II 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3003 

To protect the Social Security Disability Insurance program and provide 

other support for working disabled Americans, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 11, 2014 

Mr. COBURN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To protect the Social Security Disability Insurance program 

and provide other support for working disabled Americans, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Protecting Social Security Disability Act of 2014’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—ENSURING THE LONG-TERM SOLVENCY OF THE 

DISABILITY INSURANCE TRUST FUND 


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Sec. 101. Application of actuarial reduction for disabled beneficiaries who attain early retirement age. 

Sec. 102. Revising disability classifications; requiring periodic continuing disability reviews or time limiting benefits for certain beneficiaries. 

Sec. 103. Adjustment of age criteria for social security disability insurance 

medical-vocational guidelines; consideration of work which exists in the national economy. 

Sec. 104. Mandatory collection of negotiated civil monetary penalties. 

Sec. 105. Required electronic filing of wage withholding returns. 

TITLE II—PROGRAM INTEGRITY: REFORMING STANDARDS AND 

PROCEDURES FOR DISABILITY HEARINGS, MEDICAL EVIDENCE, 

AND CLAIMANT REPRESENTATIVES 

Sec. 201. Elimination of reconsideration review level for an initial adverse determination of an application for disability insurance benefits. 

Sec. 202. Deadline for submission of medical evidence; exclusion of certain 

medical evidence. 

Sec. 203. Non-adversarial disability hearing attorneys. 

Sec. 204. Procedural rules for hearings. 

Sec. 205. Prohibiting attorneys who have relinquished a license to practice in 

the face of an ethics investigation from serving as a claimant 

representative. 

Sec. 206. Applying judicial code of conduct to administrative law judges. 

Sec. 207. Evaluating medical evidence. 

Sec. 208. Reforming fees paid to attorneys and other claimant representatives. 

Sec. 209. Strengthening the administrative law judge quality review process. 

Sec. 210. Permitting data matching by Inspectors General. 

Sec. 211. Accounting for Social Security Program Integrity Spending. 

Sec. 212. Use of the National Directory of New Hires. 

TITLE III—PROVIDING SUPPORT FOR WORKING DISABLED 

AMERICANS 

Sec. 301. Establishment of Work Incentive Benefit System. 

Sec. 302. Early-intervention demonstration project; study on payroll tax reductions. 


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1 TITLE I—ENSURING THE LONG2 TERM SOLVENCY OF THE DIS3 ABILITY INSURANCE TRUST 

4 FUND 

5 SEC. 101. APPLICATION OF ACTUARIAL REDUCTION FOR 

6 DISABLED BENEFICIARIES WHO ATTAIN 

7 EARLY RETIREMENT AGE. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 202(k)(4) of the Social 

9 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 402(k)(4)) is amended to read 

10 as follows: 

11 ‘‘(4) With the exception of individuals who are classi12 fied by the Commissioner of Social Security as ‘medical 

13 improvement not expected’, any individual who, under this 

14 section and section 223, is entitled for any month to both 

15 an old-age insurance benefit and a disability insurance 

16 benefit under this title shall only be entitled to the old17 age insurance benefit for such month, as reduced for such 

18 month pursuant to subsection (q)(1).’’. 

19 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

20 (1) PERIOD OF DISABILITY.—Clause (i) of sec21 tion 216(i)(2)(D) of the Social Security Act (42 

22 U.S.C. 416(i)(2)(D)) is amended by striking ‘‘retire23 ment age (as defined in subsection (l))’’ and insert24 ing ‘‘early retirement age (as defined in subsection 

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1 sioner of Social Security as ‘medical improvement 

2 not expected’, retirement age (as defined in sub3 section (l)(1))’’. 

4 (2) DISABILITY INSURANCE BENEFIT PAY5 MENTS.—Section 223(a)(1) of the Social Security 

6 (42 U.S.C. 423(a)(1)) is amended, in the flush mat7 ter at the end, by striking ‘‘retirement age (as de8 fined in section 216(l))’’ and inserting ‘‘early retire9 ment age (as defined in section 216(l)(2)), or for in10 dividuals classified by the Commissioner of Social 

11 Security as ‘medical improvement not expected’, re12 tirement age (as defined in section 216(l)(1))’’. 

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

14 this section shall take effect on January 1, 2020, and shall 

15 apply to any individual (with the exception of individuals 

16 classified by the Commissioner of Social Security as ‘‘med17 ical improvement not expected’’) who attains early retire18 ment age (as defined in section 216(l)(2) of the Social Se19 curity Act) on or after such date. 

20 SEC. 102. REVISING DISABILITY CLASSIFICATIONS; REQUIR21 ING PERIODIC CONTINUING DISABILITY RE22 VIEWS OR TIME LIMITING BENEFITS FOR 

23 CERTAIN BENEFICIARIES. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.— 


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1 (1) DISABILITY CLASSIFICATIONS.—Not later 

2 than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this 

3 Act, the Commissioner of Social Security shall estab4 lish a system for classifying any individual who is 

5 determined to be entitled to disability insurance ben6 efits under title II of the Social Security Act or to 

7 monthly benefits under section 202 of such Act by 

8 reason of being under a disability in the following 

9 manner: 

10 (A) An individual shall be classified as 

11 ‘‘medical improvement expected’’ if the impair12 ment or combination of impairments causing 

13 the individual to be disabled is expected to 

14 medically improve to the point where the indi15 vidual will no longer be disabled in 1 to 2 years. 

16 (B) An individual shall be classified as 

17 ‘‘medical improvement likely’’ if the impairment 

18 or combination of impairments causing the indi19 vidual to be disabled is expected to medically 

20 improve to the point where the individual will 

21 no longer be disabled in 3 to 5 years. 

22 (C) An individual shall be classified as 

23 ‘‘medical improvement possible’’ if the impair24 ment or combination of impairments causing 

25 the individual to be disabled is not expected to 


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1 medically improve to the point where the indi2 vidual will no longer be disabled in 5 years, but 

3 future improvement is possible. 

4 (D) An individual shall be classified as 

5 ‘‘medical improvement not expected’’ if the indi6 vidual has an impairment or combination of im7 pairments that is chronic or progressive with 

8 permanent, irreversible structural or functional 

9 loss, and for which there is no known effective 

10 therapy, treatment, or surgical intervention that 

11 could result in medical improvement to the 

12 point where the individual is no longer disabled. 

13 (2) CONSIDERATION OF AGE.—In classifying an 

14 individual under paragraph (1), the Commissioner of 

15 Social Security shall not classify an individual as 

16 ‘‘medical improvement not expected’’ solely by rea17 son of such individual’s age where a lesser classifica18 tion is appropriate. 

19 (b) CONTINUING DISABILITY REVIEWS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 221(i) of the Social 

21 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 421(i)) is amended— 

22 (A) by amending paragraph (1) to read as 

23 follows: 

24 ‘‘(1)(A) In the case of any individual who is deter25 mined to be under a disability and is classified as ‘medical 


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1 improvement likely’ or ‘medical improvement possible’, the 

2 applicable State agency or the Commissioner of Social Se3 curity (as may be appropriate) shall, for purposes of con4 tinuing eligibility— 

5 ‘‘(i) if the individual is classified as ‘med6 ical improvement likely’, conduct a review to de7 termine whether the individual remains under a 

disability during the 5th 8 year following the first 

9 month after the individual’s waiting period (as 

10 defined in section 223(c)(2)); and 

11 ‘‘(ii) if the individual is classified as ‘med12 ical improvement possible’, conduct a review to 

13 determine whether the individual remains under 

a disability during the 7th 14 year following the 

15 first month after the individual’s waiting period 

16 (as so defined). 

