I 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5987 

To ensure that seniors, veterans, and people with disabilities who receive 

Social Security and certain other Federal benefits receive a one-time 

$250 payment in the event that no cost-of-living adjustment is payable 

in 2011. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 30, 2010 

Mr. POMEROY (for himself, Ms. TITUS, Mr. KLEIN of Florida, Ms. GIFFORDS, 

Ms. SHEA-PORTER, Mr. BRIGHT, Ms. SUTTON, Ms. KOSMAS, Mr. CRITZ, 

Mr. DEUTCH, Mr. ARCURI, Mr. BECERRA, Ms. BERKLEY, Mr. BISHOP

of New York, Mr. BOREN, Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania, Mrs. CAPPS, Ms. 

CASTOR of Florida, Ms. CLARKE, Mr. CLAY, Mr. COSTA, Mr. COSTELLO, 

Mr. COURTNEY, Mr. CROWLEY, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mrs. DAHLKEMPER, Mr. 

DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. DEFAZIO, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. DRIEHAUS, Ms. EDWARDS of Maryland, Mr. ELLISON, Mr. FILNER, Ms. FUDGE, Mr. 

GARAMENDI, Mr. GORDON of Tennessee, Mr. GRAYSON, Mr. GRIJALVA, 

Mr. HALL of New York, Mr. HARE, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, Mr. HINCHEY, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. ISRAEL, Mr. KAGEN, Ms. KAPTUR, Ms. KILPATRICK of Michigan, Mrs. KIRKPATRICK of Arizona, Mr. KISSELL, Mr. 

LANGEVIN, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. 

LEVIN, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. LOEBSACK, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. LYNCH, 

Mrs. MALONEY, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. MCINTYRE, Mr. MICHAUD, Mr. 

GEORGE MILLER of California, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Mr. NEAL of 

Massachusetts, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. ORTIZ, Mr. PERRIELLO, Mr. PETERS, Mr. RAHALL, Mr. RANGEL, Ms. RICHARDSON, Mr. RODRIGUEZ, 

Mr. ROTHMAN of New Jersey, Mr. SABLAN, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. 

SCHAUER, Ms. SCHWARTZ, Mr. SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. STARK, Mr. 

TOWNS, Ms. TSONGAS, Mr. WALZ, Mr. WILSON of Ohio, Mr. YARMUTH, 

and Mr. MEEK of Florida) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the 

Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure and Veterans’ Affairs, 

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 


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A BILL 

To ensure that seniors, veterans, and people with disabilities 

who receive Social Security and certain other Federal 

benefits receive a one-time $250 payment in the event 

that no cost-of-living adjustment is payable in 2011. 

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 ‘‘Seniors Protection Act 

5 of 2010’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PAYMENT IN LIEU OF A COST-OF-LIVING ADJUST7 MENT TO RECIPIENTS OF SOCIAL SECURITY, 

8 SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME, RAIL9 ROAD RETIREMENT BENEFITS, AND VET10 ERANS DISABILITY COMPENSATION OR PEN11 SION BENEFITS. 

12 (a) AUTHORITY TO MAKE PAYMENTS.— 

13 (1) ELIGIBILITY.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph 

15 (5)(B), the Secretary of the Treasury shall dis16 burse a $250 payment to each individual who, 

17 for any month during the 3-month period end18 ing with the month which ends prior to the 

19 month that includes the date of the enactment 

20 of this Act, is entitled to a benefit payment de21 scribed in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of subparaVerDate Mar 15 2010 23:49 Aug 03, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5987.IH H5987

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1 graph (B) or is eligible for a SSI cash benefit 

2 described in subparagraph (C). Payments shall 

3 be made under this section only if no increase 

4 takes effect with the month of December 2010 

5 under section 215(i) of the Social Security Act. 

6 In the case of an individual who is eligible for 

7 a payment under this subparagraph by reason 

8 of entitlement to a benefit described in subpara9 graph (B)(i), no such payment shall be made to 

10 such individual unless such individual was paid 

11 a benefit described in such subparagraph (B)(i) 

12 for any month in the 12-month period ending 

13 with the month which ends prior to the month 

14 that includes the date of the enactment of this 

15 Act. 

16 (B) BENEFIT PAYMENT DESCRIBED.—For 

17 purposes of subparagraph (A): 

18 (i) TITLE II BENEFIT.—A benefit pay19 ment described in this clause is a monthly 

20 insurance benefit payable (without regard 

21 to sections 202(j)(1) and 223(b) of the So22 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 402(j)(1), 

23 423(b)) under— 

24 (I) section 202(a) of such Act 

25 (42 U.S.C. 402(a)); 


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1 (II) section 202(b) of such Act 

2 (42 U.S.C. 402(b)); 

3 (III) section 202(c) of such Act 

4 (42 U.S.C. 402(c)); 

5 (IV) section 202(d)(1)(B)(ii) of 

6 such Act (42 U.S.C. 

