I
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 180
To modernize the financing of the railroad retirement system and to provide
enhanced benefits to employees and beneficiaries.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY 3, 2001
Mr. SHUSTER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Com-
mittee on Ways and Means, 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
A BILL
To modernize the financing of the railroad retirement system
and to provide enhanced benefits to employees and bene-
ficiaries.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the
‘‘Railroad Retirement and Survivors’ Improvement Act of
2001’’.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for
this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO RAILROAD RETIREMENT ACT OF 1974
Sec. 101. Expansion of widow’s and widower’s benefits.
Sec. 102. Retirement age restoration.
Sec. 103. Vesting requirement.
Sec. 104. Repeal of railroad retirement maximum.
Sec. 105. Investment of railroad retirement assets.
Sec. 106. Elimination of supplemental annuity account.
Sec. 107. Transfer authority revisions.
Sec. 108. Annual ratio projections and certifications by the Railroad Retire-
ment Board.
TITLE II—AMENDMENTS TO THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF
1986
Sec. 201. Amendments to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
Sec. 202. Exemption from tax for Railroad Retirement Investment Trust.
Sec. 203. Repeal of supplemental annuity tax.
Sec. 204. Employer, employee representative, and employee tier 2 tax rate ad-
justments.
TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO RAIL-
ROAD RETIREMENT ACT OF
1974
SEC. 101. EXPANSION OF WIDOW’S AND WIDOWER’S BENE-
FITS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 4(g) of the Railroad Re-
tirement Act of 1974 is amended by adding at the end
the following new subdivision:
‘‘(10)(i) If for any month the unreduced annuity pro-
vided under this section for a widow or widower is less
than the widow’s or widower’s initial minimum amount
computed pursuant to paragraph (ii) of this subdivision,
the unreduced annuity shall be increased to that initial
minimum amount. For the purposes of this subdivision,
the unreduced annuity is the annuity without regard to
any deduction on account of work, without regard to any
reduction for entitlement to an annuity under section
2(a)(1) of this Act, without regard to any reduction for
entitlement to a benefit under title II of the Social Secu-
rity Act, and without regard to any reduction for entitle-
ment to a public service pension pursuant to sections
202(e)(7), 202(f)(2), or section 202(g)(4) of the Social Se-
curity Act.
‘‘(ii) For the purposes of this subdivision, the widow
or widower’s initial minimum amount is the amount of the
unreduced annuity computed at the time an annuity is
awarded to that widow or widower, except that—
‘‘(A) in subsection (g)(1)(i) ‘100 per centum’
shall be substituted for ‘50 per centum’; and
‘‘(B) in subsection (g)(2)(ii) ‘130 per centum’
shall be substituted for ‘80 per centum’ both places
it appears.
‘‘(iii) If a widow or widower who was previously enti-
tled to a widow’s or widower’s annuity under section
2(d)(1)(ii) of this Act becomes entitled to a widow’s or
widow’s annuity under section 2(d)(1)(i) of this Act, a new
initial minimum amount shall be computed at the time of
award of the widow’s or widower’s annuity under section
2(d)(1)(i) of this Act.’’.
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—
(1) GENERALLY.—The amendment made by
this section shall take effect January 1, 2001 and
shall apply to annuity amounts accruing for months
after December 2000 in the case of annuities award-
ed on or after that date and in the case of annuities
awarded before that date if the annuity amount
under section 4(g) of the Railroad Retirement Act
was computed under section 4(g), as amended by
Public Law 97–35.
(2) SPECIAL RULE FOR ANNUITIES AWARDED
BEFORE JANUARY 1, 2001.—In applying the amend-
ments made by this section to annuities awarded be-
fore January 1, 2001, the calculation of the initial
minimum amount under new section 4(g)(10)(ii) of
the Act shall be made as of the date of award of the
widow’s or widower’s annuity.
SEC. 102. RETIREMENT AGE RESTORATION.
(a) EMPLOYEE ANNUITIES.—Section 3(a)(2) of the
Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 is amended by inserting
after ‘‘(2)’’ the following: ‘‘For purposes of this sub-
section, individuals entitled to an annuity under section
2(a)(1)(ii) of this Act shall, except for the purposes of re-
computations in accordance with section 215(f) of the So-
cial Security Act, be deemed to have attained retirement
age (as defined by section 216(l) of the Social Security
Act).’’.
(b) SPOUSE
AND SURVIVOR ANNUITIES.—Section
4(a)(2) of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 is amend-
ed by striking ‘‘if an’’ and all that follows through ‘‘section
2(c)(1) of this Act’’ and inserting ‘‘a spouse entitled to
an annuity under section 2(c)(1)(ii)(B) of this Act’’.
(c) 
CONFORMING
REPEALS.—Sections 
3(a)(3),
4(a)(3), and 4(a)(4) of the Railroad Retirement Act are
repealed.
