I 
113TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3161 
To protect the Social Security and Medicare trust funds from the public 
debt limit. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 20, 2013 
Mr. FORBES introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Ways and Means 
A BILL 
To protect the Social Security and Medicare trust funds 
from the public debt limit. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. PROTECTION OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY AND 
MEDICARE TRUST FUNDS FROM THE PUBLIC 
DEBT LIMIT. 
(a) PROTECTION
OF
TRUST
FUNDS.—Notwith-
standing any other provision of law— 
(1) no officer or employee of the United States 
may— 
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(A) delay the deposit of any amount into 
(or delay the credit of any amount to) the Fed-
eral Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust 
Fund, the Federal Disability Insurance Trust 
Fund, or the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust 
Fund or otherwise vary from the normal terms, 
procedures, or timing for making such deposits 
or credits, or 
(B) refrain from the investment in public 
debt obligations of amounts in either of such 
Trust Funds, 
if a purpose of such action or inaction is to not in-
crease the amount of outstanding public debt obliga-
tions; and 
(2) no officer or employee of the United States 
may disinvest amounts in either of such Trust 
Funds which are invested in public debt obligations 
if a purpose of the disinvestment is to reduce the 
amount of outstanding public debt obligations. 
(b) PROTECTION OF BENEFITS AND EXPENDITURES 
FOR ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding subsection 
(a), during any period for which cash benefits or ad-
ministrative expenses would not otherwise be payable 
from the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance 
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Trust Fund, the Federal Disability Insurance Trust 
Fund, or the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust 
Fund by reason of an inability to issue further pub-
lic debt obligations because of the applicable public 
debt limit, public debt obligations held by such Trust 
Fund shall be sold or redeemed only for the purpose 
of making payment of such benefits or administra-
tive expenses and only to the extent cash assets of 
such Trust Fund are not available from month to 
month for making payment of such benefits or ad-
ministrative expenses. 
(2) ISSUANCE OF CORRESPONDING DEBT.—For 
purposes of undertaking the sale or redemption of 
public debt obligations held by the Federal Old-Age 
and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund, the Federal 
Disability Insurance Trust Fund, or the Federal 
Hospital Insurance Trust Fund pursuant to para-
graph (1), the Secretary of the Treasury may issue 
corresponding public debt obligations to the public, 
in order to obtain the cash necessary for payment of 
benefits or administrative expenses from such Trust 
Fund, notwithstanding the public debt limit. 
(3) ADVANCE NOTICE OF SALE OR REDEMP-
TION.—Not less than 3 days prior to the date on 
which, by reason of the public debt limit, the Sec-
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