17 ‘‘(B) In addition to the continuing eligibility re18 views required under subparagraph (A) and notwith19 standing how an individual is classified under the 

20 system established by the Commissioner of Social 

21 Security under section 102(a) of the Protecting So22 cial Security Disability Act of 2014, if the Commis23 sioner has reason to believe that an individual that 

24 has been determined to be under a disability is not 

25 under a disability, the Commissioner may review 


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1 such individual’s case at such time and in such man2 ner as the Commissioner determines appropriate ex3 cept that the Commissioner shall not initiate a re4 view on the basis of income earned by an individual 

5 who is a participant in the Work Incentive Benefit 

6 System established under section 223(l). 

7 ‘‘(C) Reviews of cases which are required or 

8 permitted under this paragraph shall be in addition 

9 to, and shall not be considered as a substitute for, 

10 any other reviews which are required or provided for 

11 under or in the administration of this title.’’; 

12 (B) by striking paragraphs (2) and (5); 

13 (C) by redesignating paragraphs (3) 

14 through (4) as paragraphs (2) through (3), re15 spectively; and 

16 (D) in paragraph (2), as so redesignated— 

17 (i) by striking ‘‘Committee on Fi18 nance’’ and inserting ‘‘Committees on Fi19 nance and Homeland Security and Govern20 ment Affairs’’; 

21 (ii) by striking ‘‘Committee on Ways 

22 and Means’’ and inserting ‘‘Committees on 

23 Ways and Means and Oversight and Gov24 ernment Reform’’; 


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1 (iii) by striking ‘‘for reconsideration of 

2 such initial termination or’’; 

3 (iv) by striking ‘‘or both,’’; and 

4 (v) by striking ‘‘reconsideration or’’. 

5 (2) STANDARD OF REVIEW FOR CONTINUING

6 DISABILITY REVIEWS.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 223(f) of the 

8 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 423(f)) is 

9 amended— 

10 (i) in paragraph (4), by striking the 

11 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; 

12 (ii) by inserting after paragraph (4) 

13 the following new paragraph: 

14 ‘‘(5) in the case of a continuing disability re15 view under section 221(i), evidence that would be 

16 sufficient to support a finding in an initial deter17 mination that the individual is not under a disability 

18 and is able to engage in substantial gainful activ19 ity.’’; and 

20 (iii) by inserting ‘‘, except that, in the 

21 case of a continuing disability review under 

22 section 221(i), the Commissioner shall not 

23 consider the fact that an individual is en24 gaged in substantial gainful work as part 

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1 tablished under subsection (l) as evidence 

2 that the individual is able to engage in 

3 substantial gainful activity’’ after ‘‘secured 

4 by the Commissioner of Social Security’’. 

5 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENT TO DEFINI6 TION OF DISABILITY.—Section 223(d)(2) of the 

7 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 423(d)(2) is 

8 amended— 

9 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

10 ‘‘An individual’’ and inserting ‘‘Subject to 

11 subparagraph (D), an individual’’ 

12 (ii) by adding at the end the following 

13 new subparagraph: 

14 ‘‘(D) In the case of a continuing disability re15 view under section 221(i), an individual may be 

16 found to be under a disability even though the indi17 vidual is engaged in substantial gainful work as part 

18 of the Work Incentive Benefit System established 

19 under subsection (l).’’. 

20 (c) TIME-LIMITING DISABILITY BENEFITS FOR MIE 

21 INDIVIDUALS.—Section 223 of the Social Security Act (42 

22 U.S.C. 423) is amended— 

23 (1) in subsection (a)(1), as amended by section 

24 101(b)(2), in the flush language after and below 


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1 subparagraph (E), by striking ‘‘subsection (e)’’ and 

2 inserting ‘‘subsections (e) and (k)’’; and 

3 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘Time-limited Disability Benefits 

5 ‘‘(k)(1) In the case of an individual who files an appli6 cation for disability insurance benefits under this section 

7 or for monthly benefits under section 202 by reason of 

8 being under a disability for any month that begins on or 

9 after the date that is 1 year after the date of the enact10 ment of the Protecting Social Security Disability Act of 

11 2014, is determined to be under a disability, and is classi12 fied by the Commissioner of Social Security as ‘medical 

13 improvement expected’, the termination month applicable 

14 to the individual shall be the 35th month following the first 

15 month after the individual’s waiting period (as defined in 

16 subsection (c)(2)). 

17 ‘‘(2)(A)(i) For purposes of this paragraph, the term 

18 ‘timely reapplication’ means an application for disability 

19 insurance benefits under this section or for monthly bene20 fits under section 202 by reason of being under a disability 

21 that is submitted— 

22 ‘‘(I) by an individual who is a recipient of such 

23 benefits; and 

24 ‘‘(II) during the period that is 14 months be25 fore the end of the termination month applicable (or 


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1 most recently applicable) to the individual under 

2 paragraph (1) as of the date of such application and 

3 ending with the date that is 12 months before the 

4 end of such termination month. 

5 ‘‘(ii) Notwithstanding clause (i), the Commissioner of 

6 Social Security may deem an application for disability in7 surance benefits under this section or for monthly benefits 

8 under section 202 by reason of being under a disability 

9 submitted by an individual who is a recipient of such bene10 fits that is submitted after the period described in clause 

11 (i)(II) to be a timely reapplication if— 

12 ‘‘(I) the individual can show good cause for why 

13 the application was not submitted during such pe14 riod; and 

15 ‘‘(II) the application is submitted not later than 

16 6 months before the end of the termination month 

17 applicable (or most recently applicable) to the indi18 vidual under paragraph (1) as of the date of such 

19 application. 

20 ‘‘(B)(i) An individual who submits a timely reapplica21 tion and who is determined to be under a disability shall 

22 be deemed to have satisfied the waiting period applicable 

23 under subsection (c)(2). 

24 ‘‘(ii)(I) If the Commissioner of Social Security fails 

25 to make an initial determination with respect to the timely 


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1 reapplication of an individual who is a recipient of dis2 ability insurance benefits under this section or monthly 

3 benefits under section 202 by reason of being under a dis4 ability before the end of the termination month applicable 

5 to the individual as of the date of such reapplication, such 

6 individual shall continue to be entitled to such benefits 

7 until an initial determination with respect to such timely 

8 reapplication is made. 

9 ‘‘(II) If the Commissioner of Social Security makes 

10 an initial adverse determination with respect to the timely 

11 reapplication of an individual who is a recipient of dis12 ability insurance benefits under this section or monthly 

13 benefits under section 202 by reason of being under a dis14 ability and such individual files a timely request for a 

15 hearing under section 221(d), such individual may elect 

16 to have the payment of such benefits (as well as any other 

17 benefits payable under this title or title XVIII on the basis 

18 of such individual’s entitlement to such benefits) continue 

19 in the same manner and subject to the same conditions 

20 as an election made under subsection (g). 

