I
104TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 2928
To amend title II of the Social Security Act to ensure the integrity of
the social security trust funds by requiring the Managing Trustee to
invest the annual surplus of such trust funds in marketable interest-
bearing obligations of the United States and certificates of deposit in
depository institutions insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corpora-
tion, and to protect such trust funds from the public debt limit.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 1, 1996
Mr. NEUMANN introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Ways and Means
A BILL
To amend title II of the Social Security Act to ensure the
integrity of the social security trust funds by requiring
the Managing Trustee to invest the annual surplus of
such trust funds in marketable interest-bearing obliga-
tions of the United States and certificates of deposit
in depository institutions insured by the Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation, and to protect such 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. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Social Security Preser-
vation Act of 1996’’.
SEC. 2. INVESTMENT OF THE FEDERAL OLD-AGE AND SUR-
VIVORS INSURANCE TRUST FUND AND THE
FEDERAL 
DISABILITY 
INSURANCE 
TRUST
FUND.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 201(d) of the Social Secu-
rity Act (42 U.S.C. 401(d)) is amended—
(1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(d)’’;
(2) by striking ‘‘Such investments may be made
only’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘Except as pro-
vided in paragraph (2), such investments may be
made only’’;
(3) by striking the last sentence; and
(4) by adding at the end the following new
paragraph:
‘‘(2)(A) The Managing Trustee shall determine the
annual surplus (as defined in subparagraph (B)) for each
of the Trust Funds as of the end of each fiscal year. The
Managing Trustee shall ensure that such annual surplus
is invested, throughout the next following fiscal year, in—
‘‘(i) marketable interest-bearing obligations of
the United States or obligations guaranteed as to
both principal and interest by the United States,
purchased on original issue or at the market price,
or
‘‘(ii) certificates of deposit in insured depository
institutions (as defined in section 3(c)(2) of the Fed-
eral Deposit Insurance Act).
‘‘(B) For purposes of this paragraph, the ‘annual sur-
plus’ for either of the Trust Funds as of the end of a
fiscal year is the excess (if any) of—
‘‘(i) the sum of—
‘‘(I) in the case of the Federal Old-Age
and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund, the
amounts appropriated to such Trust Fund
under paragraphs (3) and (4) of subsection (a)
for the fiscal year,
‘‘(II) in the case of the Federal Disability
Insurance Trust Fund, the amounts appro-
priated to such Trust Fund under paragraphs
(1) and (2) of subsection (b) for the fiscal year,
and
‘‘(III) in either case, the amount appro-
priated to such Trust Fund under section
121(e) of the Social Security Amendments of
1983 for the fiscal year, over
‘‘(ii) the amounts paid or transferred from such
Trust Fund during the fiscal year.’’.
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall apply with respect to annual surpluses
as of the end of fiscal years beginning on or after October
1, 1995.
SEC. 3. PROTECTION OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY TRUST
FUNDS FROM THE PUBLIC DEBT LIMIT.
(a) PROTECTION OF TRUST FUNDS.—Notwithstand-
ing any other provision of law—
(1) no officer or employee of the United States
may—
(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 or the Federal Disability 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
Trust Fund or the Federal Disability Insurance
Trust Fund by reason of an inability to issue further
public debt obligations because of the applicable
public debt limit, public debt obligations held by
such Trush Fund shall be sold or redeemed only for
the purpose of making payment of such benefits or
administrative expenses and only to the extent cash
assets of such Trust Fund are not available from
month to month for making payment of such bene-
fits or administrative 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 or the Federal
Disability 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-
retary of the Treasury expects to undertake a sale
or redemption authorized under paragraph (1), the
Secretary of the Treasury shall report to each House
of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of
the United States regarding the expected sale or re-
demption. Upon receipt of such report, the Comp-
troller General shall review the extent of compliance
with subsection (a) and paragraphs (1) and (2) of
this subsection and shall issue such findings and rec-
ommendations to each House of the Congress as the
Comptroller General considers necessary and appro-
priate.
(c) PUBLIC DEBT OBLIGATION.—For purposes of
this section, the term ‘‘public debt obligation’’ means any
obligation subject to the public debt limit established
under section 3101 of title 31, United States Code.
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