[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 183 (Friday, November 17, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S17336-S17337]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. PRESSLER:
  S. 1418. A bill to provide for the more effective implementation of 
the prohibition against the payment to prisoners of supplemental 
security income benefits under title XVI of the Social Security Act or 
monthly benefits under title II of such Act, and to deny such 
supplemental security income benefits for 10 years to a person found to 
have fraudulently obtained such benefits while in prison; to the 
Committee on Finance.


                   the prisoner fraud prevention act

  Mr. PRESSLER. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Prisoner 
Fraud Prevention Act. This legislation would crack down on prisoners 
who continue to commit crime from behind bars by cheating American 
taxpayers and our welfare system. Recently the Senate passed H.R. 4, 
comprehensive welfare reform legislation. This bill would go a long way 
toward reducing fraud and abuse in the Supplemental Security Income 
(SSI) program. The legislation I am introducing today would take our 
anti-fraud efforts one step further.
  Under current law, it is illegal for prisoners to receive SSI 
payments while incarcerated. To carry out this mandate, the Social 
Security Administration enters into agreements with federal and state 
prisons to collect the names of inmates. However, these agreements do 
not completely prevent inmates from fraudulently receiving benefits, 
because about one-third of prisoners in the U.S. are held in county 

[[Page S 17337]]
jails. Unbeknownst to the Social Security Administration, these local 
prisoners often continue to receive SSI payments.
  The legislation I am introducing today would offer local sheriffs an 
incentive to work with the Social Security Administration to stop 
payment of these fraudulent benefits. The bill would reward sheriffs 
who voluntarily turn inmate lists over to the Social Security 
Administration by allowing them to keep one-half of the value of the 
first checks that are intercepted. This would speed up the process of 
removing prisoners from SSI rolls as well as catch those prisoners who 
slipped through the system. This is a money saver for American 
taxpayers. In fact, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated 
that this proposal would save $127 million over five years.
  Additionally, this legislation would bar anyone who received SSI 
fraudulently while in prison from receiving benefits for the next ten 
years.
  By allowing sheriffs to collect a ``bounty'', we can do a number of 
positive things: we can provide some seed money for local law 
enforcement and help put an end to the abuse for which the SSI program 
unfortunately has become famous. This type of abuse is an insult both 
to hard-working taxpayers who struggle daily without government 
assistance as well as families on assistance who play by the rules. 
Congress must take a no-tolerance stance toward fraud and abuse of 
public assistance. This bill establishes the get-tough approach we 
need.
  I am pleased that the National Sheriffs Association has endorsed this 
legislation. I hope my colleagues will join me in sponsoring it.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be 
printed in the Record.
       There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be 
     printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 1418

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This bill may be cited as the ``Prisoner Fraud Prevention 
     Act''.

     SEC. 2. IMPLEMENTATION OF PROHIBITION AGAINST PAYMENT OF 
                   BENEFITS TO PRISONERS.

       (a) SSI Benefits.--Section 1611(e)(1) of the Social 
     Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1382(e)(1)) is amended by adding at 
     the end the following:
       ``(I) The Commissioner shall enter into a contract with any 
     interested State or local institution referred to in 
     subparagraph (A), under which--
       ``(i) the institution shall provide to the Commissioner, on 
     a monthly basis, the names of, and other identifying 
     information about, the inmates of the institution; and
       ``(ii) the Commissioner shall pay to the institution, with 
     respect to each inmate of the institution who, by reason of 
     this paragraph, is ineligible for a benefit under this title, 
     and who is found by the Commissioner to have been erroneously 
     paid a benefit under this title while such an inmate, an 
     amount equal to 50 percent of the monthly amount most 
     recently erroneously so paid to the inmate.''.
       (b) OASDI Benefits.--Section 202(x)(3) of such Act (42 
     U.S.C. 402(x)(3)) is amended--
       (1) by inserting ``(A)'' after ``(3)''; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(B) The Commissioner shall enter into a contract with any 
     interested State or local institution described in clause (i) 
     or (ii) of paragraph (1)(A) the primary purpose of which is 
     to confine individuals as described in paragraph (1)(A), 
     under which--
       ``(i) the institution shall provide to the Commissioner, on 
     a monthly basis, the names of, and other identifying 
     information about, the individuals so confined in the 
     institution; and
       ``(ii) the Commissioner shall pay to any such institution, 
     with respect to each individual found by the Commissioner to 
     have been erroneously paid a benefit under this title while 
     so confined in the institution, an amount equal to 50 percent 
     of the monthly amount most recently erroneously so paid to 
     the individual.''.

     SEC. 3. DENIAL OF SSI BENEFITS FOR 10 YEARS TO A PERSON FOUND 
                   TO HAVE FRAUDULENTLY OBTAINED SSI BENEFITS 
                   WHILE IN PRISON.

       Section 1611(e)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
     1382(e)(1)), as amended by section 1 of this Act, is amended 
     by adding at the end the following:
       ``(J) A person shall not be an eligible individual or 
     eligible spouse for purposes of this title if--
       ``(i) the Commissioner finds that the person has made a 
     fraudulent statement or representation in order to obtain 
     benefits under this title while serving a prison sentence; 
     and
       ``(ii) the 10-year period that begins with the date the 
     person has completed the sentence has not expired.''.
                                 ______