21 ‘‘(C) For purposes of reviewing a timely reapplication 

22 submitted by an individual who is a recipient of disability 

23 insurance benefits under this section or monthly benefits 

24 under section 202 by reason of being under a disability— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the fact that the individual was previously 

2 found to be under a disability shall have no evi3 dentiary weight; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) subsection (f) shall not apply.’’. 

5 (d) REGULATIONS.—The Commissioner of Social Se6 curity shall promulgate or revise, as appropriate, regula7 tions relating to the determination, classification, and re8 view of the disability status of individuals who apply for 

9 or receive disability insurance benefits under title II of the 

10 Social Security Act and related provisions of the Social 

11 Security Administration Programs Operations Manual 

12 (POMS) to carry out subsection (a) and the amendments 

13 made by subsection (b). 

14 SEC. 103. ADJUSTMENT OF AGE CRITERIA FOR SOCIAL SE15 CURITY DISABILITY INSURANCE MEDICAL16 VOCATIONAL GUIDELINES; CONSIDERATION 

17 OF WORK WHICH EXISTS IN THE NATIONAL 

18 ECONOMY. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

20 (1) AGE CRITERIA.—Notwithstanding Appendix 

21 2 to Subpart P of Part 404 of title 20, Code of Fed22 eral Regulations, with respect to disability deter23 minations or reviews made on or after the date that 

24 is 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

25 age shall not be considered as a vocational factor for 


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1 any individual who has not attained the age that is 

2 12 years less than the retirement age for such indi3 vidual (as defined in section 216(l)(1) of the Social 

4 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 416(l)). 

5 (2) WORK WHICH EXISTS IN THE NATIONAL

6 ECONOMY.—With respect to disability determina7 tions or reviews made on or after the date of the en8 actment of this Act, in determining whether an indi9 vidual is able to engage in any work which exists in 

10 the national economy (as defined in section 

11 223(d)(2)(A) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

12 423(d)(2)(A)), the Commissioner of Social Security 

13 shall consider the share and ages of individuals cur14 rently participating in the labor force and the num15 ber and types of jobs available in the current econ16 omy. 

17 (b) UPDATING DATA ON WORK WHICH EXISTS IN

18 NATIONAL ECONOMY.—Not later than 2 years after the 

19 date of the enactment of this Act, and every year there20 after, the Commissioner of Social Security shall update 

21 the data used by the Commissioner to determine the jobs 

22 which exist in the national economy to ensure that such 

23 data reflects the full range of work which exists in the 

24 national economy, including newly-created jobs in emerg25 ing industries. 


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1 SEC. 104. MANDATORY COLLECTION OF NEGOTIATED CIVIL 

2 MONETARY PENALTIES. 

3 Section 1129(i)(2) of the Social Security Act (42 

4 U.S.C. 1320a–8(i)(2)) is amended by inserting ‘‘and shall 

5 delegate authority for collecting civil money penalties and 

6 assessments negotiated under this section to the Inspector 

7 General’’ before the period. 

8 SEC. 105. REQUIRED ELECTRONIC FILING OF WAGE WITH9 HOLDING RETURNS. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (2) of section 6011(e) 

11 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended— 

12 (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) and 

13 (B) as subparagraphs (B) and (C), respectively, 

14 (2) by inserting before subparagraph (B), as so 

15 redesignated, the following new subparagraph: 

16 ‘‘(A) shall— 

17 ‘‘(i) require any person that is re18 quired to file a return containing informa19 tion described in section 6051(a) to file 

20 such return on magnetic media, and 

21 ‘‘(ii) provide for waiver of the require22 ments of clause (i) in the case of dem23 onstrated hardship for— 

24 ‘‘(I) for any period before Janu25 ary 1, 2020, a person having 25 or 

26 fewer employees, and 


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1 ‘‘(II) for any period after Decem2 ber 31, 2019, a person having 5 or 

3 fewer employees,’’, and 

4 (3) by inserting ‘‘except as provided in subpara5 graph (A),’’ before ‘‘shall not require’’ in subpara6 graph (B), as so redesignated. 

7 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Paragraph (4) of 

8 section 6011(e) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

9 amended by striking ‘‘paragraph (2)(A)’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘paragraph (2)(B)’’. 

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

12 this section shall apply to returns filed after December 31, 

13 2016. 

14 TITLE II—PROGRAM INTEGRITY: 

15 REFORMING STANDARDS AND 

16 PROCEDURES FOR DIS17 ABILITY HEARINGS, MEDICAL 

18 EVIDENCE, AND CLAIMANT 

19 REPRESENTATIVES 

20 SEC. 201. ELIMINATION OF RECONSIDERATION REVIEW 

21 LEVEL FOR AN INITIAL ADVERSE DETER22 MINATION OF AN APPLICATION FOR DIS23 ABILITY INSURANCE BENEFITS. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 205(b) of the Social Secu25 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 405(b)) is amended— 


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1 (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘In any’’ and 

2 inserting ‘‘Subject to paragraph (4), in any’’; and 

3 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(4) Any review of an initial adverse determination 

5 with respect to an application for disability insurance ben6 efits under section 223 or for monthly benefits under sec7 tion 202 by reason of being under a disability shall only 

8 be made before an administrative law judge in a hearing 

9 under paragraph (1).’’. 

10 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

11 subsection (a) shall apply to initial adverse determinations 

12 on applications for disability insurance benefits under title 

13 II of the Social Security Act made after the date of the 

14 enactment of this Act. 

15 SEC. 202. DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION OF MEDICAL EVI16 DENCE; EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN MEDICAL 

17 EVIDENCE. 

18 (a) CLOSING OF RECORD FOR SUBMISSION OF MED19 ICAL EVIDENCE.—Section 205(b)(1) of the Social Secu20 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 405(b)(1)) is amended— 

21 (1) by striking ‘‘The Commissioner of Social 

22 Security is directed’’ and inserting— 

23 ‘‘(A) The Commissioner of Social Security is di24 rected’’; and 


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1 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub2 paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(B)(i) Notwithstanding the last sentence of 

4 subparagraph (A), in the case of a hearing before an 

5 administrative law judge to determine if an indi6 vidual is under a disability (as defined in section 

7 223(d)) or a review of such a determination before 

8 the Appeals Council of the Office of Appellate Oper9 ations of the Social Security Administration, medical 

10 evidence (other than the evidence already in the 

11 record) shall not be received if the evidence is sub12 mitted less than 5 days prior to the date on which 

13 the hearing is held unless the individual can show 

14 that the evidence is material and there is good cause 

15 for the failure to submit it before the deadline, but 

16 in no case shall medical evidence be received if it 

17 is— 

18 ‘‘(I) based on information obtained during 

19 the period that begins after a determination is 

20 made by an administrative law judge; or 

21 ‘‘(II) submitted more than 1 year after a 

22 determination is made by an administrative law 

23 judge. 

