I
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4325
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and the Employee Retirement
Income Security Act of 1974 to allow retirement benefits received by
members of religious orders to be exempt from Social Security tax
by including retirement plans established by such orders in the definition
of ‘‘church plan’’.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
APRIL 13, 2000
Mr. PITTS (for himself and Mr. HAYES) introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to
the Committee on Education and the Workforce, for a period to be subse-
quently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such
provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
A BILL
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and the Em-
ployee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to allow
retirement benefits received by members of religious or-
ders to be exempt from Social Security tax by including
retirement plans established by such orders in the defini-
tion of ‘‘church plan’’.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Religious Order Work-
ers Parity Act’’.
SEC. 2. INCLUSION OF RETIREMENT PLANS ESTABLISHED
BY RELIGIOUS ORDERS IN DEFINITION OF
CHURCH PLAN.
(a) AMENDMENTS TO INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF
1986.—Subsection (e) of section 414 of the Internal Rev-
enue Code of 1986 (defining church plan) is amended—
(1) in paragraphs (1), (3)(A), and (4)(A), by
striking ‘‘church or by a convention or association of
churches’’ each place it appears and inserting
‘‘church, by a convention or association of churches,
or by a religious order’’,
(2) in paragraph (2)(A), by striking ‘‘church or
convention or association of churches’’ and inserting
‘‘church, convention or association of churches, or
religious order’’,
(3) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘church or a
convention or association of churches’’ each place it
appears and inserting ‘‘church, a convention or asso-
ciation of churches, or a religious order’’, and
(4) in paragraph (3)(D), by striking ‘‘that
church or convention or association of churches’’ and
inserting ‘‘that church, convention or association of
churches, or religious order’’.
(b) AMENDMENTS TO EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT IN-
COME SECURITY ACT OF 1974.—Paragraph (33) of sec-
tion 3 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act
of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1002(33)) (defining church plan) is
amended—
(1) in subparagraphs (A), (C)(i), and (D)(i), by
striking ‘‘church or by a convention or association of
churches’’ each place it appears and inserting
‘‘church, by a convention or association of churches,
or by a religious order’’,
(2) in subparagraph (B)(i), by striking ‘‘church
or convention or association of churches’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘church, convention or association of churches,
or religious order’’,
(3) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘church or
a convention or association of churches’’ each place
it appears and inserting ‘‘church, a convention or as-
sociation of churches, or a religious order’’, and
(4) in subparagraph (C)(iv), by striking ‘‘that
church or convention or association of churches’’ and
inserting ‘‘that church, convention or association of
churches, or religious order’’.
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this Act shall apply to taxable years beginning after De-
cember 31, 1999.
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