[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5557 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5557

To reform the verification and reporting processes for the health care 
                  premium and cost-sharing subsidies.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 18, 2014

  Mrs. Black introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on Energy 
    and Commerce, 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 reform the verification and reporting processes for the health care 
                  premium and cost-sharing subsidies.

    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 ``Streamlining Verification for 
Americans Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Employer reporting requirements under the Patient 
        Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111-148) should 
        strike the appropriate balance between sufficient reporting to 
        enforce the law and protecting the privacy of individuals.
            (2) Protection of the privacy of the primary insured 
        individual and each other individual covered under the policy, 
        which should include minimizing the transmittal of social 
        security numbers, should be a priority when implementing 
        reporting requirements.

SEC. 3. IMPROVING THE ACCURACY OF EXCHANGE DETERMINATIONS OF 
              ELIGIBILITY FOR PREMIUM ASSISTANCE TAX CREDITS.

    (a) In General.--If an employer provides prospective reporting for 
any calendar year under subsection (b), such employer shall be treated 
as making the return described in section 6056(b) of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986 for such year if such return contains, consistent 
with the requirements of subsection (c)(2), only information with 
respect to employees with respect to whom the employer has received a 
notification under section 1411(e)(4)(B)(iii) of the Patient Protection 
and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18081(e)(4)(B)(iii)). If the 
preceding sentence applies to any employer for any calendar year, such 
employer shall be treated as furnishing the statements required under 
section 6056(c) of such Code, if the employer furnishes such statements 
to such employees with respect to the information included in the 
return made under the preceding sentence.
    (b) Prospective Reporting.--Not later than 60 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury, in 
consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the 
Secretary of Labor, and the Administrator of the Small Business 
Administration, shall implement a reporting system under which an 
employer may elect to provide the following information with respect to 
a calendar year before the beginning of such year:
            (1) The name, date, and employer identification number of 
        the employer.
            (2) A certification as to whether the employer offers to 
        its full-time employees the opportunity to enroll in minimum 
        essential coverage under an eligible employer-sponsored plan 
        (as defined in section 5000A(f)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code 
        of 1986) and whether the employer offers the spouses of such 
        full-time employees the opportunity to enroll in such coverage.
            (3) The months during the year for which coverage is 
        generally available to full-time employees.
            (4) A certification as to whether the coverage described in 
        paragraph (2) satisfies the requirements to qualify for one of 
        the affordability safe harbors promulgated by the Secretary of 
        the Treasury for purposes of section 4980H of the Internal 
        Revenue Code of 1986.
            (5) A certification as to whether an employee's effective 
        date of coverage is generally affected by a waiting period.
    (c) Requirements.--The reporting system established under 
subsection (b) shall provide for--
            (1) the processes necessary to ensure that Exchanges can 
        access the information described in subsection (b) to assist in 
        verifying eligibility determinations for advance payment of the 
        premium tax credits under section 36B of the Internal Revenue 
        Code of 1986 and the cost-sharing subsidies under section 1402 
        of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 
        18071); and
            (2) guidance on how employers who voluntarily report in 
        advance under this section could satisfy the report and 
        statement requirements under subsections (b) and (c) of section 
        6056 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 by reporting only 
        with respect to employees with respect to whom the employer has 
        received a notification under section 1411(e)(4)(B)(iii) of the 
        Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 
        18081(e)(4)(B)(iii)).

SEC. 4. USE OF CURRENT YEAR INFORMATION IN DETERMINING SUBSIDY 
              ELIGIBILITY OF APPLICANTS .

    (a) In General.--Section 1412(b)(2) of the Patient Protection and 
Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18082(b)(2)) is amended to read as 
follows:
            ``(2) Changes in circumstances.--The Secretary shall 
        provide procedures for making advance determinations on the 
        basis of information other than that described in paragraph 
        (1)(B) upon the request of the individual. Such procedures 
        shall include allowing an individual to have eligibility 
        determined on the basis of household income for a later period 
        or on the basis of the individual's estimate of such income for 
        the taxable year.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 1411(b)(3)(B) of the Patient 
Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18081(b)(3)(B)) is 
amended to read as follows:
                    ``(B) Changes in circumstance.--In the case of an 
                individual with respect to whom section 1412(b)(2) 
                applies, the information described in such section.''.

