[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3974 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3974

      To amend title II of the Social Security Act to require the 
  Commissioner of Social Security to use the Consumer Price Index for 
     Elderly Consumers for purposes of determining cost-of-living 
adjustments under titles II, VIII, and XVI of the Social Security Act, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 19, 2024

Mr. Casey (for himself, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Welch, Mr. Fetterman, Mrs. 
 Gillibrand, and Mr. Sanders) introduced the following bill; which was 
          read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
      To amend title II of the Social Security Act to require the 
  Commissioner of Social Security to use the Consumer Price Index for 
     Elderly Consumers for purposes of determining cost-of-living 
adjustments under titles II, VIII, and XVI of the Social Security Act, 
                        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 ``Boosting Benefits and COLAs for 
Seniors Act''.

SEC. 2. MORE ACCURATE COST-OF-LIVING ADJUSTMENT.

    (a) In General.--
            (1) In general.--Section 215(i)(1)(D) of the Social 
        Security Act (42 U.S.C. 415(i)(1)(D)) is amended by striking 
        ``Consumer Price Index'' and all that follows through ``such 
        index'' and inserting ``Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage 
        Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W, as published by the Bureau 
        of Labor Statistics of the Department of Labor) or Consumer 
        Price Index for Elderly Consumers (CPI-E, as published by such 
        Bureau) (whichever such index results in the higher percentage 
        under this subparagraph) exceeds the same such index''.
            (2) Conforming amendment.--Section 215(i)(1)(G) of the 
        Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 415(i)(1)(G)) is amended by 
        inserting ``applicable for purposes of subparagraph (D)'' after 
        ``Consumer Price Index''.
    (b) Application to Pre-1979 Law.--
            (1) In general.--Section 215(i) of the Social Security Act 
        as in effect in December 1978, and as applied in certain cases 
        under the provisions of such Act as in effect after December 
        1978, is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ``Consumer 
                Price Index'' and all that follows through ``such 
                index'' and inserting ``Consumer Price Index for Urban 
                Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W, as published 
                by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Department of 
                Labor) or Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers 
                (CPI-E, as published by such Bureau of such Department) 
                (whichever such index results in the higher per centum 
                under this subparagraph) exceeds, by not less than 3 
                per centum, the same such Index''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (2)--
                            (i) in subparagraph (A)(ii), by striking 
                        ``Consumer Price Index for such cost-of-living 
                        computation quarter'' and inserting ``Consumer 
                        Price Index applicable for such year under 
                        paragraph (1)(B)''; and
                            (ii) in subparagraph (C)(i), by striking 
                        ``Consumer Price Index as published for any 
                        month exceeds by 2.5 percent or more the level 
                        of such index'' and inserting ``Consumer Price 
                        Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical 
                        Workers or Consumer Price Index for Elderly 
                        Consumers as published for any month exceeds by 
                        2.5 percent or more the level of such index''.
            (2) Conforming changes.--Section 215(i)(4) of the Social 
        Security Act (42 U.S.C. 415(i)(4)) is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``and by section 9001'' and 
                inserting ``, section 9001''; and
                    (B) by inserting ``and section 2 of the Boosting 
                Benefits and COLAs for Seniors Act,'' after ``1986,''.
    (c) No Effect on Adjustments Under Other Laws.--Section 215(i) of 
the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 415(i)) is amended by adding at the 
end the following:
    ``(6) With respect to any provision of law (other than in this 
title, title VIII, or title XVI) which provides for an adjustment of an 
amount under such provision of law in the same percentage as a cost-of-
living adjustment applied to benefit amounts under this title, such 
provision of law shall be applied and administered as if the percentage 
of such cost-of-living adjustment applied to benefit amounts under this 
title were determined without regard to the amendments made by 
subsections (a) and (b) of section 2 of the Boosting Benefits and COLAs 
for Seniors Act.''.
    (d) Publication of Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers.--The 
Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Department of Labor shall prepare and 
publish an index for each calendar month to be known as the ``Consumer 
Price Index for Elderly Consumers'' that indicates changes over time in 
expenditures for consumption which are typical for individuals in the 
United States who have attained age 62.
    (e) Transition Rule.--Prior to the publication of the Consumer 
Price Index for Elderly Consumers (CPI-E) pursuant to subsection (d), 
the reference to such index made in each of the amendments made by 
subsections (a) and (b) shall be deemed to be a reference to the 
research price index prepared by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the 
Department of Labor known as the Consumer Price Index for Americans 62 
years of age and older (R-CPI-E).
    (f) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to determinations made with respect to cost-of-living computation 
quarters (as defined in section 215(i)(1)(B) of the Social Security Act 
(42 U.S.C. 415(i)(1)(B))) ending on or after September 30, 2024.
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