24 ‘‘(ii) At the request of an individual applying 

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1 resentative, or a disability hearing attorney (as de2 fined in section 203(a) of the Protecting Social Se3 curity Disability Act of 2014), and for the purpose 

4 of completing the record, an administrative law 

5 judge may postpone a hearing to determine if the in6 dividual is under a disability (as so defined) to a 

7 date that is no more than 30 days after the date for 

8 which the hearing was originally scheduled if— 

9 ‘‘(I) the request is made no less than 7 

10 days prior to the date for which the hearing 

11 was originally scheduled; and 

12 ‘‘(II) the party making the request shows 

13 good cause for why the hearing should be post14 poned.’’. 

15 (b) EXCLUSION OF MEDICAL EVIDENCE THAT IS

16 NOT SUBMITTED IN ITS ENTIRETY OR FURNISHED BY A

17 LICENSED PRACTITIONER.—Section 223(d)(5) of the So18 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 423(d)(5)) is amended— 

19 (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘In’’ and 

20 inserting ‘‘Subject to subparagraphs (C) and (D), 

21 in’’; and 

22 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub23 paragraphs: 

24 ‘‘(C)(i) An individual and, if applicable, such in25 dividual’s representative shall submit, in its entirety 


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1 and without redaction, all relevant medical evidence 

2 known to the individual or the representative to the 

3 Commissioner of Social Security. 

4 ‘‘(ii) In the case of a hearing before an adminis5 trative law judge to determine if an individual is 

6 under a disability (as defined in paragraph (1)), the 

7 Commissioner of Social Security shall not consider 

8 any piece of medical evidence furnished by an indi9 vidual or such individual’s representative unless such 

10 individual and, if applicable, such individual’s rep11 resentative, certifies at the hearing that all relevant 

12 medical evidence has been submitted in its entirety 

13 and without redaction. 

14 ‘‘(iii) For purposes of this subparagraph, the 

15 term ‘relevant medical evidence’ means any medical 

16 evidence relating to the individual’s claimed physical 

17 or mental impairments that the Commissioner of So18 cial Security should consider to determine whether 

19 the individual is under a disability, regardless of 

20 whether such evidence is favorable or unfavorable to 

21 the individual’s case, but shall not include any oral 

22 or written communication or other document ex23 changed between the individual and such individual’s 

24 attorney representative that are subject to attorney25 client privilege or work product doctrine, unless the 


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1 individual voluntarily discloses such communication 

2 to the Commissioner. Neither the attorney-client 

3 privilege nor the work product doctrine shall prevent 

4 from disclosure medical evidence, medical source 

5 opinions, or any other factual matter that the Com6 missioner may consider in determining whether or 

7 not the individual is entitled to benefits. 

8 ‘‘(iv) Any individual or representative who 

9 knowingly violates this subparagraph shall be guilty 

10 of making a false statement or representation of ma11 terial fact, shall be subject to civil and criminal pen12 alties under sections 208 and 1129, and, in the case 

13 of a representative, shall be suspended or disquali14 fied from appearing before the Social Security Ad15 ministration. 

16 ‘‘(D) The Commissioner of Social Security shall 

17 not consider any evidence furnished by a physician 

18 or health care practitioner who is not licensed, has 

19 been sanctioned, or is under investigation for ethical 

20 misconduct.’’. 

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

22 this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment 

23 of this Act, and shall apply to applications for disability 

24 insurance benefits filed on or after that date. 


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1 SEC. 203. NON-ADVERSARIAL DISABILITY HEARING ATTOR2 NEYS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

4 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Commissioner of 

5 Social Security shall establish disability hearing at6 torney positions within the Office of Appellate Oper7 ations of the Social Security Administration for the 

8 purpose of improving the quality, timeliness, and 

9 consistency of disability determinations by adminis10 trative law judges as described in this section. The 

11 Commissioner shall hire and employ such attorneys 

12 and other personnel as are necessary to carry out 

13 the responsibilities of disability hearing attorneys, as 

14 described in subsection (b). 

15 (2) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, 

16 the term ‘‘disability hearing attorney’’ means an at17 torney employed under this section. 

18 (b) ASSIGNMENT OF CASES; RESPONSIBILITIES OF

19 DISABILITY HEARING ATTORNEYS.— 

20 (1) ASSIGNMENT OF CASES.—Each case that is 

21 scheduled for a hearing to determine if an individual 

22 is under a disability (as defined in section 223(d) of 

23 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 423(d)) shall be 

24 assigned to a disability hearing attorney as soon as 

25 practicable. 


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1 (2) RESPONSIBILITIES OF DISABILITY HEARING

2 ATTORNEYS.—The disability hearing attorney as3 signed to a case under paragraph (1) shall— 

4 (A) develop the evidentiary record, and, if 

5 necessary, work with the officials that made the 

6 initial determination that the individual was not 

7 under a disability to understand why such de8 termination was made; 

9 (B) in cases where the individual has rep10 resentation, work with the representative to en11 sure that the record is complete prior to the 

12 hearing, and examine witnesses and present evi13 dence to the administrative law judge during 

14 the hearing; 

15 (C) prior to the hearing, if the attorney 

16 finds that the evidence clearly establishes that 

17 the individual is under a disability, recommend 

18 that the administrative law judge make a deter19 mination that the individual is under a dis20 ability without requiring a hearing; and 

21 (D) after the hearing, if the attorney finds 

22 that the evidence clearly does not support the 

23 determination of the administrative law judge 

24 that the individual is disabled, recommend to 

25 the Appeals Council of the Office of Appellate 


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1 Operations of the Social Security Administra2 tion that the Appeals Council review the deter3 mination on its own motion. 

4 (c) QUALIFICATIONS AND TRAINING.—The Commis5 sioner of Social Security shall ensure that disability hear6 ing attorneys employed under this section are appro7 priately qualified and trained to understand relevant med8 ical, vocational, and legal issues. 

9 SEC. 204. PROCEDURAL RULES FOR HEARINGS. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

11 date of the enactment of this Act, the Commissioner of 

12 Social Security shall establish and make available to the 

13 public procedural rules for hearings to determine whether 

14 or not an individual is entitled to disability insurance ben15 efits under title II of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

16 401 et seq.). These rules shall include those established 

17 in this Act as well as— 

18 (1) rules and procedures for motions and re19 quests; 

20 (2) rules related to the representation of indi21 viduals in such a hearing, such as the qualifications 

22 and standards of conduct required of representa23 tives; 

24 (3) rules and procedures for the submission of 

25 evidence; 


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1 (4) rules related to the closure of the record; 

2 and 

3 (5) rules and procedures for imposing sanctions 

4 on parties for failing to comply with hearing rules. 

5 (b) AUTHORITY OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES

6 TO SANCTION CLAIMANT REPRESENTATIVES.—Section 

7 206(a)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 406(a)(1)) 

8 is amended by inserting after the fifth sentence the fol9 lowing: ‘‘The Commissioner of Social Security shall estab10 lish rules under which an administrative law judge may 

11 impose fines and other sanctions the Commissioner deter12 mines to be appropriate on a representative for failure to 

13 follow the Commissioner’s rules and regulations.’’ 

14 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Any rules adopted pursuant 

15 to this section or the amendment made thereby shall take 

16 effect on the date that is 6 months after the date of their 

17 publication and shall apply to hearings held on or after 

18 that date. 

