[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1844 Referred in House (RFH)]

  1st Session
                                S. 1844


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            November 3, 1999

              Referred to the Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
 To amend part D of title IV of the Social Security Act to provide for 
   an alternative penalty procedure with respect to compliance with 
              requirements for a State disbursement unit.

    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 ``Child Support Miscellaneous 
Amendments of 1999''.

SEC. 2. ALTERNATIVE PENALTY PROCEDURE RELATING TO COMPLIANCE WITH 
              REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO STATE DISBURSEMENT UNIT.

    (a) In General.--Section 455(a) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 655(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(5)(A)(i) If--
            ``(I) the Secretary determines that a State plan under 
        section 454 would (in the absence of this paragraph) be 
        disapproved for the failure of the State to comply with 
        subparagraphs (A) and (B)(i) of section 454(27), and that the 
        State has made and is continuing to make a good faith effort to 
        so comply; and
            ``(II) the State has submitted to the Secretary, not later 
        than April 1, 2000, a corrective compliance plan that describes 
        how, by when, and at what cost the State will achieve such 
        compliance, which has been approved by the Secretary,
then the Secretary shall not disapprove the State plan under section 
454, and the Secretary shall reduce the amount otherwise payable to the 
State under paragraph (1)(A) of this subsection for the fiscal year by 
the penalty amount.
    ``(ii) All failures of a State during a fiscal year to comply with 
any of the requirements of section 454B shall be considered a single 
failure of the State to comply with section 454(27)(A) during the 
fiscal year for purposes of this paragraph.
    ``(B) In this paragraph:
            ``(i) The term `penalty amount' means, with respect to a 
        failure of a State to comply with subparagraphs (A) and (B)(i) 
        of section 454(27)--
                    ``(I) 4 percent of the penalty base, in the case of 
                the 1st fiscal year in which such a failure by the 
                State occurs (regardless of whether a penalty is 
                imposed in that fiscal year under this paragraph with 
                respect to the failure), except as provided in 
                subparagraph (C)(ii);
                    ``(II) 8 percent of the penalty base, in the case 
                of the 2nd such fiscal year;
                    ``(III) 16 percent of the penalty base, in the case 
                of the 3rd such fiscal year;
                    ``(IV) 25 percent of the penalty base, in the case 
                of the 4th such fiscal year; or
                    ``(V) 30 percent of the penalty base, in the case 
                of the 5th or any subsequent such fiscal year.
            ``(ii) The term `penalty base' means, with respect to a 
        failure of a State to comply with subparagraphs (A) and (B)(i) 
        of section 454(27) during a fiscal year, the amount other wise 
        payable to the State under paragraph (1)(A) of this subsection 
        for the preceding fiscal year.
    ``(C)(i) The Secretary shall waive all penalties imposed against a 
State under this paragraph for any failure of the State to comply with 
subparagraphs (A) and (B)(i) of section 454(27) if the Secretary 
determines that, before April 1, 2000, the State has achieved such 
compliance.
    ``(ii) If a State with respect to which a reduction is required to 
be made under this paragraph with respect to a failure to comply with 
subparagraphs (A) and (B)(i) of section 454(27) achieves compliance 
with such section on or after April 1, 2000, and on or before September 
30, 2000, then the penalty amount applicable to the State shall be 1 
percent of the penalty base with respect to the failure involved.
    ``(D) The Secretary may not impose a penalty under this paragraph 
against a State for a fiscal year for which the amount otherwise 
payable to the State under paragraph (1)(A) of this subsection is 
reduced under paragraph (4) for failure to comply with section 
454(24)(A).''.
    (b) Inapplicability of Penalty Under TANF Program.--Section 
409(a)(8)(A)(i)(III) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 609(a)(8)(A)(i)(III)) is 
amended by striking ``section 454(24)'' and inserting ``paragraph (24) 
or (27)(A) of section 454''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect on October 1, 1999.

            Passed the Senate November 2, 1999.

            Attest:

                                                    GARY SISCO,

                                                             Secretary.