7 402(d)(1)(B)(ii)); 

8 (V) section 202(e) of such Act 

9 (42 U.S.C. 402(e)); 

10 (VI) section 202(f) of such Act 

11 (42 U.S.C. 402(f)); 

12 (VII) section 202(g) of such Act 

13 (42 U.S.C. 402(g)); 

14 (VIII) section 202(h) of such Act 

15 (42 U.S.C. 402(h)); 

16 (IX) section 223(a) of such Act 

17 (42 U.S.C. 423(a)); 

18 (X) section 227 of such Act (42 

19 U.S.C. 427); or 

20 (XI) section 228 of such Act (42 

21 U.S.C. 428). 

22 (ii) RAILROAD RETIREMENT BEN23 EFIT.—A benefit payment described in this 

24 clause is a monthly annuity or pension 

25 payment payable (without regard to section 


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1 5(a)(ii) of the Railroad Retirement Act of 

2 1974 (45 U.S.C. 231d(a)(ii))) under— 

3 (I) section 2(a)(1) of such Act 

4 (45 U.S.C. 231a(a)(1)); 

5 (II) section 2(c) of such Act (45 

6 U.S.C. 231a(c)); 

7 (III) section 2(d)(1)(i) of such 

8 Act (45 U.S.C. 231a(d)(1)(i)); 

9 (IV) section 2(d)(1)(ii) of such 

10 Act (45 U.S.C. 231a(d)(1)(ii)); 

11 (V) section 2(d)(1)(iii)(C) of such 

12 Act to an adult disabled child (45 

13 U.S.C. 231a(d)(1)(iii)(C)); 

14 (VI) section 2(d)(1)(iv) of such 

15 Act (45 U.S.C. 231a(d)(1)(iv)); 

16 (VII) section 2(d)(1)(v) of such 

17 Act (45 U.S.C. 231a(d)(1)(v)); or 

18 (VIII) section 7(b)(2) of such Act 

19 (45 U.S.C. 231f(b)(2)) with respect to 

20 any of the benefit payments described 

21 in clause (i) of this subparagraph. 

22 (iii) VETERANS BENEFIT.—A benefit 

23 payment described in this clause is a com24 pensation or pension payment payable 

25 under— 


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1 (I) section 1110, 1117, 1121, 

2 1131, 1141, or 1151 of title 38, 

3 United States Code; 

4 (II) section 1310, 1312, 1313, 

5 1315, 1316, or 1318 of title 38, 

6 United States Code; 

7 (III) section 1513, 1521, 1533, 

8 1536, 1537, 1541, 1542, or 1562 of 

9 title 38, United States Code; or 

10 (IV) section 1805, 1815, or 1821 

11 of title 38, United States Code, 

12 to a veteran, surviving spouse, child, or 

13 parent as described in paragraph (2), (3), 

14 (4)(A)(ii), or (5) of section 101, title 38, 

15 United States Code, who received that ben16 efit during any month within the 3-month 

17 period ending with the month which ends 

18 prior to the month that includes the date 

19 of the enactment of this Act. 

20 (C) SSI CASH BENEFIT DESCRIBED.—A 

21 SSI cash benefit described in this subparagraph 

22 is a cash benefit payable under section 1611 

23 (other than under subsection (e)(1)(B) of such 

24 section) or 1619(a) of the Social Security Act 

25 (42 U.S.C. 1382, 1382h). 


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1 (2) REQUIREMENT.—A payment shall be made 

2 under paragraph (1) only to individuals who reside 

3 in 1 of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, 

4 Puerto Rico, Guam, the United States Virgin Is5 lands, American Samoa, or the Northern Mariana 

6 Islands, or who are utilizing a foreign or domestic 

7 Army Post Office, Fleet Post Office, or Diplomatic 

8 Post Office address. For purposes of the preceding 

9 sentence, the determination of the individual’s resi10 dence shall be based on the address of record, as of 

11 the date of certification under subsection (b) for a 

12 payment under this section under a program speci13 fied in paragraph (1). 

