[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 78 Introduced in House (IH)]






109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 H. R. 78

To amend title II of the Social Security Act to provide for payment of 
          lump-sum death payments upon the death of a spouse.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 4, 2005

  Mr. Duncan 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 provide for payment of 
          lump-sum death payments upon the death of a spouse.

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

SECTION 1. PAYMENT OF LUMP-SUM DEATH PAYMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Section 202(i) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 402(i)) is amended by striking ``(i) Upon the death'' and all 
that follows through ``individual's death.'' in paragraph (2) and 
inserting the following:
    ``(i)(1) Upon the death of an individual who died as a fully or 
currently insured individual or as the spouse of a fully or currently 
insured individual, an amount equal to the lesser of--
            ``(A) three times the applicable primary insurance amount 
        determined under paragraph (3), or
            ``(B) $255,
shall be payable under this subsection.
    ``(2) Payments under this subsection in connection with a deceased 
individual shall be paid--
            ``(A) to the surviving spouse of the individual, or
            ``(B) if no person qualifies for payment under subparagraph 
        (A), or if such person dies before receiving payment, in equal 
        shares to each person who is entitled (or would have been so 
        entitled had a timely application been filed), either on the 
        basis of the wages and self-employment income of any such 
        person who dies before receiving payment or on the basis of the 
        wages and self-employment income of the deceased individual 
        referred to in paragraph (1), to benefits under subsection (d) 
        of this section for the month in which the relevant death 
        occurred.
    ``(3) For purposes of paragraph (1)(A), the applicable primary 
insurance amount determined under this paragraph is the larger of--
            ``(A) the deceased individual's primary insurance amount 
        (if any), determined without regard to the amendments made by 
        section 2201 of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981, 
        relating to repeal of the minimum benefit provisions, or
            ``(B) the primary insurance amount (if any) which would be 
        so determined with respect to the surviving spouse of the 
        deceased individual if such spouse had died on the date of the 
        death of the deceased individual.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--Section 202(i) of such Act is amended--
            (1) by striking ``No payment'' and inserting the following:
    ``(4) No payment'';
            (2) by striking ``such insured individual'' each place it 
        appears and inserting ``the deceased individual referred to in 
        paragraph (1)'';
            (3) by striking ``In the case of any individual who died 
        outside the forty-eight'' and inserting the following:
    ``(5) In the case of any individual who died outside the forty-
eight'';
            (4) by striking ``the provisions of the preceding 
        sentence'' and inserting ``paragraph (4)'';
            (5) by striking ``the second sentence of'' each place it 
        appears;
            (6) by striking ``In the case of any individual who died 
        outside the fifty'' and inserting the following:
    ``(6) In the case of any individual who died outside the fifty''; 
and
            (7) by striking ``the provisions of the third sentence of 
        this subsection'' and inserting ``paragraph (4)''.

SEC. 2. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    The amendments made by section 1 shall apply with respect to deaths 
occurring after 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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