SEC. 5. EVALUATING THE DEVELOPMENT AND UTILIZATION OF SYSTEMS FOR 
              EXCHANGES TO NOTIFY EMPLOYERS OF POTENTIAL EXCISE TAX 
              LIABILITY UNDER THE EMPLOYER MANDATE.

    Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a study 
evaluating, with respect to the period beginning on October 1, 2013, 
and ending on the date of the enactment of this Act--
            (1) the notification of employers by Exchanges established 
        under title I of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act 
        that a full-time employee has been determined eligible for an 
        advanced premium assistance tax credit, as required by 
        subsection (e)(4)(B)(iii) of section 1411 of such Act (42 
        U.S.C. 18081); and
            (2) the extent to which the Secretary of Health and Human 
        Services has established a separate appeals process for 
        employers who have been notified that an employee has been 
        determined eligible for an advanced premium assistance tax 
        credit to challenge that eligibility determination, as required 
        by subsection (f)(2) of such section.

SEC. 6. PROTECTING DEPENDENT PRIVACY.

    (a) In General.--Paragraph (1) of section 6055(b) of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following 
flush sentence:
        ``For purposes of subparagraph (B)(i), in the case of an 
        individual other than the primary insured, if the person 
        required to make the return does not collect or maintain 
        information on the TINs of such individuals (other than for 
        purposes of this section), the individual's name and date of 
        birth may be substituted for the individual's name and TIN.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section shall apply 
to returns the due date for which is after December 31, 2013.

SEC. 7. ELECTRONIC STATEMENTS.

    (a) Statements From Employers.--Subsection (c) of section 6056 of 
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the 
following new paragraph:
            ``(3) Electronic delivery.--The statement required to be 
        furnished to any employee under paragraph (1) may be furnished 
        to such employee electronically if such employee has consented 
        to receive such statement electronically. For purposes of the 
        preceding sentence, if an employee has consented, before the 
        date of the enactment of this paragraph, to electronically 
        receive, from the person furnishing such statement, other 
        documents used in filing the employee's return of tax, such 
        employee shall be treated as having consented to receive such 
        statement electronically unless such employee requests that 
        such consent not apply to such statement.''.
    (b) Statements From Insurance Providers.--Subsection (c) of section 
6055 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the 
end the following new paragraph:
            ``(3) Electronic delivery.--The statement required to be 
        furnished to any individual under paragraph (1) may be 
        furnished to such individual electronically if such individual 
        has consented to receive such statement electronically. For 
        purposes of the preceding sentence, if an individual has 
        consented, before the date of the enactment of this paragraph, 
        to electronically receive, from the person furnishing such 
        statement, other documents containing private health 
        information, such individual shall be treated as having 
        consented to receive such statement electronically unless such 
        individual requests that such consent not apply to such 
        statement.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to statements the due date for which is after December 31, 2013.

SEC. 8. DELAYING PROVISION OF ACA PREMIUM AND COST-SHARING SUBSIDIES 
              UNTIL ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION PROCESS FOR SUCH SUBSIDIES 
              IS COMPLETE.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no 
premium tax credit under section 36B of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986 or reduced cost-sharing under section 1402 of the Patient 
Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18071) shall be allowed 
with respect to any individual for any coverage month which begins 
after December 31, 2014, and before the date on which the process to 
verify, in accordance with section 1411 of the Patient Protection and 
Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18081), the estimated household income 
and coverage requirements of such individual for purposes of 
determining eligibility for, and the accurate amount of, such credit or 
reduction, respectively, has been completed. For purposes of the 
previous sentence, the verification process described in such sentence 
with respect to an individual shall not be treated as complete unless a 
manual or electronic review has been completed of applicable 
information required to be submitted by such individual under section 
1411(b) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 18081(b)) and any inconsistency of such 
information with records of the Secretary of the Treasury, the 
Secretary of Homeland Security, or the Commissioner of Social Security 
has been resolved.
    (b) Treatment of Individual Mandate.--Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, no penalty shall be imposed under section 5000A of 
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 with respect to an individual for any 
month--
            (1) with respect to which such individual would (but for 
        subsection (a)) be allowed a premium tax credit under section 
        36B of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; and
            (2) which begins after December 31, 2014, and before the 
        date on which the verification process described in subsection 
        (a) has been completed, in accordance with such subsection, 
        with respect to the eligibility of such individual for such 
        credit.
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