(d) EFFECTIVE DATES.—
(1) GENERALLY.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), the amendments made by this section
shall apply to annuities that begin to accrue on or
after January 1, 2001.
(2) EXCEPTION.—The amount of the annuity
provided for a spouse under section 4(a) shall be
computed under section 4(a)(3), as in effect before
the date of the enactment of this section, if the an-
nuity amount provided under section 3(a) for the in-
dividual on whose employment record the spouse an-
nuity is based was computed under section 3(a)(3),
as in effect before the date of the enactment of this
section.
SEC. 103. VESTING REQUIREMENT.
(a) CERTAIN ANNUITIES FOR INDIVIDUALS.—Section
2(a) of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 is amended—
(1) by inserting in subdivision (1) ‘‘or, for pur-
poses of paragraphs (i), (iii), and (v), five years of
service, all of which accrues after December 31,
1995,’’ after ‘‘ten years of service’’; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(4) An individual who is entitled to an annuity
under paragraph (v) of subdivision (1), but who does not
have at least ten years of service, shall, prior to the month
in which the individual attains age 62, be entitled only
to an annuity amount computed under section 3(a) of this
Act (without regard to section 3(a)(2) of this Act) or sec-
tion 3(f)(3) of this Act. Upon attainment of age 62, such
an individual may also be entitled to an annuity amount
computed under section 3(b), but such annuity amount
shall be reduced for early retirement in the same manner
as if the individual were entitled to an annuity under sec-
tion 2(a)(1)(iii).’’.
(b) COMPUTATION RULE FOR INDIVIDUALS’ ANNU-
ITIES.—Section 3(a) of the Railroad Retirement Act of
1974, as amended by section 102 of this Act, is further
amended by adding at the end the following new subdivi-
sion:
‘‘(3) If an individual entitled to an annuity under sec-
tion 2(a)(1)(i) or (iii) of this Act on the basis of less than
ten years of service is entitled to a benefit under section
202(a), section 202(b), or section 202(c) of the Social Se-
curity Act which began to accrue before the annuity under
section 2(a)(1)(i) or (iii) of this Act, the annuity amount
provided such individual under this subsection, shall be
computed as though the annuity under this Act began to
accrue on the later of (A) the date on which the benefit
under section 202(a), section 202(b), or section 202(c) of
the Social Security Act began or (B) the date on which
the individual first met the conditions for entitlement to
an age reduced annuity under this Act other than the con-
ditions set forth in sections 2(e)(1) and 2(e)(2) of this Act
and the requirement that an application be filed.’’.
(c) SURVIVORS’ ANNUITIES.—Section 2(d)(1) of the
Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 is amended by inserting
‘‘or five years of service, all of which accrues after Decem-
ber 31, 1995,’’ after ‘‘ten years of service’’.
(d) LIMITATION ON ANNUITY AMOUNTS.—Section 2
of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 is amended by
adding at the end the following:
‘‘(i) An individual entitled to an annuity under this
section who has completed five years of service, all of
which accrues after 1995, but who has not completed ten
years of service, and the spouse, divorced spouse, and sur-
vivors of such individual, shall not be entitled to an annu-
ity amount provided under section 3(a), section 4(a), or
section 4(f) of this Act unless the individual, or the indi-
vidual’s spouse, divorced spouse, or survivors, would be en-
titled to a benefit under the Social Security Act on the
basis of the individual’s employment record under both the
Railroad Retirement Act and the Social Security Act.’’.
(e) COMPUTATION
RULE
FOR
SPOUSES’ ANNU-
ITIES.—Section 4(a) of the Railroad Retirement Act of
1974, as amended by section 102 of this Act, is further
amended by adding at the end the following new subdivi-
sion:
‘‘(3) If a spouse entitled to an annuity under section
2(c)(1)(ii)(A), section 2(c)(1)(ii)(C), or section 2(c)(2) of
this Act or a divorced spouse entitled to an annuity under
section 2(c)(4) of this Act on the basis of the employment
record of an employee who will have completed less than
10 years of service is entitled to a benefit under section
202(a), section 202(b), or section 202(c) of the Social Se-
curity Act which began to accrue before the annuity under
section 2(c)(1)(ii)(A), section 2(c)(1)(ii)(C), section
2(c)(2), or section 2(c)(4) of this Act, the annuity amount
provided under this subsection shall be computed as
though the annuity under this Act began to accrue on the
later of (A) the date on which the benefit under section
202(a), section 202(b), or section 202(c) of the Social Se-
curity Act began or (B) the first date on which the annu-
itant met the conditions for entitlement to an age reduced
annuity under this Act other than the conditions set forth
in sections 2(e)(1) and 2(e)(2) of this Act and the require-
ment that an application be filed.’’.
