I
105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 530
To provide for implementation of prohibitions against payment of social
security benefits to prisoners, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 4, 1997
Mr. HERGER (for himself, Mr. CLEMENT, Mr. SHAW, Mr. BUNNING, Ms.
DUNN, Mr. ENSIGN, Mr. HAYWORTH, and Mr. BURTON of Indiana) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways
and Means
A BILL
To provide for implementation of prohibitions against pay-
ment of social security benefits to prisoners, and for
other purposes.
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 ‘‘Criminal Welfare Pre-
vention Act, Part II’’.
SEC. 2. TREATMENT OF PRISONERS UNDER TITLES II AND
XVI OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY ACT.
(a) IMPLEMENTATION
OF PROHIBITION AGAINST
PAYMENT OF TITLE II BENEFITS TO PRISONERS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 202(x)(3) of the So-
cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 402(x)(3)) is amend-
ed—
(A) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(3)’’; and
(B) by adding at the end the following new
subparagraph:
‘‘(B)(i) The Commissioner shall enter into an agree-
ment, with any interested State or local institution com-
prising a jail, prison, penal institution, correctional facil-
ity, or other institution a purpose of which is to confine
individuals as described in paragraph (1)(A), under
which—
‘‘(I) the institution shall provide to the Com-
missioner, on a monthly basis and in a manner spec-
ified by the Commissioner, the names, social security
account numbers, dates of birth, confinement com-
mencement dates, and, to the extent available to the
institution, such other identifying information con-
cerning the individuals confined in the institution as
the Commissioner may require for the purpose of
carrying out paragraph (1); and
‘‘(II) except as provided in clause (ii), the Com-
missioner shall pay to the institution, with respect to
information described in subclause (I) concerning
each individual who is confined therein as described
in paragraph (1)(A), to whom a benefit under this
title is payable for the month preceding the first
month of such confinement, and whose benefit under
this title ceases to be payable as a result of the ap-
plication of this subsection, $400 (subject to reduc-
tion under clause (iii)) if the institution furnishes
the information to the Commissioner within 30 days
after the date such individual’s confinement in such
institution begins, or $200 (subject to reduction
under clause (iii)) if the institution furnishes the in-
formation after 30 days after such date but within
90 days after such date.
‘‘(ii) No amount shall be payable to an institution
with respect to information concerning an individual under
an agreement entered into under clause (i) if, prior to the
Commissioner’s receipt of the information, the Commis-
sioner has determined that benefits under this title are
no longer payable to such individual as a result of the ap-
plication of this subsection.
‘‘(iii) The dollar amounts specified in clause (i)(II)
shall be reduced by 50 percent if the Commissioner is also
required to make a payment to the institution with respect
to the same individual under an agreement entered into
under section 1611(e)(1)(I).
‘‘(iv) There shall be transferred from the Federal
Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the
Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund, as appropriate,
such sums as may be necessary to enable the Commis-
sioner to make payments to institutions required by clause
(i)(II). Sums so transferred shall be treated as direct
spending for purposes of the Balanced Budget and Emer-
gency Deficit Control Act of 1985 and excluded from
budget totals in accordance with section 13301 of the
Budget Enforcement Act of 1990.
‘‘(v) The Commissioner is authorized to provide, on
a reimbursable basis, information obtained pursuant to
agreements entered into under clause (i) to any Federal
or federally-assisted cash, food, or medical assistance pro-
gram for eligibility purposes.’’.
(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made
by this subsection shall apply to individuals whose
period of confinement in an institution commences
on or after the first day of the fourth month begin-
ning after the month in which this Act is enacted.
(b) ELIMINATION OF TITLE II REQUIREMENT THAT
CONFINEMENT STEM FROM CRIME PUNISHABLE BY IM-
PRISONMENT FOR MORE THAN 1 YEAR.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 202(x)(1)(A) of such
Act (42 U.S.C. 402(x)(1)(A)) is amended—
(A) in the matter preceding clause (i), by
striking ‘‘during’’ and inserting ‘‘throughout’’;
(B) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘an offense
punishable by imprisonment for more than 1
year (regardless of the actual sentence im-
posed)’’ and inserting ‘‘a criminal offense’’; and
(C) in clause (ii)(I), by striking ‘‘an of-
fense punishable by imprisonment for more
than 1 year’’ and inserting ‘‘a criminal of-
fense’’.
(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made
by this subsection shall apply to individuals whose
period of confinement in an institution commences
on or after the first day of the fourth month begin-
ning after the month in which this Act is enacted.
(c) INCLUSION OF TITLE II ISSUES IN STUDY AND
REPORT REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO PRISONERS.—
(1) Section 203(b)(1) of the Personal Respon-
sibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of
1996 (Public Law 104–193) is amended—
(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘sec-
tion 1611(e)(1)’’ and inserting ‘‘sections 202(x)
and 1611(e)(1)’’; and
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘sec-
tion 1611(e)(1)(I)’’ and inserting ‘‘section
202(x)(3)(B) or 1611(e)(1)(I)’’.
