[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 21 (Thursday, March 5, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S1461]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 80--CONCERNING SURVIVOR BENEFITS FOR 
                WIDOWS AND WIDOWERS OF RAILROAD RETIREES

  Ms. MOSELEY-BRAUN submitted the following concurrent resolution; 
which was referred to the Committee on Labor and Human Resources:

                            S. Con. Res. 80

       Whereas for years, many in the railroad industry have 
     argued that annuities paid to widows and widowers under the 
     Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 are inadequate;
       Whereas during the lifetime of the employee and the spouse, 
     the employee receives a full annuity and so does the spouse;
       Whereas after the employee's death, however, only a widow's 
     or widower's annuity is payable, which under current law is 
     less than that widow or widower received as a spouse in the 
     month before the employee's death;
       Whereas this widow's or widower's annuity is often found 
     inadequate and leaves the survivor with less than the amount 
     of income needed to meet ordinary and necessary living 
     expenses; and
       Whereas no outside contributions from the American taxpayer 
     are needed, and any changes will be paid for from within the 
     railroad industry itself: Now, therefore, be it
         Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That--
       (1) Congress recognizes the concern of many in the railroad 
     industry that the widow's and widower's annuity under the 
     current system is inadequate and often leaves the survivor 
     with less than the amount of income needed to meet ordinary 
     and necessary living expenses;
       (2) Congress also recognizes that a process of dialogue 
     must take place among all parties of the railroad community 
     including rail labor, management, and retiree organizations 
     before railroad annuity legislation can be enacted; and
       (3) because of the self-sufficient and unique nature of the 
     Railroad Retirement System, Congress urges and exhorts all 
     parties of the railroad community, including rail labor, 
     management, and retiree organizations to find a suitable way 
     to fund an amendment that would improve the survivor benefits 
     component to the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974.

  Ms. MOSELEY-BRAUN. Mr. President, today I am submitting a concurrent 
resolution calling on railroad employers, employees, and retiree 
organizations to work together to provide for a secure retirement for 
widows and widowers of railroad employees.
  Currently, when a railroad employee retires, that retiree and his or 
her spouse receive 145 percent of the retiree's full retirement 
annuity. When that retiree dies, however, his or her spouse loses 100 
percent of the retiree's annuity, leaving only a 45 percent survivor's 
benefit. The result can be that widows and widowers of railroad 
employees no longer have sufficient income on which to live.
  In Illinois alone, there are over 50,000 railroad retirees. Over 
three-quarters of these men and women are married. If nothing is done 
to correct these retirement inequities, the spouses of these retirees 
risk spending their final years in poverty.
  Many in the railroad industry acknowledge that these survivor 
benefits are inadequate. While railroad employees and employers pay 
substantially higher employment taxes than companies covered by Social 
Security, the higher taxes are not reflected in the level of benefits 
to which widows and widowers of retirees are entitled.
  This resolution calls on the railroad industry to forge a consensus 
to solve this problem. The resolution urges that rail labor, 
management, and retiree organizations open discussions for adequately 
funding an amendment to the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 to modify 
the guaranteed minimum benefit for widows and widowers whose annuities 
are converted from a spouse to a widow or widower annuity.
  I introduced a provision to allow for the payment of a survivor 
annuity to divorced widows and widowers of railroad retirees as part of 
the Women's Pension Equity Act of 1996. Under current law, a divorced 
spouse can receive certain retiree benefits but these end when the 
retiree dies. This loss of benefits can be devastating for divorced 
spouses who have been supporting themselves in their old age.
  I am working to correct this illogical and unjust provision in the 
law, but without increasing survivor benefits, all widows and widowers, 
whether married or divorced, are at risk. Having survivor benefits 
today is not a guarantee of a secure retirement.
  This resolution requires no expenditures of taxpayer funds, but 
merely expresses the intent of Congress that the issue of inadequate 
retirement income for widows and widowers of railroad retirees be 
resolved. This concurrent resolution was submitted in the House of 
Representatives by Congressman Jack Quinn, as House Concurrent 
Resolution 52.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this concurrent 
resolution to improve retirement security for tens of thousands of 
widows and widowers across the country.

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