(f) APPLICATION
DEEMING
PROVISION.—Section
5(b) of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 is amended
by striking the second sentence and inserting the fol-
lowing: ‘‘An application filed with the Board for an em-
ployee annuity, spouse annuity, or divorced spouse annuity
on the basis of the employment record of an employee who
will have completed less than ten years of service shall be
deemed to be an application for any benefit to which such
applicant may be entitled under this Act or section 202(a),
section 202(b), or section 202(c) of the Social Security
Act. An application filed with the Board for an annuity
on the basis of the employment record of an employee who
will have completed ten years of service shall, unless the
applicant specified otherwise, be deemed to be an applica-
tion for any benefit to which such applicant may be enti-
tled under this Act or title II of the Social Security Act.’’.
(g) CREDITING SERVICE UNDER THE SOCIAL SECU-
RITY ACT.—Section 18(2) of the Railroad Retirement Act
of 1974 is amended—
(1) by inserting ‘‘or less than five years of serv-
ice, all of which accrues after December 31, 1995,’’
after ‘‘ten years of service’’ every place it occurs;
and
(2) by inserting ‘‘or five or more years of serv-
ice, all of which accrues after December 31, 1995,’’
after ‘‘ten or more years of service’’.
(h) AUTOMATIC
BENEFIT
ELIGIBILITY
ADJUST-
MENTS.—Section 19 of Railroad Retirement Act of 1974
is amended—
(1) by inserting ‘‘or five or more years of serv-
ice, all of which accrues after December 31, 1995,’’
after ‘‘ten years of service’’ in subsection (c); and
(2) by inserting ‘‘or five or more years of serv-
ice, all of which accrues after December 31, 1995,’’
after ‘‘ten years of service’’ in subsection (d)(2).
(i) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—
(1) Section 6(e)(1) of the Railroad Retirement
Act of 1974 is amended by inserting ‘‘or five or
more years of service, all of which accrues after De-
cember 31, 1995,’’ after ‘‘ten years of service’’.
(2) Section 7(b)(2) of the Railroad Retirement
Act of 1974 is amended by inserting ‘‘or five or
more years of service, all of which accrues after De-
cember 31, 1995,’’ after ‘‘ten years of service’’.
(3) Section 205(i) of the Social Security Act is
amended by inserting ‘‘or five or more years of serv-
ice, all of which accrues after December 31, 1995,’’
after ‘‘ten years of service’’.
(j) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall take effect January 1, 2001.
SEC. 104. REPEAL OF RAILROAD RETIREMENT MAXIMUM.
(a) EMPLOYEE ANNUITIES.—Section 3(f) of the Rail-
road Retirement Act of 1974 is amended by striking para-
graph (1).
(b) SPOUSE AND SURVIVOR ANNUITIES.—Section 4
of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 is amended by
striking subsection (c).
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall be effective January 1, 2001, and shall
apply to annuity amounts accruing for months after De-
cember 2000.
SEC. 105. INVESTMENT OF RAILROAD RETIREMENT ASSETS.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF RAILROAD RETIREMENT IN-
VESTMENT TRUST.—Section 15 of the Railroad Retire-
ment Act of 1974 is amended by inserting after subsection
(i) the following:
‘‘(j) RAILROAD RETIREMENT INVESTMENT TRUST.—
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Railroad Retire-
ment Investment Trust (hereinafter in this sub-
section referred to as the ‘Trust’) is hereby estab-
lished. The Trust shall manage and invest the assets
of the Railroad Retirement Trust Fund (hereinafter
in this section referred to as the ‘‘Fund’’, which is
hereby established as a trust organized in the Dis-
trict of Columbia and shall, to the extent not incon-
sistent with this Act, be subject to the laws of the
District of Columbia applicable to such trusts.
‘‘(2) NOT A FEDERAL AGENCY OR INSTRUMEN-
TALITY.—The Trust is not a department, agency, or
instrumentality of the Government of the United
States and shall not be subject to title 31, United
States Code.
‘‘(3) BOARD OF TRUSTEES.—
‘‘(A) GENERALLY.—The Trust shall have a
Board of Trustees, consisting of seven mem-
bers, each appointed by a unanimous vote of
the Railroad Retirement Board. The Railroad
Retirement Board may remove any member so
appointed by unanimous vote. Of the seven
members, three shall represent the interests of
labor, three shall represent the interests of
management, and one shall represent the inter-
ests of the general public. The members of the
Board of Trustees shall not be considered offi-
cers or employees of the Government of the
United States.
‘‘(B) QUALIFICATIONS.—Members of the
Board of Trustees shall be appointed only from
among persons who have experience and exper-
tise in the management of financial investments
and pension plans. No member of the Railroad
Retirement Board shall be eligible to be a mem-
ber of the Board of Trustees.