19 SEC. 205. PROHIBITING ATTORNEYS WHO HAVE RELIN20 QUISHED A LICENSE TO PRACTICE IN THE 

21 FACE OF AN ETHICS INVESTIGATION FROM 

22 SERVING AS A CLAIMANT REPRESENTATIVE. 

23 Section 206(a)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 

24 U.S.C. 406(a)(1)), as amended by section 204(b), is fur25 ther amended— 


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•S 3003 IS

1 (1) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘, and, in 

2 cases where compensation is sought for services as 

3 a representative, shall’’ before ‘‘prescribe’’; 

4 (2) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘Federal 

5 courts,’’ and inserting ‘‘Federal courts and certifies 

6 to the Commissioner that such attorney has never 

7 (A) been disbarred or suspended from any court or 

8 bar to which such attorney was previously admitted 

9 to practice or disqualified from participating in or 

10 appearing before any Federal program or agency, or 

11 (B) relinquished a license to practice in, participate 

12 in, or appear before any court, bar, or Federal pro13 gram or agency in connection with a settlement of 

14 an investigation into ethical misconduct,’’; and 

15 (3) in the third sentence— 

16 (A) by striking ‘‘may’’ each place it ap17 pears and inserting ‘‘shall’’; 

18 (B) by striking ‘‘or who has been disquali19 fied from participating in or appearing before 

20 any Federal program or agency’’ and inserting 

21 ‘‘, who has been disqualified from participating 

22 in or appearing before any Federal program or 

23 agency, or who has voluntarily relinquished a li24 cense to practice in, participate in, or appear 

25 before any court, bar, or Federal program or 


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1 agency in settlement of an investigation into 

2 ethical misconduct’’; and 

3 (C) by inserting ‘‘or who has voluntarily 

4 relinquished a license to practice in any court 

5 or bar in settlement of an investigation into 

6 ethical misconduct’’ before the period. 

7 SEC. 206. APPLYING JUDICIAL CODE OF CONDUCT TO AD8 MINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3105 of title 5, United 

10 States Code, is amended— 

11 (1) by striking ‘‘Each agency’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘(a) Each agency’’; and 

13 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(b) The Code of Conduct for United States Judges 

15 adopted by the Judicial Conference of the United States 

16 shall apply to administrative law judges appointed under 

17 this section. 

18 ‘‘(c) If, in applying a standard of conduct to an ad19 ministrative law judge appointed under this section, there 

20 is a conflict between the Code of Conduct for United 

21 States Judges and any other law or regulation, the stricter 

22 standard of conduct shall apply. 

23 ‘‘(d) Pursuant to section 7301, the President may 

24 issue such regulations as may be necessary to carry out 

25 subsections (b) and (c).’’. 


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1 (b) LIMITATION ON REGULATORY AUTHORITY.—Sec2 tion 1305 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by 

3 striking ‘‘3105’’ and inserting ‘‘3105(a)’’. 

4 SEC. 207. EVALUATING MEDICAL EVIDENCE. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

6 date of the enactment of this Act, the Commissioner of 

7 Social Security shall ensure that all administrative law 

8 judges within the Office of Disability Adjudication and Re9 view of the Social Security Administration receive training 

10 on how to appropriately evaluate and weigh medical evi11 dence provided by medical professionals. 

12 (b) OPINION EVIDENCE.—Section 223(d)(5)(B) of 

13 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 423(d)(5)(B)), as 

14 amended by section 202(b), is further amended by adding 

15 at the end the following new sentences: ‘‘In weighing med16 ical evidence, the Commissioner of Social Security may as17 sign greater weight to certain opinion evidence supplied 

18 by an individual’s treating physician (or other treating 

19 health care provider) than to opinion evidence obtained 

20 from another source, but in no circumstance shall opinion 

21 evidence from any source be given controlling weight.’’ 

22 (c) HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS SUPPLYING CON23 SULTATIVE EXAMS.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning 1 year after the 

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1 er an individual applying for disability insurance 

2 benefits under title II of the Social Security Act is 

3 disabled, the Commissioner of Social Security shall 

4 not consider medical evidence resulting from a con5 sultative exam with a health care provider conducted 

6 for the purpose of supporting the individual’s appli7 cation unless the evidence is accompanied by a Med8 ical Consultant Acknowledgment Form signed by the 

9 health care provider who conducted the exam. 

10 (2) MEDICAL CONSULTANT ACKNOWLEDGMENT

11 FORM.— 

12 (A) DEFINITION.—As used in this sub13 section, the term ‘‘Medical Consultant Acknowl14 edgment Form’’ means a form published by the 

15 Commissioner of Social Security that meets the 

16 requirements of subparagraph (B). 

17 (B) REQUIREMENTS.—The Commissioner 

18 of Social Security shall develop the Medical 

19 Consultant Acknowledgment Form and make it 

20 available to the public not later than 6 months 

21 after the date of enactment of this Act. The 

22 contents of the Medical Consultant Acknowledg23 ment Form shall include— 

24 (i) information on how medical evi25 dence is used in disability determinations; 


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1 (ii) instructions on completing a resid2 ual functional capacity form; 

3 (iii) information on the legal and eth4 ical obligations of a health care provider 

5 who supplies medical evidence for use in a 

6 disability determination, including any civil 

7 or criminal penalties that may be imposed 

8 on a health care provider who supplies 

9 medical evidence for use in a disability de10 termination; and 

11 (iv) a statement that the signatory 

12 has read and understands the contents of 

13 the form. 

14 (3) PENALTIES FOR FRAUD.—In addition to 

15 any other penalties that may be prescribed by law, 

16 any individual who forges a signature on a Medical 

17 Consultant Acknowledgment Form submitted to the 

18 Commissioner of Social Security shall be guilty of 

19 making a false statement or representation of mate20 rial fact, and upon conviction shall be subject to civil 

21 and criminal penalties under sections 208 and 1129 

22 of the Social Security Act and, in the case of a rep23 resentative, shall be suspended or disqualified from 

24 appearing before the Social Security Administration. 

25 (d) SYMPTOM VALIDITY TESTS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of evaluating 

2 the credibility of an individual’s medical evidence, an 

3 administrative law judge responsible for conducting 

4 a hearing to determine whether an individual apply5 ing for disability insurance benefits under title II of 

6 the Social Security Act or for monthly benefits 

7 under section 202 of such Act by reason of a dis8 ability may require the individual to undergo a 

9 symptom validity test either prior to or after the 

10 hearing. 

11 (2) WEIGHT GIVEN TO SVTS.—An administra12 tive law judge may only consider the results of a 

13 symptom validity test as a part of an individual’s en14 tire medical history and shall not give controlling 

15 weight to such results. 

16 (e) EVIDENCE OBTAINED FROM PUBLICLY AVAIL17 ABLE SOCIAL MEDIA.—For purposes of evaluating the 

18 credibility of an individual’s medical evidence, an adminis19 trative law judge responsible for conducting a hearing to 

20 determine whether an individual applying for disability in21 surance benefits under title II of the Social Security Act 

22 is disabled shall be permitted to consider information 

23 about the individual obtained from publicly available social 

24 media. 


