Title: COVID–19 Emergency Social Security Cost of Living Increase Act of 2020
Policy area: Social Welfare

Summary:
COVID-19 Emergency Social Security Cost of Living Increase Act of 2020
This bill changes the methods used to determine annual increases to Social Security benefits and provides an emergency cost-of-living increase of at least 3% to beneficiaries beginning in November 2020.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8600 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8600

  To provide an emergency cost-of-living increase for social security 
                 beneficiaries, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 16, 2020

 Mr. Smith of New Jersey (for himself and Mr. Van Drew) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, 
 and in addition to the Committee on Education and Labor, 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 provide an emergency cost-of-living increase for social security 
                 beneficiaries, 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 ``COVID-19 Emergency Social Security 
Cost of Living Increase Act of 2020''.

SEC. 2. EMERGENCY COST-OF-LIVING INCREASE.

    (a) In General.--Effective with the month of November 2020, the 
Commissioner of Social Security shall increase each of the amounts 
described in subclauses (I) through (III) of section 215(i)(2)(A)(ii) 
of the Social Security Act by not less than 3 percent.
    (b) Treatment of Increase.--For purposes of applying subparagraphs 
(A) and (B) of section 215(i)(1) of the Social Security Act in calendar 
year 2020, the increase under subsection (a) shall be treated as a 
general benefit increase under title II of the Social Security Act.

SEC. 3. COMPUTATION OF COST-OF-LIVING INCREASES BASED ON CONSUMER PRICE 
              INDEX FOR ELDERLY CONSUMERS.

    (a) In General.--Section 215(i)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 415(i)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subparagraph:
            ``(H) the term `Consumer Price Index' means the Consumer 
        Price Index for Elderly Consumers (CPI-E, as published by the 
        Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Department of Labor).''.
    (b) Application to Pre-1979 Law.--
            (1) In general.--Section 215(i)(1) of the Social Security 
        Act as in effect in December 1978, and as applied in certain 
        cases under the provisions of such Act as in effect after 
        December 1978, is amended by adding at the end the following 
        new subparagraph:
            ``(D) the term `Consumer Price Index' means the Consumer 
        Price Index for Elderly Consumers (CPI-E, as published by the 
        Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Department of Labor).''.
            (2) Conforming change.--Section 215(i)(4) of the Social 
        Security Act (42 U.S.C. 415(i)(4)) is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``and by section 9001'' and 
                inserting ``, section 9001''; and
                    (B) by inserting ``and section 3 of the COVID-19 
                Emergency Social Security Cost of Living Increase Act 
                of 2020,'' after ``1986,''.
    (c) Publication of Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers.--The 
Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Department of Labor shall prepare and 
publish the index authorized by section 191 of the Older Americans 
Amendments Act of 1987 (29 U.S.C. 2 note) for each calendar month, 
beginning with the date of enactment of this Act, and such index shall 
be known as the ``Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers''.
    (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
apply to determinations made with respect to cost-of-living computation 
quarters (as defined in section 215(i)(1)(B) of the Social Security Act 
(42 U.S.C. 415(i)(1)(B))) ending on or after September 30, 2021.
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