‘‘(C) TERMS.—Except as provided in this
subparagraph, each member shall be appointed
for a 3-year term. The initial members ap-
pointed under this paragraph shall be divided
into three equal groups so nearly as may be, of
which one group will be appointed for a 1-year
term, one for a 2-year term, and one for a 3-
year term. A vacancy in the Board of Trustees
shall not affect the powers of the Board of
Trustees and shall be filled in the same manner
as the selection of the member whose departure
caused the vacancy. Upon the expiration of a
term of a member of the Board of Trustees,
that member shall continue to serve until a suc-
cessor is appointed.
‘‘(4) POWERS OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES.—
The Board of Trustees shall—
‘‘(A) retain independent advisers to assist
it in the formulation and adoption of its invest-
ment guidelines;
‘‘(B) retain independent investment man-
agers to invest the assets of the Fund in a
manner consistent with such investment guide-
lines;
‘‘(C) invest assets in the Fund, pursuant
to the policies adopted in subparagraph (A);
‘‘(D) pay administrative expenses of the
Fund and the Trust from the money in the
Fund; and
‘‘(E) transfer money to the disbursing
agent to pay benefits payable under this Act
from money in the Fund and administrative ex-
penses related to those benefits.
‘‘(5) REPORTING
REQUIREMENTS
AND
FIDU-
CIARY
STANDARDS.—The following reporting re-
quirements and fiduciary standards shall apply with
respect to the Railroad Retirement Trust and the
Railroad Retirement Trust Fund (and the assets
held in such Trust Fund):
‘‘(A) DUTIES OF THE BOARD OF TRUST-
EES.—The Railroad Retirement Trust and each
member of the Board of Trustees shall dis-
charge their duties with respect to the assets of
the Fund solely in the interest of the Railroad
Retirement Board and through it, the partici-
pants and beneficiaries of the programs funded
under this Act—
‘‘(i) for the exclusive purpose of—
‘‘(I) providing benefits to partici-
pants and their beneficiaries; and
‘‘(II) defraying reasonable ex-
penses of administering the functions
of the Trust;
‘‘(ii) with the care, skill, prudence,
and diligence under the circumstances then
prevailing that a prudent person acting in
a like capacity and familiar with such mat-
ters would use in the conduct of an enter-
prise of a like character and with like
aims;
‘‘(iii) by diversifying investments so as
to minimize the risk of large losses, unless
under the circumstances it is clearly pru-
dent not to do so; and
‘‘(iv) in accordance with Trust gov-
erning documents and instruments insofar
as such documents and instruments are
consistent with this Act.
‘‘(B) PROHIBITIONS
WITH
RESPECT
TO
MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES.—No
member of the Board of Trustees shall—
‘‘(i) deal with the assets of the Fund
in the trustee’s own interest or for the
trustee’s own account;
‘‘(ii) in an individual or in any other
capacity act in any transaction involving
the assets of the Fund on behalf of a party
(or represent a party) whose interests are
adverse to the interests of the Trust, the
Fund, the Railroad Retirement Board, or
the interests of participants or bene-
ficiaries; or
‘‘(iii) receive any consideration for the
trustee’s own personal account from any
party dealing with the assets of the Fund.
‘‘(C) EXCULPATORY PROVISIONS AND IN-
SURANCE.—Any provision in an agreement or
instrument that purports to relieve a trustee
from responsibility or liability for any responsi-
bility, obligation or duty under this Act shall be
void: Provided, however, That nothing shall
preclude—
‘‘(i) the Trust from purchasing insur-
ance for its trustees or for itself to cover
liability or losses occurring by reason of
the act or omission of a trustee, if such in-
surance permits recourse by the insurer
against the trustee in the case of a breach
of a fiduciary obligation by such trustee;
‘‘(ii) a trustee from purchasing insur-
ance to cover liability under this section
from and for his own account; or
‘‘(iii) an employer or an employee or-
ganization from purchasing insurance to
cover potential liability of one or more
trustees with respect to their fiduciary re-
sponsibilities, obligations, and duties under
this section.
‘‘(D) BONDING.—Every trustee and every
person who handles funds or other property of
the Fund (hereafter in this subsection referred
to as ‘Trust official’) shall be bonded. Such
bond shall provide protection to the Fund
against loss by reason of acts of fraud or dis-
honesty on the part of any Trust official, di-
rectly or through the connivance of others, and
shall be in accordance with the following:
‘‘(i) The amount of such bond shall be
fixed at the beginning of each fiscal year
of the Trust by the Railroad Retirement
Board. Such amount shall not be less than
10 percent of the amount of the funds
handled. In no case shall such bond be less
than $1,000 nor more than $500,000, ex-
cept that the Railroad Retirement Board,
after consideration of the record, may pre-
scribe an amount in excess of $500,000,
subject to the 10 per centum limitation of
the preceding sentence.
