[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 181 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        S.181

                      One Hundred Eleventh Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE FIRST SESSION

          Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
             the sixth day of January, two thousand and nine


                                 An Act


 
     To amend title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Age 
Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, and to modify the operation of 
 the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the Rehabilitation Act 
of 1973, to clarify that a discriminatory compensation decision or other 
practice that is unlawful under such Acts occurs each time compensation 
 is paid pursuant to the discriminatory compensation decision or other 
                    practice, 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 ``Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 
2009''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
    Congress finds the following:
        (1) The Supreme Court in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber 
    Co., 550 U.S. 618 (2007), significantly impairs statutory 
    protections against discrimination in compensation that Congress 
    established and that have been bedrock principles of American law 
    for decades. The Ledbetter decision undermines those statutory 
    protections by unduly restricting the time period in which victims 
    of discrimination can challenge and recover for discriminatory 
    compensation decisions or other practices, contrary to the intent 
    of Congress.
        (2) The limitation imposed by the Court on the filing of 
    discriminatory compensation claims ignores the reality of wage 
    discrimination and is at odds with the robust application of the 
    civil rights laws that Congress intended.
        (3) With regard to any charge of discrimination under any law, 
    nothing in this Act is intended to preclude or limit an aggrieved 
    person's right to introduce evidence of an unlawful employment 
    practice that has occurred outside the time for filing a charge of 
    discrimination.
        (4) Nothing in this Act is intended to change current law 
    treatment of when pension distributions are considered paid.
SEC. 3. DISCRIMINATION IN COMPENSATION BECAUSE OF RACE, COLOR, 
RELIGION, SEX, OR NATIONAL ORIGIN.
    Section 706(e) of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e-
5(e)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(3)(A) For purposes of this section, an unlawful employment 
practice occurs, with respect to discrimination in compensation in 
violation of this title, when a discriminatory compensation decision or 
other practice is adopted, when an individual becomes subject to a 
discriminatory compensation decision or other practice, or when an 
individual is affected by application of a discriminatory compensation 
decision or other practice, including each time wages, benefits, or 
other compensation is paid, resulting in whole or in part from such a 
decision or other practice.
    ``(B) In addition to any relief authorized by section 1977A of the 
Revised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981a), liability may accrue and an 
aggrieved person may obtain relief as provided in subsection (g)(1), 
including recovery of back pay for up to two years preceding the filing 
of the charge, where the unlawful employment practices that have 
occurred during the charge filing period are similar or related to 
unlawful employment practices with regard to discrimination in 
compensation that occurred outside the time for filing a charge.''.
SEC. 4. DISCRIMINATION IN COMPENSATION BECAUSE OF AGE.
    Section 7(d) of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 
(29 U.S.C. 626(d)) is amended--
        (1) in the first sentence--
            (A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as 
        subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively; and
            (B) by striking ``(d)'' and inserting ``(d)(1)'';
        (2) in the third sentence, by striking ``Upon'' and inserting 
    the following:
    ``(2) Upon''; and
        (3) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(3) For purposes of this section, an unlawful practice occurs, 
with respect to discrimination in compensation in violation of this 
Act, when a discriminatory compensation decision or other practice is 
adopted, when a person becomes subject to a discriminatory compensation 
decision or other practice, or when a person is affected by application 
of a discriminatory compensation decision or other practice, including 
each time wages, benefits, or other compensation is paid, resulting in 
whole or in part from such a decision or other practice.''.
SEC. 5. APPLICATION TO OTHER LAWS.
    (a) Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990.--The amendments made 
by section 3 shall apply to claims of discrimination in compensation 
brought under title I and section 503 of the Americans with 
Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12111 et seq., 12203), pursuant to 
section 107(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 12117(a)), which adopts the 
powers, remedies, and procedures set forth in section 706 of the Civil 
Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e-5).
    (b) Rehabilitation Act of 1973.--The amendments made by section 3 
shall apply to claims of discrimination in compensation brought under 
sections 501 and 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 791, 
794), pursuant to--
        (1) sections 501(g) and 504(d) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 791(g), 
    794(d)), respectively, which adopt the standards applied under 
    title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 for 
    determining whether a violation has occurred in a complaint 
    alleging employment discrimination; and
        (2) paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 505(a) of such Act (29 
    U.S.C. 794a(a)) (as amended by subsection (c)).
    (c) Conforming Amendments.--
        (1) Rehabilitation act of 1973.--Section 505(a) of the 
    Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794a(a)) is amended--
            (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting after ``(42 U.S.C. 
        2000e-5 (f) through (k))'' the following: ``(and the 
        application of section 706(e)(3) (42 U.S.C. 2000e-5(e)(3)) to 
        claims of discrimination in compensation)''; and
            (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting after ``1964'' the 
        following: ``(42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) (and in subsection 
        (e)(3) of section 706 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 2000e-5), applied 
        to claims of discrimination in compensation)''.
        (2) Civil rights act of 1964.--Section 717 of the Civil Rights 
    Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e-16) is amended by adding at the end 
    the following:
    ``(f) Section 706(e)(3) shall apply to complaints of discrimination 
in compensation under this section.''.
        (3) Age discrimination in employment act of 1967.--Section 
    15(f) of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (29 
    U.S.C. 633a(f)) is amended by striking ``of section'' and inserting 
    ``of sections 7(d)(3) and''.
SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.
    This Act, and the amendments made by this Act, take effect as if 
enacted on May 28, 2007 and apply to all claims of discrimination in 
compensation under title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 
2000e et seq.), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (29 
U.S.C. 621 et seq.), title I and section 503 of the Americans with 
Disabilities Act of 1990, and sections 501 and 504 of the 
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, that are pending on or after that date.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.