[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 757 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 757

 To amend the Black Lung Benefits Act to ease the benefits process for 
      survivors of miners whose deaths were due to pneumoconiosis.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 16, 2021

  Mr. Warner introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
  referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Black Lung Benefits Act to ease the benefits process for 
      survivors of miners whose deaths were due to pneumoconiosis.

    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 ``Relief for Survivors of Miners Act 
of 2021''.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO THE BENEFITS PROCESS FOR SURVIVORS OF MINERS 
              WHOSE DEATHS WERE DUE TO PNEUMOCONIOSIS.

    (a) Rebuttable Presumptions for a Death Due to Pneumoconiosis.--
            (1) Rebuttable presumption for a deceased miner employed 
        for not less than 10 years in a coal mine.--Section 411(c)(2) 
        of the Black Lung Benefits Act (30 U.S.C. 921(c)(2)) is amended 
        by striking the second sentence.
            (2) Rebuttable presumption for a disability due to 
        pneumoconiosis.--Section 411(c) of the Black Lung Benefits Act 
        (30 U.S.C. 921(c)) is amended by adding at the end the 
        following:
            ``(6) If a deceased miner was totally disabled due to 
        pneumoconiosis during the life of such miner, there shall be a 
        rebuttable presumption that the death of such miner was a death 
        due to pneumoconiosis. The presumption under this paragraph may 
        be rebutted only by establishing that no part of the death of 
        such miner was caused by pneumoconiosis.''.
            (3) Effective date.--The amendments made by paragraphs (1) 
        and (2) shall apply with respect to claims filed under part B 
        or part C of the Black Lung Benefits Act (30 U.S.C. 921 et 
        seq., 931 et seq.) after January 1, 2016, that are pending on 
        or after the date of enactment of this Act.
    (b) Attorneys' Fees and Medical Expenses Payment Program.--Part A 
of the Black Lung Benefits Act (30 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) is amended by 
adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 403. ATTORNEYS' FEES AND MEDICAL EXPENSES PAYMENT PROGRAM.

    ``(a) Program Established.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
        of enactment of the Relief for Survivors of Miners Act of 2021, 
        the Secretary shall establish a payment program to pay 
        attorneys' fees and other reasonable and unreimbursed medical 
        expenses incurred in establishing the claimant's case, using 
        amounts from the fund, to the attorneys of claimants in 
        qualifying claims.
            ``(2) Qualifying claim.--A qualifying claim for purposes of 
        this section is a contested claim for benefits under this title 
        for which a final order has not been entered within one year of 
        the filing of the claim.
            ``(3) Use of payments from the fund.--Notwithstanding any 
        other provision of law, amounts in the fund shall be available 
        for payments authorized by the Secretary under this section.
    ``(b) Payments Authorized.--
            ``(1) Attorneys' fees.--
                    ``(A) Approval.--If a claimant for benefits under 
                this title obtains a proposed decision and order from a 
                district director with an award of benefits for a 
                qualifying claim, or an award for a qualifying claim 
                before an administrative law judge--
                            ``(i) the district director may approve 
                        attorneys' fees for work done before such 
                        director in an amount not to exceed $1,500; and
                            ``(ii) an administrative law judge may 
                        approve attorneys' fees for work done before 
                        such judge in an amount not to exceed $3,000.
                    ``(B) Payment.--The Secretary shall, through the 
                program under this section, pay any amounts approved 
                under subparagraph (A).
            ``(2) Medical expenses.--
                    ``(A) Approval.--If a claimant for benefits under 
                this title obtains a proposed decision and order from a 
                district director with an award of benefits for a 
                qualifying claim, or an award for a qualifying claim 
                before an administrative law judge, such district 
                director and administrative law judge may each approve 
                an award, in an amount not to exceed $1,500, to the 
                claimant's attorney of reasonable and unreimbursed 
                medical expenses incurred in establishing the 
                claimant's case.
                    ``(B) Payment.--The Secretary shall, through the 
                program under this section, pay any amounts approved 
                under subparagraph (A).
            ``(3) Maximum.--The Secretary, through the program 
        established under this section, shall for any single qualifying 
        claim pay--
                    ``(A) not more than a total of $4,500 in attorneys' 
                fees; and
                    ``(B) not more than $3,000 in medical expenses.
    ``(c) Reimbursement of Funds.--In any case in which a qualifying 
claim results in a final order awarding compensation, the liable 
operator shall reimburse the fund for any fees or expenses paid under 
this section, subject to enforcement by the Secretary under section 424 
and in the same manner as compensation orders are enforced under 
section 21(d) of the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (33 
U.S.C. 921(d)).
    ``(d) Additional Program Rules.--Nothing in this section shall 
limit or otherwise affect an operator's liability for any attorneys' 
fees or medical expenses awarded by the district director or an 
administrative law judge that were not paid by the program under this 
section. Nothing in this section shall limit or otherwise affect the 
Secretary's authority to use amounts in the fund to pay approved 
attorneys' fees in claims for benefits under this title for which a 
final order awarding compensation has been entered and the operator is 
unable to pay.
    ``(e) No Recoupment of Attorneys' Fees.--Any payment for attorneys' 
fees or medical expenses made by the Secretary under this section shall 
not be recouped from the claimant or the claimant's attorney.''.

SEC. 3. REPORTS BY THE GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE.

    Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Comptroller General of the United States shall--
            (1) carry out a review of interim benefit payments under 
        the Black Lung Benefits Act (30 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) for miners 
        and survivors who have submitted a claim for benefits under 
        such Act and are waiting for a final determination, including--
                    (A) an examination of the financial impact on 
                beneficiaries of such payments in the case the claims 
                of such beneficiaries are denied and the payments are 
                recouped;
                    (B) a study of the impact that the stress caused by 
                such recoupment, or the threat of such recoupment, has 
                on beneficiaries of such payments; and
                    (C) a study of the financial impact on the Federal 
                Government and taxpayers of the process for recouping 
                such interim benefit payments in the case of claims 
                that are denied;
            (2) carry out a review of benefit payments for miners and 
        survivors under the Black Lung Benefits Act (30 U.S.C. 901 et 
        seq.), including--
                    (A) an examination of whether such payments are 
                sufficient to meet the expenses of such miners and 
                survivors;
                    (B) an examination of the economic impact of a 
                possible increase in the amount of benefit payments for 
                such miners and survivors; and
                    (C) based on such examination, recommendations on 
                the amount of benefit payments that such miners and 
                survivors should receive from the Black Lung Disability 
                Trust Fund;
            (3) carry out a review that examines the impact of a 
        possible change to regulations of the Secretary of Labor to 
        permit a survivor of a miner to, after a final determination of 
        benefits under the Black Lung Benefits Act (30 U.S.C. 901 et 
        seq.) is made with respect to such survivor, file a subsequent 
        claim for benefits under such Act; and
            (4) submit to Congress reports on the results of the 
        reviews under paragraphs (1), (2), and (3).
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