[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 7 (Wednesday, January 15, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Page S851]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. LINCOLN:
  S. 166. A bill to amend title XVI of the Social Security Act to 
clarify that the value of certain funeral and burial arrangements are 
not to be considered available resources under the supplemental 
security income program; to the Committee on Finance.
  Mrs. LINCOLN. Mr. President, I am pleased to introduce legislation 
that codifies the exclusion of irrevocable funeral trusts from 
Supplemental Security Income, SSI, resource calculations.
  Irrevocable funeral trusts are funds set aside for funeral and burial 
expenses. These funds cannot be accessed until after the owner's death. 
Until recently, these trusts were not included in SSI resource 
calculations, but an administrative misinterpretation in 2001 dropped 
this important exclusion.
  This misinterpretation has since been corrected, but it had serious 
repercussions for many senior citizens while it was in effect. When 
irrevocable funeral and burial trusts were included in SSI 
calculations, it penalized those SSI applicants who chose to save for 
their funeral by inflating their actual individual wealth, even though 
the trusts could not be accessed. The end result was that many senior 
citizens' SSI applications were rejected. Because the SSI definition of 
resources and exclusions is used for Medicaid eligibility 
determinations, the inclusion also affected Medicaid applicants.
  I am introducing this bill to codify the exclusion to give senior 
citizens certainty that future administrations will not be able to 
misinterpret Congressional intent.
  In the past, Congress has recognized the value of funeral planning as 
good social policy. We have encouraged consumers to engage in ``pre-
need'' funeral planning in a number of ways.
  This legislation will encourage people to engage in pre-need 
planning. It will codify the existing practice of excluding irrevocable 
funeral trusts from SSI calculations and ensure that future 
misinterpretations are avoided. We must ensure that people are not 
penalized for providing for their own funerals. I encourage my 
colleagues to give this legislation serious consideration.
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