(2) Section 203(c) of such Act is amended by
striking ‘‘section 1611(e)(1)(I)’’ and all that follows
and inserting the following: ‘‘sections 202(x)(3)(B)
and 1611(e)(1)(I) of the Social Security Act.’’.
(3) The amendments made by paragraph (1)
shall apply as if included in the enactment of section
203(b) of the Personal Responsibility and Work Op-
portunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (Public Law
104–193). The amendment made by paragraph (2)
shall apply as if included in the enactment of section
203(c) of such Act.
(d) CONFORMING TITLE XVI AMENDMENTS.—
(1) PRECLUSION OF TITLE XVI PAYMENT WHEN
INFORMATION
FURNISHED
BY
AN
INSTITUTION
IS
ALREADY KNOWN BY THE COMMISSIONER.—Section
1611(e)(1)(I) of the Social Security Act (as added
by section 203(a)(1) of the Personal Responsibility
and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996
(Public Law 104–193)) is amended—
(A) in clause (i)(II), by inserting ‘‘except
as provided in clause (ii),’’ after ‘‘(II)’’;
(B) by redesignating clauses (ii) and (iii)
as clauses (iv) and (v), respectively; and
(C) by inserting after clause (i) the follow-
ing new clause:
‘‘(ii) No amount shall be payable to an institution
with respect to information concerning an inmate under
an agreement entered into under clause (i) if, prior to the
Commissioner’s receipt of the information, the Commis-
sioner has determined that the inmate is no longer an eli-
gible individual or eligible spouse for purposes of this title
as a result of the application of this paragraph.’’.
(2) FIFTY PERCENT REDUCTION IN TITLE XVI
PAYMENT IN CASE INVOLVING COMPARABLE TITLE II
PAYMENT.—Section 1611(e)(1)(I) of such Act (as
amended by paragraph (1)) is amended further—
(A) in clause (i)(II), by inserting ‘‘(subject
to reduction under clause (iii))’’ after ‘‘$400’’
and after ‘‘$200’’; and
(B) by inserting after clause (ii) the follow-
ing new clause:
‘‘(iii) The dollar amounts specified in clause (i)(II)
shall be reduced by 50 percent if the Commissioner is also
required to make a payment to the institution with respect
to the same individual under an agreement entered into
under section 202(x)(3)(B).’’.
(3) EXPANSION OF CATEGORIES OF INSTITU-
TIONS ELIGIBLE TO ENTER INTO AGREEMENTS WITH
THE
COMMISSIONER.—Section 1611(e)(1)(I)(i) of
such Act (as added by section 203(a)(1) of the Per-
sonal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Rec-
onciliation Act of 1996 (Public Law 104–193)) is
amended in the matter preceding subclause (I) by
striking ‘‘institution’’ and all that follows through
‘‘section 202(x)(1)(A),’’ and inserting ‘‘institution
comprising a jail, prison, penal institution, or correc-
tional facility, or with any other interested State or
local institution a purpose of which is to confine in-
dividuals as described in section 202(x)(1)(A)(ii),’’.
(4) LIMITATION ON CATEGORIES OF INMATES
WITH
RESPECT
TO
WHOM
PAYMENT
MAY
BE
MADE.—Section 1611(e)(1)(I)(i)(II) of such Act (as
added by section 203(a)(1) of the Personal Respon-
sibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of
1996 (Public Law 104–193)) is amended by striking
‘‘inmate of the institution’’ and all that follows
through ‘‘in such institution and’’ and inserting ‘‘in-
dividual who is eligible for a benefit under this title
for the month preceding the first month throughout
which the individual is an inmate of the jail, prison,
penal institution, or correctional facility, or is con-
fined in the institution as described in section
202(x)(1)(A)(ii), and who’’.
(5) 
TECHNICAL
CORRECTION.—Section
1611(e)(1)(I)(i)(II) of such Act (as amended by the
preceding provisions of this subsection) is amended
further by striking ‘‘subparagraph’’ and inserting
‘‘paragraph’’.
(6) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made
by this subsection shall apply as if included in the
enactment of section 203(a) of the Personal Respon-
sibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of
1996 (Public Law 104–193). The references to sec-
tion 202(x)(1)(A)(ii) of the Social Security Act in
section 1611(e)(1)(I)(i) of such Act as amended by
paragraphs (3) and (4) shall be deemed a reference
to such section 202(x)(1)(A)(ii) as amended by sub-
section (b)(1)(C).
(e) EXEMPTION FROM COMPUTER MATCHING RE-
QUIREMENTS.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Section 552a(a)(8)(B) of
title 5, United States Code, is amended—
(A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of clause
(vi); and