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1 (f) REGULATIONS RELATED TO EVALUATING MED2 ICAL EVIDENCE.—Not later than 1 year after the date of 

3 enactment of this Act, the Commissioner of Social Secu4 rity shall promulgate rules and regulations to carry out 

5 the purposes of this section, including regulations relating 

6 to when it is appropriate for an administrative law judge 

7 to order a symptom validity test or to consider evidence 

8 obtained from publicly available social media. 

9 SEC. 208. REFORMING FEES PAID TO ATTORNEYS AND 

10 OTHER CLAIMANT REPRESENTATIVES. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

12 date of enactment of this Act, the Commissioner of Social 

13 Security shall establish rules and regulations relating to 

14 the fees payable to representatives of individuals claiming 

15 entitlement to disability insurance benefits under title II 

16 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 401 et seq.). Such 

17 rules and regulations shall— 

18 (1) require representatives to account for the 

19 work performed with respect to a case, whether or 

20 not there is a valid fee agreement between the rep21 resentative and the individual; and 

22 (2) prohibit a representative from being reim23 bursed by the Social Security Administration for 

24 travel expenses related to a case. 


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1 (b) REVIEW OF HIGHEST-EARNING CLAIMANT REP2 RESENTATIVES.— 

3 (1) REVIEW.—Not later than 1 year after the 

4 date of enactment of this Act and annually there5 after, the Inspector General of the Social Security 

6 Administration shall conduct a review of the prac7 tices of a sample of the highest-earning claimant 

8 representatives to ensure compliance with the poli9 cies of the Social Security Administration. In review10 ing representative practices, the Inspector General 

11 shall look for suspicious practices, including— 

12 (A) repetitive language in residual func13 tional capacity forms; 

14 (B) irregularities in the licensing history of 

15 medical professionals providing medical opin16 ions in support of a claimant’s application; and 

17 (C) a disproportionately high number of 

18 appearances by a representative before the 

19 same administrative law judge. 

20 (2) REPORT.—Not later than December 1 of 

21 each year in which a review described in paragraph 

22 (1) is conducted, the Inspector General of the Social 

23 Security Administration shall submit a report con24 taining the results of such review, together with any 

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•S 3003 IS

1 posed legislation that the Inspector General deter2 mines appropriate, to the Committees on Finance 

3 and Homeland Security and Government Affairs of 

4 the Senate and the Committees on Ways and Means 

5 and Oversight and Government Reform of the House 

6 of Representatives. 

7 (c) APPLICABILITY OF THE EQUAL ACCESS TO JUS8 TICE ACT.—Section 205 of the Social Security Act (42 

9 U.S.C. 405) is amended by adding at the end the following 

10 new subsection: 

11 ‘‘(v) Sections 504 of title 5 and 2412 of title 28, 

12 United States Code (commonly known as the ‘Equal Ac13 cess to Justice Act’), shall not apply to— 

14 ‘‘(1) any review under this title of a determina15 tion of disability made by the Commissioner of So16 cial Security; or 

17 ‘‘(2) if new evidence is submitted by an indi18 vidual after a hearing to determine whether or not 

19 the individual is under a disability, judicial review of 

20 a final determination of disability under subsection 

21 (g) of this section.’’. 

22 SEC. 209. STRENGTHENING THE ADMINISTRATIVE LAW 

23 JUDGE QUALITY REVIEW PROCESS. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.— 


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1 (1) REVIEW.—Not later than 1 year after the 

2 date of enactment of this Act and annually there3 after, the Division of Quality of the Office of Appel4 late Operations of the Social Security Administra5 tion shall conduct a review of a sample of determina6 tions that individuals are entitled to disability insur7 ance benefits by outlier administrative law judges 

8 and identify any determinations that are not sup9 ported by the evidence. 

10 (2) REPORT.—Not later than December 1 of 

11 each year in which a review described in paragraph 

12 (1) is conducted, the Division of Quality Review of 

13 the Office of Appellate Operations of the Social Se14 curity Administration shall submit a report con15 taining the results of such review, including all de16 terminations that were found to be unsupported by 

17 the evidence, together with any recommendations for 

18 administrative action or proposed legislation that the 

19 Division determines appropriate, to— 

20 (A) the Inspector General of the Social Se21 curity Administration; 

22 (B) the Commissioner of the Social Secu23 rity Administration; 


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1 (C) the Committees on Ways and Means 

2 and Oversight and Government Reform of the 

3 House of the Representatives; and 

4 (D) the Committees on Finance and 

5 Homeland Security and Government Affairs of 

6 the Senate. 

7 (3) DEFINITION OF OUTLIER ADMINISTRATIVE

8 LAW JUDGE.—For purposes of this subsection, the 

9 term ‘‘outlier administrative law judge’’ means an 

10 administrative law judge within the Office of Dis11 ability Adjudication and Review of the Social Secu12 rity Administration who, in a given year— 

13 (A) issues more than 700 decisions; and 

14 (B) determines that the applicant is enti15 tled to disability insurance benefits in not less 

16 than 85 percent of cases. 

17 (b) MANDATORY CONTINUING DISABILITY RE18 VIEW.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commissioner of Social 

20 Security shall ensure that, not less than 6 months 

21 after receiving a report described in subsection 

22 (a)(2), every determination of entitlement found to 

23 be unsupported by the evidence is in the process of 

24 being reviewed under section 221(i)(1)(B) of the So25 cial Security Act (as amended by section 102(b)(1)). 


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1 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

2 221(i)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

3 421(i)(1)), as amended by section 102(b)(1), is fur4 ther amended in subparagraph (C) by inserting ‘‘or 

5 under section 209(b) of the Protecting Social Secu6 rity Disability Act of 2014’’ before the period. 

7 SEC. 210. PERMITTING DATA MATCHING BY INSPECTORS 

8 GENERAL. 

9 Clause (ix) of section 552a(a)(8)(B) of title 5, United 

10 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘the Secretary of 

11 Health and Human Services or the Inspector General of 

12 the Department of Health and Human Services’’ and in13 serting ‘‘the Inspector General of an agency, or an agency 

14 in coordination with an Inspector General’’. 

15 SEC. 211. ACCOUNTING FOR SOCIAL SECURITY PROGRAM 

16 INTEGRITY SPENDING. 

17 Amounts made available for Social Security program 

18 integrity spending by the Social Security Administration 

19 for a fiscal year shall be— 

20 (1) included in a separate account within the 

21 Federal budget; and 

22 (2) funded in a separate account in the appro23 priate annual appropriations bill. 


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1 SEC. 212. USE OF THE NATIONAL DIRECTORY OF NEW 

2 HIRES. 

3 Beginning with the date that is 1 year after the date 

4 of the enactment of this Act, the Commissioner of Social 

5 Security shall consult the National Directory of New Hires 

6 established under section 453(i) of the Social Security Act 

7 (42 U.S.C. 653(i)) in determining whether any individual 

8 who submits an application or reapplication for disability 

9 insurance benefits under title II of the Social Security Act 

10 or for monthly benefits under section 202 of such Act by 

11 reason of a disability is able to engage in substantial gain12 ful activity. 