14 (3) NO DOUBLE PAYMENTS.—An individual 

15 shall be paid only 1 payment under this section, re16 gardless of whether the individual is entitled to, or 

17 eligible for, more than 1 benefit or cash payment de18 scribed in paragraph (1). 

19 (4) LIMITATION.—A payment under this section 

20 shall not be made (or, in the case of subparagraph 

21 (D), shall not be due)— 

22 (A) in the case of an individual entitled to 

23 a benefit specified in paragraph (1)(B)(i) or 

24 paragraph (1)(B)(ii)(VIII) if— 


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1 (i) for the most recent month of such 

2 individual’s entitlement in the 3-month pe3 riod described in paragraph (1); or 

4 (ii) for any month thereafter which is 

5 before the month after the month of the 

6 payment; 

7 such individual’s benefit under such paragraph 

8 was not payable by reason of subsection (x) or 

9 (y) of section 202 the Social Security Act (42 

10 U.S.C. 402) or section 1129A of such Act (42 

11 U.S.C. 1320a–8a); 

12 (B) in the case of an individual entitled to 

13 a benefit specified in paragraph (1)(B)(iii) if, 

14 for the most recent month of such individual’s 

15 entitlement in the 3-month period described in 

16 paragraph (1), such individual’s benefit under 

17 such paragraph was not payable, or was re18 duced, by reason of section 1505, 5313, or 

19 5313B of title 38, United States Code; 

20 (C) in the case of an individual entitled to 

21 a benefit specified in paragraph (1)(C) if— 

22 (i) for such most recent month of 

23 such individual’s eligibility in the 3-month 

24 period described in paragraph (1); or 


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1 (ii) for any month thereafter which is 

2 before the month after the month of the 

3 payment; 

4 such individual’s benefit under such paragraph 

5 was not payable by reason of subsection 

6 (e)(1)(A) or (e)(4) of section 1611 (42 U.S.C. 

7 1382) or section 1129A of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

8 1320a–8a); or 

9 (D) in the case of any individual whose 

10 date of death occurs— 

11 (i) before the date of the receipt of 

12 the payment; or 

13 (ii) in the case of a direct deposit, be14 fore the date on which such payment is de15 posited into such individual’s account. 

16 In the case of any individual whose date of death oc17 curs before a payment is negotiated (in the case of 

18 a check) or deposited (in the case of a direct de19 posit), such payment shall not be due and shall not 

20 be reissued to the estate of such individual or to any 

21 other person. Subparagraphs (A)(ii) and (C)(ii) shall 

22 apply only in the case of certifications under sub23 section (b) which are, or but for this paragraph 

24 would be, made after the date of the enactment of 

25 this Act, shall apply to such certifications without 


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1 regard to the calendar year of the payments to 

2 which such certifications apply. 

3 (5) TIMING AND MANNER OF PAYMENTS.— 

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

5 Treasury shall commence disbursing payments 

6 under this section at the earliest practicable 

7 date in 2011 prior to April 1, 2011. The Sec8 retary of the Treasury may disburse any pay9 ment electronically to an individual in such 

10 manner as if such payment was a benefit pay11 ment or cash benefit to such individual under 

12 the applicable program described in subpara13 graph (B) or (C) of paragraph (1). 

14 (B) DEADLINE.—No payments shall be 

15 disbursed under this section after December 31, 

16 2011, regardless of any determinations of enti17 tlement to, or eligibility for, such payments 

18 made after such date. 

19 (b) IDENTIFICATION OF RECIPIENTS.—The Commis20 sioner of Social Security, the Railroad Retirement Board, 

21 and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall certify the in22 dividuals entitled to receive payments under this section 

23 and provide the Secretary of the Treasury with the infor24 mation needed to disburse such payments. A certification 

25 of an individual shall be unaffected by any subsequent deVerDate Mar 15 2010 23:49 Aug 03, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5987.IH H5987

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1 termination or redetermination of the individual’s entitle2 ment to, or eligibility for, a benefit specified in subpara3 graph (B) or (C) of subsection (a)(1) (except that such 

4 certification shall be affected by a determination that an 

5 individual is an individual described in subparagraph (A), 

6 (B), (C), or (D) of subsection (a)(4) during a period de7 scribed in such subparagraphs), and no individual shall 

8 be certified to receive a payment under this section for 

9 a calendar year if such individual has at any time been 

10 denied certification for such a payment for such calendar 

11 year by reason of subparagraph (A)(ii) or (C)(ii) of sub12 section (a)(4) (unless such individual is subsequently de13 termined not to have been an individual described in either 

14 such subparagraph at the time of such denial). 

