[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 24 (Tuesday, March 10, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1697-S1698]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. LUGAR:
  S. 1733. A bill to require the Commissioner of Social Security and 
food stamp State agencies to take certain actions to ensure that food 
stamp coupons are not issued for deceased individuals; to the Committee 
on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.


                  THE FOOD STAMP FRAUD PREVENTION ACT

  Mr. LUGAR. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce a bill to combat 
fraud and waste in the food stamp program--in this case, the fraud and 
waste results from deceased individuals being counted as food stamp 
recipients. At my request, the General Accounting Office (GAO) has 
recently completed an inquiry into groups of ineligible persons being 
counted as food stamp recipients. In the report being released today, 
GAO reported that 26,000 deceased individuals in four states were on 
the food stamp rolls. My bill will require the Social Security 
Administration to share information from its Death Master file with 
state food stamp agencies to verify that no deceased individuals are 
counted as members of food stamp households, either increasing a 
households' benefits or allowing an individual to illegally receive 
benefits in the deceased person's name.
  Last year, GAO reported to the Agriculture Committee that over $3 
million in food stamp benefits were being overpaid to prisoners' 
households. In response, we passed legislation to stop prisoners from 
receiving payments. In follow-up to the prisoner study and legislation, 
I requested that GAO determine if other ineligible individuals were 
similarly being counted as members of food stamp households. Today

[[Page S1698]]

GAO will release the details of their study showing that, over a 2-year 
period, about 26,000 deceased individuals in the four states examined 
(California, Texas, New York, and Florida) were counted as members of 
food stamp households. According to GAO, this resulted in overpayments 
of food stamp benefits of an estimated $8.6 million in four states 
alone.
  Current law requires that households notify their local welfare 
office of any changes in the makeup of the household within ten days. 
The GAO report showed that the deceased individuals were counted in 
food stamp households for an average of four months; and, in a few 
instances, the deceased individuals were counted as beneficiaries for 
the full two years the review was conducted. This is unacceptable 
particularly since this type of fraud can easily be prevented.
  Mr. President, one federal agency has the information to prevent this 
fraud and abuse, but is not sharing it with other agencies issuing 
federal benefits. The Social Security Administration (SSA) has a Death 
Master File that compiles death information from a wide variety of 
sources and is considered the most comprehensive list of death 
information available in the federal government. According to the GAO, 
a match using SSA's Death Master File information could be a cost-
effective method for identifying such individuals in food stamp 
households and eliminating these overpayments. States already rely on 
the SSA to verify the social security numbers of food stamp applicants. 
Therefore, a system already exists in one branch of the federal 
government that, with some modifications, could stop these 
overpayments.
  Although the Social Security Administration agrees that a portion of 
their death information can be shared with the states and the 
Department of Agriculture for food stamp program purposes, in SSA's 
comments to GAO it does not believe it has the authority, under current 
law, to share all of the death information. Therefore, I am introducing 
legislation that will require the Commissioner of SSA to establish 
cooperative arrangements with each state agency that administers the 
food stamp program that will allow the sharing of all death data. My 
bill then requires the food stamp program to provide the information 
necessary for the Commissioner to verify that no deceased individual is 
being counted as part of a food stamp household.
  The Food Stamp program provides a safety net for millions of people. 
We cannot allow fraud and abuse to undermine the food stamp program. 
Integrity is essential to ensure a program that can serve those in 
need. It is Congress' responsibility to play a role in ending fraud and 
abuse in all federally funded programs. This legislation is an 
important step in ending fraud and abuse in the Food Stamp program.
  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. 1733

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

     SECTION 1. NOTIFICATION OF CERTAIN STATE AGENCIES BY 
                   COMMISSIONER OF SOCIAL SECURITY OF DECEASED 
                   INDIVIDUALS.

       (a) In General.--Section 205(r) of the Social Security Act 
     (42 U.S.C. 405(r)) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following:
       ``(8)(A) The Commissioner shall establish a cooperative 
     arrangement with each State agency that administers the food 
     stamp program established under the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 
     U.S.C. 2011 et seq.).
       ``(B) Under the arrangement in subparagraph (A), the State 
     agency shall provide information to the Commissioner, in such 
     form and manner as the Commissioner determines necessary, 
     regarding individuals receiving benefits under the food stamp 
     program.
       ``(C) The Commissioner shall compare information received 
     under subparagraph (B) with information obtained under 
     paragraph (1) and notify the State agency of the individuals 
     who are deceased.
       ``(D) An arrangement under subparagraph (A) shall meet the 
     requirements of paragraph (3)(A).''.
       (b) Report.--Not later than 180 days, 1 year, and 18 months 
     after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commissioner of 
     Social Security shall submit a report regarding the progress 
     and effectiveness of the cooperative arrangements established 
     with State agencies under section 205(r)(8) of the Social 
     Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(r)(8)) to--
       (1) the Committee on Agriculture of the House of 
     Representatives;
       (2) the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry 
     of the Senate;
       (3) the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of 
     Representatives;
       (4) the Committee on Finance of the Senate; and
       (5) the Secretary of the Treasury.
       (c) Amendment of Internal Revenue Code of 1986.--Clause 
     (ii) of subparagraph (B) of section 6103(d)(4) of the 
     Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to the availability 
     and use of death information) is amended by inserting ``or, 
     in the case of a food stamp program established under the 
     Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.), State 
     agency'' after ``agency''.

     SEC. 2. PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO ENSURE NONISSUANCE OF 
                   FOOD STAMP COUPONS FOR DECEASED INDIVIDUALS.

       Section 11(e)(20) of the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 
     2020(e)(20)) is amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; and''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(C) to provide such information to the Commissioner of 
     Social Security as the Commissioner determines is necessary 
     to enable the Commissioner to use the information provided 
     under the arrangement established under section 205(r)(8) of 
     the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(r)(8)) to verify and 
     otherwise ensure that coupons are not issued for deceased 
     individuals;''.

     SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.

       This Act and the amendments made by this Act take effect on 
     the date that is 180 days after the date of enactment of this 
     Act.
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