13 TITLE III—PROVIDING SUPPORT 

14 FOR WORKING DISABLED 

15 AMERICANS 

16 SEC. 301. ESTABLISHMENT OF WORK INCENTIVE BENEFIT 

17 SYSTEM. 

18 (a) ELIMINATION OF THE TICKET TO WORK AND

19 SELF-SUFFICIENCY PROGRAM.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Part A of title XI of the So21 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.) is amend22 ed by striking section 1148. 

23 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

24 (A) Section 225(b)(1) of such Act is 

25 amended by striking ‘‘consisting of the Ticket 


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1 to Work and Self-Sufficiency Program under 

2 section 1148 or another program’’. 

3 (B) Section 1631(a)(6)(A) of such Act is 

4 amended by striking ‘‘consisting of the Ticket 

5 to Work and Self-Sufficiency Program under 

6 section 1148 or another program’’. 

7 (C) Section 1633(c) of such Act is amend8 ed by striking paragraph (2). 

9 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF THE WORK INCENTIVE

10 BENEFIT SYSTEM.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 223 of the Social 

12 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 423), as amended by sec13 tion 102(c), is further amended— 

14 (A) in subsection (a)(2), by striking ‘‘sec15 tion 202(q) and section 215(b)(2)(A)(ii)’’ and 

16 inserting ‘‘subsection (l) and sections 202(q) 

17 and 215(b)(2)(A)(ii)’’; and 

18 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

19 subsection: 

20 ‘‘Work Incentive Benefit System 

21 ‘‘(l)(1) The Commissioner shall establish a Work In22 centive Benefit System in accordance with the provisions 

23 of this subsection, pursuant to which an eligible individual 

24 entitled to a disability insurance benefit under this section 

25 may elect to return to employment and receive an adjusted 


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•S 3003 IS

1 disability insurance benefit amount (as determined pursu2 ant to paragraph (3)). 

3 ‘‘(2)(A) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘eli4 gible individual’ means an individual who has been entitled 

5 to a disability insurance benefit for period of not less than 

6 9 months preceding participation in the Work Incentive 

7 Benefit System. 

8 ‘‘(B) Participation by an eligible individual in the 

9 Work Incentive Benefit System shall be suspended if such 

10 individual has no reported wages or self-employment in11 come for the 4 preceding calendar quarters (as defined 

12 in section 213(a)(1)). 

13 ‘‘(3)(A) For purposes of subsection (a)(2), the 

14 amount of the disability insurance benefit provided to an 

15 eligible individual who is participating in the Work Incen16 tive Benefit System for any month shall be equal to— 

17 ‘‘(i) in the case of an individual who has aver18 age monthly earnings (as determined under subpara19 graph (B)) equal to or less than $50, the amount 

20 otherwise applicable under subsection (a)(2), or 

21 ‘‘(ii) in the case of an individual who has aver22 age monthly earnings greater than $50, an amount 

23 equal to the sum of— 

24 ‘‘(I) an amount (not less than zero) equal 

25 to— 


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1 ‘‘(aa) the enhanced benefit amount 

2 (as determined under subparagraph (C)) 

3 for such individual, minus 

4 ‘‘(bb) the quotient obtained by divid5 ing the average monthly earnings for such 

6 individual by 3, and 

7 ‘‘(II) the work incentive adjustment 

8 amount (as determined under subparagraph 

9 (D)) for such individual. 

10 ‘‘(B)(i) The average monthly earnings for an eligible 

11 individual shall be equal to the quotient of— 

12 ‘‘(I) the total amount of wages and self-employ13 ment income for such individual in any eligible 

14 months during the 2 calendar quarters (as defined 

15 in section 213(a)(1)) that precede the most recently 

16 completed calendar quarter, divided by 

17 ‘‘(II) the total number of eligible months during 

18 such 2 calendar quarter period. 

19 ‘‘(ii) For purposes of clause (i), the term ‘eligible 

20 month’ means any month subsequent to the month in 

21 which an eligible individual became entitled to a disability 

22 insurance benefit. 

23 ‘‘(C) The enhanced benefit amount for an eligible in24 dividual shall be equal to 106.7 percent of the primary 

25 insurance amount for such month for such individual. 


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1 ‘‘(D)(i) The work incentive adjustment amount for an 

2 eligible individual shall be equal to the product of the aver3 age monthly earnings for such individual multiplied by the 

4 applicable work incentive subsidy rate (as determined in 

5 accordance with the table under clause (iii), based on the 

6 applicable work incentive step for such individual). 

7 ‘‘(ii) For purposes of the table under clause (iii), the 

8 work incentive step for an eligible individual shall be equal 

9 to the quotient obtained by dividing— 

10 ‘‘(I) the average monthly earnings for such in11 dividual, by 

12 ‘‘(II) an amount equal to the quotient obtained 

13 by dividing the primary insurance amount for such 

14 month for such individual by 5. 

15 ‘‘(iii) The work incentive subsidy rate shall be deter16 mined by linear interpolation between the amounts estab17 lished under the following table: 

‘‘Work Incentive Step 

Work Incentive 

Subsidy Rate 

0 ........................................................................................ ¥1

1 ........................................................................................ ¥0.8

2 ........................................................................................ ¥0.6

3 ........................................................................................ ¥0.4

4 ........................................................................................ ¥0.2

5 ........................................................................................ 0

6 ........................................................................................ 0.2

7 ........................................................................................ 0.35

8 ........................................................................................ 0.39

9 ........................................................................................ 0.35

10 ...................................................................................... 0.3

11 ...................................................................................... 0.25

12 ...................................................................................... 0.18

13 ...................................................................................... 0.125

14 ...................................................................................... 0.08

15 ...................................................................................... 0.04


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‘‘Work Incentive Step 

Work Incentive 

Subsidy Rate 

16 ...................................................................................... 0.01

17 ...................................................................................... 0. 

1 ‘‘(4) For purposes of paragraph (3)(B), wages and 

2 self-employment income of an individual shall be deter3 mined based on relevant information for such individual 

4 as provided by the State agency responsible for the admin5 istration of State unemployment compensation law. 

6 ‘‘(5) For purposes of an eligible individual who is par7 ticipating in the Work Incentive Benefit System under this 

8 subsection, any services performed or earnings derived 

9 from services during the period of such participation shall 

10 not be considered for purposes of demonstrating an indi11 vidual’s ability to engage in substantial gainful activity 

12 under subsection (d)(4) and shall not be considered sub13 stantial gainful activity for purposes of subsection (e). 

14 ‘‘(6) For purposes of this title, the disability insur15 ance benefit received by an eligible individual under this 

16 subsection shall not be applied for purposes of determining 

17 any monthly benefits payable to any other individuals enti18 tled to benefits for any month based on the wages and 

19 self-employment income of such individual.’’. 

20 (c) PROGRAM SAVINGS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—For each calendar year after 

22 2015, the Commissioner of Social Security shall de23 termine if, as a result of the repeal of the Ticket to 


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1 Work and Self-Sufficiency Program under section 

2 1148 of the Social Security Act and the establish3 ment the Work Incentive Benefit System under sec4 tion 223(l) of such Act, the total amount of expendi5 tures from the Trust Funds (as defined under sec6 tion 201(c) of such Act) for payment of disability in7 surance benefits pursuant to section 223 of such Act 

8 has been reduced. 