‘‘(ii) It shall be unlawful for any
Trust official to receive, handle, disburse,
or otherwise exercise custody or control of
any of the funds or other property of the
Fund without being bonded as required by
this subsection and it shall be unlawful for
any Trust official, or any other person hav-
ing authority to direct the performance of
such functions, to permit such functions,
or any of them, to be performed by any
Trust official, with respect to whom the re-
quirements this subsection have not been
met.
‘‘(iii) It shall be unlawful for any per-
son to procure any bond required by this
subsection from any surety or other com-
pany or through any agent or broker in
whose business operations such person has
any control or significant financial interest,
direct or indirect.
‘‘(E) AUDIT AND REPORT.—
‘‘(i) The Trust shall annually engage
an independent qualified public accountant
to audit the financial statements of the
Fund.
‘‘(ii) The Trust shall submit an an-
nual management report to the Congress
not later than 180 days after the end of
the Trust’s fiscal year. A management re-
port under this subsection shall include—
‘‘(I) a statement of financial po-
sition;
‘‘(II) a statement of operations;
‘‘(III) a statement of cash flows;
‘‘(IV) a statement on internal ac-
counting and administrative control
systems;
‘‘(V) the report resulting from an
audit of the financial statements of
the Trust conducted under subpara-
graph (E)(i); and
‘‘(VI) any other comments and
information necessary to inform the
Congress about the operations and fi-
nancial condition of the Trust and the
Fund.
‘‘(iii) The Trust shall provide the
President, the Railroad Retirement Board,
and the Director of the Office of Manage-
ment and Budget a copy of the manage-
ment report when it is submitted to Con-
gress.
‘‘(F) ENFORCEMENT.—The Railroad Re-
tirement Board may bring a civil action—
‘‘(i) to enjoin any act or practice by
the Railroad Retirement Investment Trust,
its Board of Trustees or its employees or
agents that violates any provision of this
Act; or
‘‘(ii) to obtain other appropriate relief
to redress such violations, or to enforce
any provisions of this Act.
‘‘(6) RULES AND ADMINISTRATIVE POWERS.—
The Board of Trustees shall have the authority to
make rules to govern its operations, employ profes-
sional staff, and contract with outside advisers to
provide legal, accounting, investment advisory or
other services necessary for the proper administra-
tion of this subsection. In the case of contracts with
investment advisory services, compensation for such
services may be on a fixed contract fee basis or on
such other terms and conditions as are customary
for such services.
‘‘(7) QUORUM.—Five members of the Board of
Trustees constitute a quorum to do business. Invest-
ment guidelines must be adopted by a unanimous
vote of the entire Board of Trustees. All other deci-
sions of the Board of Trustees shall be decided by
a majority vote of the quorum present. All decisions
of the Board of Trustees shall be entered upon the
records of the Board of Trustees.’’.
(b) CONFORMING
AND TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS
GOVERNING
INVESTMENTS.—Subsection 15(e) of the
Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 is amended—
(1) beginning in the first sentence, by striking
‘‘, the Dual Benefits Payments Account’’ and all
that follows through ‘‘may be made only’’ in the sec-
ond sentence and inserting ‘‘and the Dual Benefits
Payments Account as are not transferred to the
Railroad Retirement Investment Trust as the Board
may determine’’;
(2) by striking ‘‘the Second Liberty Bond Act,
as amended’’ and inserting ‘‘chapter 31 of title 31’’;
and
(3) by striking ‘‘the foregoing requirements’’
and inserting ‘‘the requirements of this subsection’’.
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment
of this section.
SEC. 106. ELIMINATION OF SUPPLEMENTAL ANNUITY AC-
COUNT.
(a) SOURCE OF PAYMENTS.—Section 7(c)(1) of the
Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 is amended by striking
‘‘payments of supplemental annuities under section 2(b)
of this Act shall be made from the Railroad Retirement
Supplemental Account, and’’.
(b) ELIMINATION OF ACCOUNT.—Section 15(c) of
the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 is repealed.
(c) IN GENERAL.—Section 15(a) of the Railroad Re-
tirement Act of 1974 is amended by striking ‘‘, except
those portions of the amounts covered into the Treasury
under sections 3211(b),’’ and all that follows through the
end of the subsection and inserting a period.
(d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall take effect January 1, 2001, except that
the Railroad Retirement Supplemental Account shall con-
tinue to exist until the transfer authorized by the following
sentence occurs. As soon as possible after December 31,
2000, the Board shall determine the balance in the Rail-
road Retirement Supplemental Account and shall direct
the Secretary of the Treasury to transfer such amount to
the Railroad Retirement Trust Fund and the Secretary
shall make such transfer.
SEC. 107. TRANSFER AUTHORITY REVISIONS.