15 (c) TREATMENT OF PAYMENTS.— 

16 (1) PAYMENT TO BE DISREGARDED FOR PUR17 POSES OF ALL FEDERAL AND FEDERALLY ASSISTED

18 PROGRAMS.—A payment under subsection (a) shall 

19 not be regarded as income and shall not be regarded 

20 as a resource for the month of receipt and the fol21 lowing 9 months, for purposes of determining the 

22 eligibility of the recipient (or the recipient’s spouse 

23 or family) for benefits or assistance, or the amount 

24 or extent of benefits or assistance, under any FedVerDate Mar 15 2010 23:49 Aug 03, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5987.IH H5987

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1 eral program or under any State or local program fi2 nanced in whole or in part with Federal funds. 

3 (2) PAYMENT NOT CONSIDERED INCOME FOR

4 PURPOSES OF TAXATION.—A payment under sub5 section (a) shall not be considered as gross income 

6 for purposes of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

7 (3) PAYMENTS PROTECTED FROM ASSIGN8 MENT.—The provisions of sections 207 and 

9 1631(d)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

10 407, 1383(d)(1)), section 14(a) of the Railroad Re11 tirement Act of 1974 (45 U.S.C. 231m(a)), and sec12 tion 5301 of title 38, United States Code, shall 

13 apply to any payment made under subsection (a) as 

14 if such payment was a benefit payment or cash ben15 efit to such individual under the applicable program 

16 described in subparagraph (B) or (C) of subsection 

17 (a)(1). 

18 (4) PAYMENTS SUBJECT TO OFFSET.—Notwith19 standing paragraph (3)— 

20 (A) any payment made under this section 

21 shall, in the case of a payment of a direct de22 posit which is made after the date of the enact23 ment of this Act, be subject to the reclamation 

24 provisions under subpart B of part 210 of title 


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1 31, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to 

2 reclamation of benefit payments); and 

3 (B) any payment made under this section 

4 shall not, for purposes of section 3716 of title 

5 31, United States Code, be considered a benefit 

6 payment or cash benefit made under the appli7 cable program described in subparagraph (B) 

8 or (C) of subsection (a)(1), and all amounts 

9 paid shall be subject to offset to collect delin10 quent debts. 

11 (d) PAYMENT TO REPRESENTATIVE PAYEES AND FI12 DUCIARIES.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—In any case in which an in14 dividual who is entitled to a payment under sub15 section (a) and whose benefit payment or cash ben16 efit described in paragraph (1) of that subsection is 

17 paid to a representative payee or fiduciary, the pay18 ment under subsection (a) shall be made to the indi19 vidual’s representative payee or fiduciary and the en20 tire payment shall be used only for the benefit of the 

21 individual who is entitled to the payment. 

22 (2) APPLICABILITY.— 

23 (A) PAYMENT ON THE BASIS OF A TITLE

24 II OR SSI BENEFIT.—Section 1129(a)(3) of the 

25 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1320a–8(a)(3)) 


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1 shall apply to any payment made on the basis 

2 of an entitlement to a benefit specified in para3 graph (1)(B)(i) or (1)(C) of subsection (a) in 

4 the same manner as such section applies to a 

5 payment under title II or XVI of such Act. 

6 (B) PAYMENT ON THE BASIS OF A RAIL7 ROAD RETIREMENT BENEFIT.—Section 13 of 

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

9 shall apply to any payment made on the basis 

10 of an entitlement to a benefit specified in para11 graph (1)(B)(ii) of subsection (a) in the same 

12 manner as such section applies to a payment 

13 under such Act. 

14 (C) PAYMENT ON THE BASIS OF A VET15 ERANS BENEFIT.—Sections 5502, 6106, and 

16 6108 of title 38, United States Code, shall 

17 apply to any payment made on the basis of an 

18 entitlement to a benefit specified in paragraph 

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

20 as those sections apply to a payment under that 

21 title. 

Æ 


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