II 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2214 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide a better defined 

recruitment and retention incentive program for volunteer emergency 

service workers. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 23, 2019 

Ms. COLLINS (for herself and Mr. CARDIN) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide 

a better defined recruitment and retention incentive program for volunteer emergency service workers. 

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 ‘‘Volunteer Emergency 

5 Services Recruitment and Retention Act of 2019’’. 


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•S 2214 IS

1 SEC. 2. ELECTIVE TREATMENT OF LENGTH OF SERVICE 

2 AWARD PLANS AS ELIGIBLE DEFERRED COM3 PENSATION PLANS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 457(e) of the Internal 

5 Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end 

6 the following new paragraph: 

7 ‘‘(19) ADDITIONAL SPECIAL RULES APPLICABLE

8 TO LENGTH OF SERVICE AWARD PLANS.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘eligible de10 ferred compensation plan’ includes, at the elec11 tion of its sponsor, any length of service award 

12 plan described in paragraph (11)(A)(ii) which 

13 meets the requirements of paragraph (11)(B). 

14 Any such election, once made, shall be irrev15 ocable. 

16 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULES.—In the case of a 

17 length of service award plan whose sponsor has 

18 elected to have such plan treated as an eligible 

19 deferred compensation plan— 

20 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Such sponsor shall 

21 be treated as an eligible employer de22 scribed in subsection (e)(1)(A), and, except 

23 as provided in clauses (ii) and (iii), such 

24 plan shall be administered in a manner 

25 consistent with the requirements of this 

26 section. 


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•S 2214 IS

1 ‘‘(ii) MAXIMUM DEFERRAL

2 AMOUNT.—Subsection (b)(2) shall be ap3 plied by substituting ‘the limitation on ac4 cruals in effect under paragraph (11)(B)’ 

5 for ‘the lesser of—’ and all that follows 

6 through ‘compensation,’ in subparagraph 

7 (B) thereof. 

8 ‘‘(iii) DISTRIBUTION REQUIRE9 MENTS.—Subsection (d)(1)(A) shall be ap10 plied by deeming a severance from employ11 ment to have occurred for purposes of 

12 clause (ii) thereof on the payment date 

13 under the terms of the plan.’’. 

14 (b) EXEMPTION FROM EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT IN15 COME SECURITY ACT OF 1974.—For purposes of the Em16 ployee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, a length 

17 of service award plan described in section 

18 457(e)(11)(A)(ii) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 

19 whose sponsor has elected under section 457(e)(19) of 

20 such Code to have such plan treated as an eligible deferred 

21 compensation plan shall not be treated as an employee 

22 pension benefit plan or a pension plan under section 3(2) 

23 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 1002(2)). 


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•S 2214 IS

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

2 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

3 December 31, 2019. 

Æ 


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