I 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5295 

To amend title II of the Social Security Act to provide annual minimum 

and maximum cost-of-living increases for Social Security beneficiaries, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 19, 2016 

Mr. HECK of Nevada (for himself and Mr. NOLAN) introduced the following 

bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means 

A BILL 

To amend title II of the Social Security Act to provide 

annual minimum and maximum cost-of-living increases 

for Social Security beneficiaries, 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 ‘‘Safeguarding Eco5 nomic Needs Important to Our Retirees through Creating 

6 an Ongoing Living Adjustment Guarantee (SENIOR 

7 COLA Guarantee) Act of 2016’’. 

8 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

9 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) Monthly Social Security benefits for retired 

2 and disabled workers and their families provide crit3 ical income and security. 

4 (2) These benefits are generally increased annu5 ally by a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) that is 

6 based on the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage 

7 Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI–W). 

8 (3) Since 1975 and until last year, a COLA has 

9 been paid in every year except 2010 and 2011. 

10 (4) In 2015, the Social Security Administration 

11 announced that due to average inflation as measured 

12 by the CPI–W, there would be no COLA for seniors 

13 and beneficiaries in 2016. 

14 (5) American seniors, disabled workers, and 

15 their families rely on their Social Security benefits 

16 and yearly COLA increases to help maintain finan17 cial security. 

18 (6) Congress should provide certainty by guar19 anteeing annual COLA increases for Social Security 

20 beneficiaries that will help keep these beneficiaries 

21 out of poverty, and provide financial security. 

22 (7) Congress has the power to enact a one-time 

23 COLA increase in the event that inflation in a given 

24 year exceeds the percentages defined in the amend25 ments made by this Act. 


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1 SEC. 3. ANNUAL MINIMUM AND MAXIMUM COST-OF-LIVING 

2 INCREASES. 

3 (a) COST-OF-LIVING COMPUTATION QUARTER DE4 FINED.—Section 215(i)(1)(B) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

5 415(i)(1)(B)) is amended by striking ‘‘, with respect to 

6 which the applicable increase percentage is greater than 

7 zero’’. 

8 (b) MINIMUM AND MAXIMUM INCREASES.—Section 

9 215(i)(2)(A) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

10 415(i)(2)(A)) is amended— 

11 (1) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘the applicable in12 crease percentage’’ and inserting ‘‘the increase per13 centage determined under clause (iii)’’; 

14 (2) by redesignating clause (iii) as clause (iv); 

15 and 

16 (3) by inserting after clause (ii) the following: 

17 ‘‘(iii)(I) The increase percentage determined under 

18 this clause shall be equal to the applicable increase per19 centage, except that in no case may the increase percent20 age determined under this clause— 

21 ‘‘(aa) in the case of an individual with respect 

22 to whom such increase applies whose adjusted gross 

23 income for the preceding calendar year did not ex24 ceed $18,000 (or, in the case of a joint return, 

25 $20,000), be less than 3 percent or greater than 4 

26 percent; 


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1 ‘‘(bb) in the case of such an individual whose 

2 adjusted gross income for the preceding calendar 

3 year exceeded $18,000 but did not exceed $48,000 

4 (or, in the case of a joint return, $20,000 and 

5 $50,000, respectively), be less than 1.5 percent or 

6 greater than 3 percent; or 

7 ‘‘(cc) in the case of such an individual whose 

8 adjusted gross income for the preceding calendar 

9 year exceeded $48,000 (or, in the case of a joint re10 turn, $50,000), be less than 1 percent or greater 

11 than 2 percent. 

12 ‘‘(II) In this clause— 

13 ‘‘(aa) the term ‘adjusted gross income’ has the 

14 meaning given such term in section 62 of the Inter15 nal Revenue Code of 1986; and 

16 ‘‘(bb) the term ‘joint return’ has the meaning 

17 given such term in section 6103 of such Code. 

18 ‘‘(III) Not later than the end of the 5-year period 

19 beginning on the date of the enactment of this clause, and 

20 at the end of each subsequent 5-year period, the Commis21 sioner of Social Security shall submit to Congress rec22 ommended changes to any of the dollar amounts in sub23 clause (I) as the Commissioner considers appropriate 

24 based on relevant factors.’’. 


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1 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

2 this section shall apply with respect to cost-of-living com3 putation quarters occurring in calendar years after 2015. 

Æ 


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