i)(2) of such 

3 Code) as of the first day of such plan 

4 year, and the underlying actuarial 

5 value of assets and liabilities taken 

6 into account in determining such per7 centage; 

8 ‘‘(III) the market value of the as9 sets of the plan as of the last day of 

10 the plan year preceding such plan 

11 year; 

12 ‘‘(IV) the total value of all con13 tributions made during the plan year 

14 preceding such plan year; 

15 ‘‘(V) the total value of all bene16 fits paid during the plan year pre17 ceding such plan year; 

18 ‘‘(VI) cash flow projections for 

19 such plan year and either the 6 or 10 

20 succeeding plan years, at the election 

21 of the trustees, and the assumptions 

22 relied upon in making such projec23 tions; 

24 ‘‘(VII) funding standard account 

25 projections for such plan year and the 


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1 9 succeeding plan years, and the as2 sumptions relied upon in making such 

3 projections; 

4 ‘‘(VIII) the total value of all in5 vestment gains or losses during the 

6 plan year preceding such plan year; 

7 ‘‘(IX) any significant reduction 

8 in the number of active participants 

9 during the plan year preceding such 

10 plan year, and the reason for such re11 duction; 

12 ‘‘(X) a list of employers that 

13 withdrew from the plan in the plan 

14 year preceding such plan year, and 

15 the resulting reduction in contribu16 tions; 

17 ‘‘(XI) a list of employers that 

18 paid withdrawal liability to the plan 

19 during the plan year preceding such 

20 plan year and, for each employer, a 

21 total assessment of the withdrawal li22 ability paid, the annual payment 

23 amount, and the number of years re24 maining in the payment schedule with 

25 respect to such withdrawal liability; 


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1 ‘‘(XII) any material changes to 

2 benefits, accrual rates, or contribution 

3 rates during the plan year preceding 

4 such plan year; 

5 ‘‘(XIII) any scheduled benefit in6 crease or decrease in the plan year 

7 preceding such plan year having a 

8 material effect on liabilities of the 

9 plan; 

10 ‘‘(XIV) details regarding any 

11 funding improvement plan or rehabili12 tation plan and updates to such plan; 

13 ‘‘(XV) the number of partici14 pants and beneficiaries during the 

15 plan year preceding such plan year 

16 who are active participants, the num17 ber of participants and beneficiaries in 

18 pay status, and the number of termi19 nated vested participants and bene20 ficiaries; 

21 ‘‘(XVI) the information contained 

22 on the most recent annual funding no23 tice submitted by the plan under sec24 tion 101(f) of the Employee Retire25 ment Income Security Act of 1974; 


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1 ‘‘(XVII) the information con2 tained on the most recent Department 

3 of Labor Form 5500 of the plan; and 

4 ‘‘(XVIII) copies of the plan docu5 ment and amendments, other retire6 ment benefit or ancillary benefit plans 

7 relating to the plan and contribution 

8 obligations under such plans, a break9 down of administrative expenses of 

10 the plan, participant census data and 

11 distribution of benefits, the most re12 cent actuarial valuation report as of 

13 the plan year, copies of collective bar14 gaining agreements, and financial re15 ports, and such other information as 

16 the Secretary of the Treasury or the 

17 Secretary’s delegate, in consultation 

18 with the Secretary of Labor and the 

19 Director of the Pension Benefit Guar20 anty Corporation, may require. 

21 ‘‘(ii) ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION.—The 

22 report required under clause (i) shall be 

23 submitted electronically. 

24 ‘‘(iii) INFORMATION SHARING.—The 

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1 retary’s delegate shall share the informa2 tion in the report under clause (i) with the 

3 Secretary of Labor. 

4 ‘‘(iv) PENALTY.—Any failure to file 

5 the report required under clause (i) on or 

6 before the date described in such clause 

7 shall be treated as a failure to file a report 

8 required to be filed under section 6058(a) 

9 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, ex10 cept that section 6652(e) of such Code 

11 shall be applied with respect to any such 

12 failure by substituting ‘$100’ for ‘$25’. 

13 The preceding sentence shall not apply if 

14 the Secretary of the Treasury or the Sec15 retary’s delegate determines that reason16 able diligence has been exercised by the 

17 trustees of such plan in attempting to 

18 timely file such report. 

