Title: Portable Benefits for Independent Workers Pilot Program Act
Policy area: Labor and Employment

Summary:
Portable Benefits for Independent Workers Pilot Program Act
This bill requires the Department of Labor to award grants for FY2018, on a competitive basis, to states, local governments, or nonprofit organizations to support broad innovation and experimentation with respect to portable benefits.
Portable benefits are work-related benefits that are provided to eligible workers for eligible work in a manner that allows the worker to maintain the benefits upon changing jobs.
The grants must be used for: (1) the evaluation, or improvement to the design or implementation, of existing models or approaches for providing portable benefits; or (2) the design, implementation, and evaluation of new models or approaches for providing such benefits. The grants may not be used for a model or approach that provides only retirement-related benefits.
The Government Accountability Office must evaluate and report to Congress on the outcome of the grants awarded pursuant to this bill.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1251 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1251

  To require the Secretary of Labor to establish a pilot program for 
    providing portable benefits to eligible workers, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 25, 2017

  Mr. Warner introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
  referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To require the Secretary of Labor to establish a pilot program for 
    providing portable benefits to eligible workers, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Portable Benefits for Independent 
Workers Pilot Program Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Many independent workers, constituting a growing 
        percentage of the workforce in the United States, do not have 
        access to benefits and protections typically provided through 
        traditional full-time employment.
            (2) These independent workers are independent contractors, 
        temporary workers, self-employed, or work pursuant to other 
        contingent or alternative work arrangements.
            (3) According to a 2015 study by the Comptroller General of 
        the United States, the size of the contingent workforce grew 
        from 35 percent of employed workers in 2006 to 40 percent of 
        employed workers in 2010.
            (4) According to a 2016 study by economists Lawrence Katz 
        and Alan Krueger, 94 percent of net employment growth in the 
        United States economy from 2005 to 2015 occurred in alternative 
        work arrangements.
            (5) As the population of independent workers grows, it is 
        increasingly important that workers are provided portable 
        benefits.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Eligible organization.--The term ``eligible 
        organization'' means any State or local government or any 
        nonprofit organization.
            (2) Eligible work.--The term ``eligible work'' means any 
        work performed that is not in connection with traditional full-
        time employment.
            (3) Eligible worker.--The term ``eligible worker'' means 
        any worker who is not a traditional full-time employee of the 
        entity hiring the worker for the eligible work, including any 
        independent contractor, contract worker, self-employed 
        individual, freelance worker, temporary worker, or contingent 
        worker.
            (4) Portable benefits.--The term ``portable benefits''--
                    (A) means work-related benefits that are provided 
                to eligible workers for eligible work in a manner that 
                allows the worker to maintain the benefits upon 
                changing jobs; and
                    (B) includes--
                            (i) contributions on behalf of the eligible 
                        worker made by an entity (including multiple 
                        entities, if applicable) in connection with 
                        eligible work performed by the worker for the 
                        entity, including entities that facilitate the 
                        sale of such work;
                            (ii) contributions made by the eligible 
                        worker; or
                            (iii) a combination of the contributions 
                        described in clauses (i) and (ii).
            (5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Labor.
            (6) Work-related benefits.--The term ``work-related 
        benefits'' means benefits, including protections, of a type 
        that are commonly provided to traditional full-time employees, 
        such as workers' compensation, skills training, disability 
        coverage, health insurance coverage, retirement saving, income 
        security, and short-term saving.

SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF PORTABLE BENEFITS PILOT PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary, in consultation with the head of 
any other relevant Federal agency, shall award grants for fiscal year 
2018, on a competitive basis, to eligible organizations to support 
broad innovation and experimentation with respect to portable benefits.
    (b) Uses of Funds.--
            (1) Types of grants.--The grants awarded under subsection 
        (a) shall be grants for--
                    (A) the evaluation, or improvement to the design or 
                implementation, of existing models or approaches for 
                providing portable benefits; or
                    (B) the design, implementation, and evaluation of 
                new models or approaches for providing such benefits.
            (2) Requirement regarding retirement-related benefits.--An 
        eligible organization that receives a grant under subsection 
        (a) may not use the grant to fund a model or approach described 
        in paragraph (1) that provides only retirement-related 
        benefits.
    (c) Potential for National Applicability.--In awarding grants under 
subsection (a), the Secretary shall consider the potential of the model 
or approach described in subsection (b)(1) to be replicated on a large 
scale or at the national level.
    (d) Applications.--Each eligible organization that desires to 
receive a grant under subsection (a) shall submit an application to the 
Secretary, at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such 
information as the Secretary may require.

SEC. 5. REPORT TO CONGRESS.

    Not later than September 30, 2020, the Comptroller General of the 
United States shall evaluate the outcome of the grants awarded under 
section 4(a) and provide a report on such evaluation to Congress. Such 
report shall include an assessment of the impact of such grants on the 
compensation of workers receiving portable benefits under section 4.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) In General.--There is authorized to be appropriated for fiscal 
year 2018--
            (1) $5,000,000 to carry out the grants described in section 
        4(b)(1)(A); and
            (2) $15,000,000 to carry out the grants described in 
        section 4(b)(1)(B).
    (b) Availability.--Amounts appropriated under subsection (a) shall 
remain available until expended.
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