(a) RAILROAD RETIREMENT ACCOUNT.—Section 15
of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 is amended by
adding after subsection (j) the following:
‘‘(k) TRANSFERS TO THE FUND.—The Board shall,
upon establishment of the Railroad Retirement Trust
Fund and from time to time thereafter, direct the Sec-
retary of the Treasury to transfer, in such manner as will
maximize the investment returns to the Railroad Retire-
ment system, that portion of the Railroad Retirement Ac-
count that is not needed to pay current administrative ex-
penses of the Board to the Railroad Retirement Trust
Fund. The Secretary shall make that transfer.’’.
(b) RAILROAD RETIREMENT TRUST FUND.—Section
15 of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974, as amended
by subsection (a), is further amended by adding after sub-
section (k) the following:
‘‘(l) RAILROAD RETIREMENT TRUST FUND.—The
Railroad Retirement Trust shall from time to time trans-
fer to the disbursing agent described in section 7(b)(4)
such amounts as may be necessary to pay benefits under
this Act (other than benefits paid from the Social Security
Equivalent Benefit Account or the Dual Benefit Payments
Account).’’.
(c) SOCIAL SECURITY EQUIVALENT BENEFIT AC-
COUNT.—Section 15A(d)(2) of the Railroad Retirement
Act of 1974 is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(2) Upon establishment of the Railroad Retirement
Trust Fund and from time to time thereafter, the Board
shall direct the Secretary of the Treasury to transfer, in
such manner as will maximize the investment returns to
the Railroad Retirement system, the balance of the Social
Security Equivalent Benefit Account not needed to pay
current benefits required to be paid from that Account to
the Railroad Retirement Trust Fund, and the Secretary
shall make that transfer. Any balance transferred under
this paragraph shall be used by the Railroad Retirement
Trust only to pay benefits under this Act or to purchase
obligations of the United States that are backed by the
full faith and credit of the United States pursuant to
chapter 31 of title 31, United States Code. The proceeds
of sales of, and the interest income from, such obligations
shall be used by the Trust only to pay benefits under this
Act.’’.
(2) TRANSFERS TO DISBURSING AGENT.—Sec-
tion 15A(c)(1) of the Railroad Retirement Act of
1974 is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘The Secretary shall from time to time transfer to
the disbursing agent under section 7(b)(4) amounts
necessary to pay those benefits.’’.
(3) 
CONFORMING
AMENDMENT.—Section
15A(d)(1) of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974
is amended by striking the second and third sen-
tences.
(d) DUAL BENEFITS PAYMENTS ACCOUNT.—Section
15(d)(1) of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 is
amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘The Sec-
retary of the Treasury shall from time to time transfer
from the Dual Benefits Payments Account to the dis-
bursing agent under section 7(b)(4) amounts necessary to
pay benefits payable from that Account.’’.
(e) CERTIFICATION
BY
THE
BOARD
AND
PAY-
MENT.—Paragraph (4) of section 7(b) of the Railroad Re-
tirement Act of 1974 is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(4)(A) The Railroad Retirement Board, after con-
sultation with the Board of Trustees of the Railroad Re-
tirement Trust and the Secretary of the Treasury, shall
enter into an arrangement with a nongovernmental finan-
cial institution to serve as disbursing agent for benefits
payable under this Act who shall disburse consolidated
benefits under this Act to each recipient.
‘‘(B) The Board shall from time to time certify—
‘‘(i) to the Secretary of the Treasury the
amounts required to be transferred from the Social
Security Equivalent Benefit Account and the the
Dual Benefits Payments Account to the disbursing
agent to make payments of benefits and the Sec-
retary of the Treasury shall transfer those amounts;
‘‘(ii) to the Board of Trustees of the Railroad
Retirement Investment Trust the amounts required
to be transferred from the Railroad Retirement In-
vestment Trust to the disbursing agent to make pay-
ments of benefits and the Board of Trustees shall
transfer those amounts; and
‘‘(iii) to the disbursing agent the name and ad-
dress of each individual entitled to receive a pay-
ment, the amount of such payment, and the time at
which the payment should be made.’’.
(f) BENEFIT PAYMENTS.—Section 7(c)(1) of the
Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘from the Railroad Retirement
Account’’ and inserting ‘‘by the disbursing agent
under subsection (b)(4) from money transferred to it
from the Railroad Retirement Trust Fund or the So-
cial Security Equivalent Benefit Account, as the case
may be’’; and
(2) by inserting ‘‘by the disbursing agent under
subsection (b)(4) from money transferred to it’’
after ‘‘Public Law 93–445 shall be made’’.
(g) TRANSITIONAL RULE
FOR EXISTING OBLIGA-
TION.—In making transfers under subsections (a) and (c),
the Board shall consult with the Secretary of the Treasury
to design an appropriate method to transfer obligations
held as of the date of the enactment or to convert such
obligations to cash prior to transfer. The Railroad Retire-
ment Trust may hold to maturity any obligations so re-
ceived or may redeem them prior to maturity, as the Trust
deems appropriate.