19 ‘‘(G) 1974 UMWA PENSION PLAN DE20 FINED.—For purposes of this paragraph, the 

21 term ‘1974 UMWA Pension Plan’ has the 

22 meaning given the term in section 9701(a)(3) 

23 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, but 

24 without regard to the limitation on participation 


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1 to individuals who retired in 1976 and there2 after.’’. 

3 (b) EFFECTIVE DATES.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amendments made by 

5 this section shall apply to fiscal years beginning 

6 after September 30, 2016. 

7 (2) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—Section 

8 402(i)(4)(F) of the Surface Mining Control and Rec9 lamation Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1232(i)(4)(F)), as 

10 added by this section, shall apply to plan years be11 ginning after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

12 SEC. 4. CLARIFICATION OF FINANCING OBLIGATIONS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) of section 9704 of 

14 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended— 

15 (1) by striking paragraph (3), 

16 (2) by striking ‘‘three premiums’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘two premiums’’, and 

18 (3) by striking ‘‘, plus’’ at the end of paragraph 

19 (2) and inserting a period. 

20 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

21 (1) Section 9704 of the Internal Revenue Code 

22 of 1986 is amended— 

23 (A) by striking subsection (d), and 


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1 (B) by redesignating subsections (e) 

2 through (j) as subsections (d) through (i), re3 spectively. 

4 (2) Subsection (d) of section 9704 of such 

5 Code, as so redesignated, is amended— 

6 (A) by striking ‘‘3 separate accounts for 

7 each of the premiums described in subsections 

8 (b), (c), and (d)’’ in paragraph (1) and insert9 ing ‘‘2 separate accounts for each of the pre10 miums described in subsections (b) and (c)’’, 

11 and 

12 (B) by striking ‘‘or the unassigned bene13 ficiaries premium account’’ in paragraph 

14 (3)(B). 

15 (3) Subclause (I) of section 9703(b)(2)(C)(ii) of 

16 such Code is amended by striking 

17 ‘‘9704(e)(3)(B)(i)’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘9704(d)(3)(B)(i)’’. 

19 (4) Paragraph (3) of section 9705(a) of such 

20 Code is amended— 

21 (A) by striking ‘‘the unassigned beneficiary 

22 premium under section 9704(a)(3) and’’ in sub23 paragraph (B), and 

24 (B) by striking ‘‘9704(i)(1)(B)’’ and in25 serting ‘‘9704(h)(1)(B)’’. 


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1 (5) Paragraph (2) of section 9711(c) of such 

2 Code is amended— 

3 (A) by striking ‘‘9704(j)(2)’’ in subpara4 graph (A)(i) and inserting ‘‘9704(i)(2)’’, 

5 (B) by striking ‘‘9704(j)(2)(B)’’ in sub6 paragraph (B) and inserting ‘‘9704(i)(2)(B)’’, 

7 and 

8 (C) by striking ‘‘9704(j)’’ and inserting 

9 ‘‘9704(i)’’. 

10 (6) Paragraph (4) of section 9712(d) of such 

11 Code is amended by striking ‘‘9704(j)’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘9704(i)’’. 

13 (c) ELIMINATION OF ADDITIONAL BACKSTOP PRE14 MIUM.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) of section 

16 9712(d) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

17 amended by striking subparagraph (C). 

18 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Paragraph (2) 

19 of section 9712(d) of such Code is amended— 

20 (A) by striking subparagraph (B), 

21 (B) by striking ‘‘, and’’ at the end of sub22 paragraph (A) and inserting a period, and 

23 (C) by striking ‘‘shall provide for—’’ and 

24 all that follows through ‘‘annual adjustments’’ 


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1 and inserting ‘‘shall provide for annual adjust2 ments’’. 

3 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

4 this section shall apply to plan years beginning after Sep5 tember 30, 2016. 

6 SEC. 5. CUSTOMS USER FEES. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 13031(j)(3)(A) of the 

8 Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 

9 (19 U.S.C. 58c(j)(3)(A)) is amended by striking ‘‘Sep10 tember 30, 2025’’ and inserting ‘‘May 6, 2026’’. 

11 (b) RATE FOR MERCHANDISE PROCESSING FEES.— 

12 Section 503 of the United States–Korea Free Trade 

13 Agreement Implementation Act (Public Law 112–41; 19 

14 U.S.C. 3805 note) is amended by striking ‘‘September 30, 

15 2025’’ and inserting ‘‘May 6, 2026’’. 

Æ 


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