9 (2) SHARING OF SAVINGS.—The Commissioner 

10 of Social Security shall, by regulations, establish a 

11 program to provide payments to organizations pro12 viding vocational rehabilitation services to eligible in13 dividuals (as defined under section 223(l)(2) of the 

14 Social Security Act) from any amounts determined 

15 to be saved under the Work Incentive Benefit Sys16 tem, as determined pursuant to paragraph (1). The 

17 amount of any payments made to an organization 

18 providing vocational rehabilitation services to an eli19 gible individual shall be adjusted based on the dis20 ability classification of such individual, with in21 creased amounts to be provided for eligible individ22 uals with a lower expectation of medical improve23 ment. 


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

2 this section shall apply to benefits payable for months be3 ginning after June 30, 2016. 

4 SEC. 302. EARLY-INTERVENTION DEMONSTRATION PROJ5 ECT; STUDY ON PAYROLL TAX REDUCTIONS. 

6 (a) TARGETED EARLY-INTERVENTION DEMONSTRA7 TION PROJECT.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

9 (A) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Commissioner 

10 shall conduct a demonstration project designed 

11 to examine the effectiveness of providing tar12 geted early-intervention support to eligible indi13 viduals. 

14 (B) VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION SERV15 ICES.—The Commissioner shall coordinate with 

16 State vocational rehabilitation agencies to pro17 vide eligible individuals who elect to participate 

18 in the demonstration project with vocational re19 habilitation services. 

20 (C) OTHER BENEFITS.—In addition to the 

21 vocational rehabilitation services described in 

22 subparagraph (B), the Commissioner shall pro23 vide eligible individuals who elect to participate 

24 in the demonstration project with a package of 

25 benefits that may include— 


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1 (i) health care subsidies; 

2 (ii) wage subsidies; and 

3 (iii) cash stipends. 

4 (D) SUSPENSION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR DIS5 ABILITY ASSISTANCE.—An eligible individual 

6 who elects to participate in the demonstration 

7 project shall not be eligible for disability assist8 ance for as long as the individual receives as9 sistance through the demonstration project, and 

10 in no case shall an eligible individual who elects 

11 to participate in the demonstration project be 

12 eligible for disability assistance during the 1 

13 year period that begins on the date that the in14 dividual first receives assistance through the 

15 demonstration project. 

16 (E) PARTICIPATION VOLUNTARY.—The op17 tion to participate in the demonstration project 

18 conducted under this subsection shall be vol19 untary, and the designation of an applicant for 

20 disability assistance as an eligible individual 

21 shall not preclude such applicant from electing 

22 to receive disability insurance rather than par23 ticipate in the demonstration project. 

24 (2) IDENTIFYING ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Commissioner 

2 shall identify eligible individuals from among 

3 applicants for disability assistance whose appli4 cations have not been processed yet. 

5 (B) ELIGIBILITY STANDARDS.—The Com6 missioner shall only identify an applicant for 

7 disability assistance as an eligible individual if 

8 the Commissioner finds that— 

9 (i) it is highly probable that the appli10 cant will be determined to be eligible dis11 ability assistance; and 

12 (ii) the applicant could, with the help 

13 of assistance provided under the dem14 onstration project, engage in substantial 

15 gainful activity. 

16 (3) SCOPE.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The demonstration 

18 project shall be of sufficient scope and shall be 

19 carried out on a wide enough scale to permit a 

20 thorough evaluation of the provision of targeted 

21 early-intervention support under consideration 

22 while giving assurance that the results derived 

23 from the demonstration project will obtain gen24 erally in the operation of the disability insur25 ance program under title II of the Social SecuVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:27 Dec 17, 2014 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00048 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3003.IS S3003

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1 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 401 et seq.) without com2 mitting such program to the adoption of any 

3 particular system either locally or nationally. 

4 (B) AUTHORITY TO EXPAND SCOPE.—The 

5 Commissioner may expand the scope of the 

6 demonstration project to include any group of 

7 applicants for disability assistance with impair8 ments that reasonably may be presumed to be 

9 disabling for purposes of the demonstration 

10 project, and may limit any such demonstration 

11 project to any such group of applicants, subject 

12 to the terms of such demonstration project 

13 which shall define the extent of any such pre14 sumption. 

15 (C) DURATION.—The demonstration 

16 project shall be implemented not later than 

17 January 1, 2016, and shall be conducted for a 

18 period of 5 years. 

19 (4) REPORTS.— 

20 (A) INTERIM REPORTS.—On or before 

21 June 1 of each year that begins after 2016, the 

22 Commissioner shall submit to the Committee on 

23 Ways and Means of the House of Representa24 tives and to the Committee on Finance of the 

25 Senate an annual interim report on the 


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1 progress of the demonstration project together 

2 with any related data and materials that the 

3 Commissioner may consider appropriate. 

4 (B) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 90 

5 days after the termination of the demonstration 

6 project, the Commissioner shall submit to the 

7 Committee on Ways and Means of the House of 

8 Representatives and to the Committee on Fi9 nance of the Senate a final report with respect 

10 to the demonstration project. 

11 (C) GAO EVALUATION AND REPORT.—The 

12 Comptroller General of the United States 

13 shall— 

14 (i) perform an evaluation of the imple15 mentation of and results achieved by the 

16 demonstration project; and 

17 (ii) not later than January 1, 2020, 

18 submit to Congress a report on the evalua19 tion described in clause (i), including a rec20 ommendation as to whether the Commis21 sioner’s authority to conduct the dem22 onstration project should be made perma23 nent. 

24 (5) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 


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1 (A) COMMISSIONER.—The term ‘‘Commis2 sioner’’ means the Commissioner of Social Se3 curity. 

4 (B) DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.—The 

5 term ‘‘demonstration project’’ means the dem6 onstration project conducted under this sub7 section. 

8 (C) DISABILITY ASSISTANCE.—The term 

9 ‘‘disability assistance’’ means disability insur10 ance benefits or monthly benefits under section 

11 202 of the Social Security Act for which eligi12 bility is based on a disability. 

13 (D) ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘‘el14 igible individual’’ means an applicant for dis15 ability assistance who has been identified by the 

16 Commissioner under paragraph (2). 

17 (b) STUDY ON PAYROLL TAX REDUCTIONS FOR

18 BUSINESSES THAT PROVIDE DISABILITY SUPPORT.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 

20 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commis21 sioner of Social Security shall complete a study to 

22 determine whether reducing the rate at which an 

23 employer is taxed under subsection (a) of section 

24 3111 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 in ex25 change for such employer offering its employees priVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:27 Dec 17, 2014 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00051 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3003.IS S3003

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1 vate disability insurance and other disability sup2 ports would be an effective means of reducing the 

3 rate at which such employees enter the disability in4 surance program established under title II of the So5 cial Security Act. 

6 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after the 

7 completion of the study described in paragraph (1), 

8 the Commissioner of Social security shall submit to 

9 the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of 

10 Representatives and to the Committee on Finance of 

11 the Senate a report on the study that includes de12 tailed analysis of the Commissioner’s findings and 

13 recommendations for further legislative or adminis14 trative action. 

Æ 


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