SEC. 108. ANNUAL RATIO PROJECTIONS AND CERTIFI-
CATIONS BY THE RAILROAD RETIREMENT
BOARD.
(a) PROJECTIONS.—Section 22(a)(1) of the Railroad
Retirement Act of 1974 is amended—
(1) by adding the following sentence after the
first sentence: ‘‘On or before May 1 of each year be-
ginning in 2002, the Railroad Retirement Board
shall compute its projection of the account benefits
ratio and the average account benefits ratio (as de-
fined by section 3241(c) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986) for each of the next succeeding five
fiscal years.’’; and
(2) by striking ‘‘the projection prepared pursu-
ant to the preceding sentence’’ and inserting ‘‘the
projections prepared pursuant to the preceding two
sentences’’.
(b) CERTIFICATIONS.—The Railroad Retirement Act
of 1974 is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘COMPUTATION AND CERTIFICATION OF ACCOUNT
BENEFIT RATIOS
‘‘SEC. 23. (a) On or before November 1, 2002, the
Railroad Retirement Board shall—
‘‘(1) compute the account benefits ratios for
each of the most recent 10 preceding fiscal years,
and
‘‘(2) certify the account benefits ratios for each
such fiscal year to the Secretary.
‘‘(b) On or before November 1 of each year after
2002, the Railroad Retirement Board shall—
‘‘(1) compute the account benefits ratio for the
fiscal year ending in such year, and
‘‘(2) certify the account benefits ratio for such
fiscal year to the Secretary.
‘‘(c) DEFINITION.—As used in this section, the term
‘account benefit ratio’ has the meaning given that term
in section 3241(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of
1986.’’.
TITLE II—AMENDMENTS TO THE
INTERNAL 
REVENUE 
CODE
OF 1986
SEC. 201. AMENDMENTS TO THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE
OF 1986.
Except as otherwise provided, whenever in this title
an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an
amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provision,
the reference shall be considered to be made to a section
or other provision of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
SEC. 202. EXEMPTION FROM TAX FOR RAILROAD RETIRE-
MENT INVESTMENT TRUST.
Subsection (c) of section 501 is amended by adding
at the end the following new paragraph:
‘‘(28) The Railroad Retirement Investment
Trust established under section 15(j) of the Railroad
Retirement Act of 1974.’’.
SEC. 203. REPEAL OF SUPPLEMENTAL ANNUITY TAX.
(a) REPEAL OF TAX ON EMPLOYEE REPRESENTA-
TIVES.—Section 3211 is amended by striking subsection
(b).
(b) REPEAL OF TAX ON EMPLOYERS.—Section 3221
is amended by striking subsections (c) and (d).
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall apply to calendar years beginning after
December 31, 2000.
SEC. 204. EMPLOYER, EMPLOYEE REPRESENTATIVE, AND
EMPLOYEE TIER 2 TAX RATE ADJUSTMENTS.
(a) RATE OF TAX ON EMPLOYERS.—Subsection (b)
of section 3221 is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(b) TIER 2 TAX.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to other taxes,
there is hereby imposed on every employer an excise
tax, with respect to having individuals in his employ,
equal to the applicable percentage of the compensa-
tion paid during any calendar year by such employer
for services rendered to such employer.
‘‘(2) APPLICABLE PERCENTAGE.—For purposes
of paragraph (1), the term ‘applicable percentage’
means—
‘‘(A) 15.6 percent in the case of compensa-
tion paid during 2001,
‘‘(B) 14.2 percent in the case of compensa-
tion paid during 2002, and
‘‘(C) in the case of compensation paid dur-
ing any calendar year after 2002, the percent-
age determined under section 3241 for such cal-
endar year.’’.
(b) RATE
OF TAX
ON EMPLOYEE REPRESENTA-
TIVES.—Section 3211, as amended by section 203, is
amended by striking subsection (a) and inserting the fol-
lowing new subsections:
‘‘(a) TIER 1 TAX.—In addition to other taxes, there
is hereby imposed on the income of each employee rep-
resentative a tax equal to the applicable percentage of the
compensation received during any calendar year by such
employee representative for services rendered by such em-
ployee representative. For purposes of the preceding sen-
tence, the term ‘applicable percentage’ means the percent-
age equal to the sum of the rates of tax in effect under
subsections (a) and (b) of section 3101 and subsections
(a) and (b) of section 3111 for the calendar year.
‘‘(b) TIER 2 TAX.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to other taxes,
there is hereby imposed on the income of each em-
ployee representative a tax equal to the applicable
percentage of the compensation received during any
calendar year by such employee representatives for
services rendered by such employee representative.
‘‘(2) APPLICABLE PERCENTAGE.—For purposes
of paragraph (1), the term ‘applicable percentage’
means—
‘‘(A) 14.75 percent in the case of com-
pensation received during 2001,
‘‘(B) 14.20 percent in the case of com-
pensation received during 2002, and
‘‘(C) in the case of compensation received
during any calendar year after 2002, the per-
centage determined under section 3241 for such
calendar year.
‘‘(c) CROSS REFERENCE.—
‘‘For application of different contribution bases
with respect to the taxes imposed by subsections (a)
and (b), see section 3231(e)(2).’’.
(c) RATE OF TAX ON EMPLOYEES.—Subsection (b)
of section 3201 is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(b) TIER 2 TAX.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to other taxes,
there is hereby imposed on the income of each em-
ployee a tax equal to the applicable percentage of
the compensation received during any calendar year
by such employee for services rendered by such em-
ployee.
‘‘(2) APPLICABLE PERCENTAGE.—For purposes
of paragraph (1), the term ‘applicable percentage’
means—
‘‘(A) 4.90 percent in the case of compensa-
tion received during 2001 or 2002, and
‘‘(B) in the case of compensation received
during any calendar year after 2002, the per-
centage determined under section 3241 for such
calendar year.’’.
(d) DETERMINATION
OF
RATE.—Chapter 22 is
amended by adding at the end thereof the following new
subchapter:
‘‘Subchapter E—Tier 2 Tax Rate
Determination
‘‘Sec. 3241. Determination of tier 2 tax rate based on average ac-
count benefits ratio.
‘‘SEC. 3241. DETERMINATION OF TIER 2 TAX RATE BASED
ON AVERAGE ACCOUNT BENEFITS RATIO.
‘‘(a) IN
GENERAL.—For purposes of sections
3201(b), 3211(b), and 3221(b), the applicable percentage
for any calendar year is the percentage determined in ac-
cordance with the table in subsection (b).
‘‘(b) TAX RATE SCHEDULE.—
Average account benefits ratio
Applicable per-
centage for sec-
tions 3211(b) and
3221(b)
Applicable per-
centage for section
3201(b)
At least
But less than
2.5
22.1
4.9
2.5
3.0
18.1
4.9
3.0
3.5
15.1
4.9
3.5
4.0
14.1
4.9
4.0
6.1
13.1
4.9
6.1
6.5
12.6
4.4
6.5
7.0
12.1
3.9
7.0
7.5
11.6
3.4
7.5
8.0
11.1
2.9
8.0
8.5
10.1
1.9
8.5
9.0
9.1
0.9
9.0
8.2
‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS RELATED TO DETERMINATION OF
RATES OF TAX.—
‘‘(1) AVERAGE
ACCOUNT
BENEFITS
RATIO.—
For purposes of this section, the term ‘average ac-
count benefits ratio’ means, with respect to any cal-
endar year, the average determined by the Secretary
of the account benefits ratios for the 10 most recent
fiscal years ending before such calendar year. If the
amount determined under the preceding sentence is
not a multiple of 0.1, such amount shall be in-
creased to the next highest multiple of 0.1.
‘‘(2) ACCOUNT
BENEFITS
RATIO.—For pur-
poses of this section, the term ‘account benefits
ratio’ means, with respect to any fiscal year, the
amount determined by the Railroad Retirement
Board by dividing the fair market value of the assets
in the Railroad Retirement Account and of the Rail-
road Retirement Investment Trust (and for years
before 2001, the Social Security Equivalent Benefits
Account) as of the close of such fiscal year by the
total benefits and administrative expenses paid from
the Railroad Retirement Account and the Railroad
Retirement Investment Trust during such fiscal
year.
‘‘(d) NOTICE.—No later than December 1 of each
calendar year, the Secretary shall publish a notice in the
Federal Register of the rates of tax determined under this
section which are applicable for the following calendar
year.’’.
(e) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—
(1) Section 24(d)(3)(A)(iii) is amended by
striking ‘‘section 3211(a)(1)’’ and inserting ‘‘section
3211(a)’’.
(2) Section 72(r)(2)(B)(i) is amended by strik-
ing ‘‘section 3211(a)(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘section
3211(b)’’.
(3) Paragraphs (2)(A)(iii)(II) and (4)(A) of
section 3231(e) is amended by striking ‘‘3211(a)(1)’’
and inserting ‘‘3211(a)’’.
(4) Section 3231(e)(2)(B)(ii)(I) is amended by
striking ‘‘3211(a)(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘3211(b)’’.
(5) The table of subchapters for chapter 22 is
amended by adding at the end the following new
item:
‘‘Subchapter E. Tier 2 tax rate determination.’’.
(f) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall apply to calendar years beginning after
December 31, 2000.
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