[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 147 (Tuesday, October 4, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6092-S6093]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. BAUCUS:
  S. 1649. A bill to amend the provisions of title 5, United States 
Code, relating to the methodology for calculating the amount of any 
Postal surplus or supplemental liability under the Civil Service 
Retirement System, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Homeland 
Security and Governmental Affairs.
  Mr. BAUCUS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of 
the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 1649

       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 ``United States Postal Service 
     Pension Obligation Recalculation and Restoration Act of 
     2011''.

     SEC. 2. MODIFIED METHODOLOGY.

       (a) In General.--Section 8348(h) of title 5, United States 
     Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(4)(A) To the extent that a determination under paragraph 
     (1), relating to benefits attributable to civilian employment 
     with the United States Postal Service, is based on any 
     provision of law described in subparagraph (C), such 
     determination shall be made in accordance with such provision 
     and any otherwise applicable provisions of law, subject to 
     the following:
       ``(i) The `average pay' used in the case of any individual 
     shall be a single amount, determined in accordance with 
     section 8331(4), taking into account the rates of basic pay 
     in effect for such individual during the periods of 
     creditable service performed by such individual. Nothing in 
     this subsection shall be considered to permit or require--
       ``(I) one determination of average pay with respect to 
     service performed with the United States Postal Service; and
       ``(II) a separate determination of average pay with respect 
     to service performed with its predecessor entity in function.
       ``(ii) In determining the portion of an annuity 
     attributable to civilian employment with the United States 
     Postal Service, with respect to any period of employment with 
     the United States Postal Service that follows any other 
     period of employment creditable under section 8332 (without 
     regard to whether such employment was with an entity referred 
     to in clause (i)(II)), the total service of an employee for 
     purposes of any provision of law described in subparagraph 
     (C) shall be the sum of--
       ``(I) any period of employment with the United States 
     Postal Service; and
       ``(II) any period of employment creditable under section 
     8332 that precedes the period described in subclause (I).
       ``(B)(i) Not later than 6 months after the date of 
     enactment of this paragraph, the Office shall determine (or, 
     if applicable, redetermine) the amount of the Postal surplus 
     or supplemental liability as of the close of the fiscal year 
     most recently ending before such date of enactment, in 
     conformance with the methodology required under subparagraph 
     (A).
       ``(ii)(I) If the result of the determination or 
     redetermination under clause (i) is a surplus, the Office 
     shall transfer the amount of such surplus to the Postal 
     Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund not later than 15 days 
     after the date of such determination or redetermination.
       ``(II) If a determination or redetermination under clause 
     (i) for a fiscal year is made before the Office makes a 
     redetermination under paragraph (2)(B) with respect to the 
     fiscal year, the Office may not make a determination under 
     paragraph (2)(B) with respect to the fiscal year.
       ``(C) The provisions of law described in this subparagraph 
     are--
       ``(i) the first sentence of section 8339(a); and
       ``(ii) section 8339(d)(1).
       ``(5) For purposes of this subsection--
       ``(A) the term `Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits 
     Fund' means the fund established under section 8909a; and
       ``(B) the term `Postal Service Fund' means the fund 
     established under section 2003 of title 39.''.
       (b) Coordination Provisions.--
       (1) Amendment.--Section 8909a of title 5, United States 
     Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(e) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
     amount payable by the Postal Service under subsection (d) in 
     any fiscal year ending on or before September 30, 2021, shall 
     be determined without regard to the requirements under 
     section 8348(h)(4).''.
       (2) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this Act, or an 
     amendment made by this Act, shall be construed to affect the 
     amount of any benefits otherwise payable from the Civil 
     Service Retirement and Disability Fund to any individual.
       (c) Technical Amendment.--The heading for section 8909a of 
     title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking 
     ``Benefit'' and inserting ``Benefits''.

     SEC. 3. ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS.

       (a) In General.--Section 8348(h)(2) of title 5, United 
     States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(F) Notwithstanding any other provision of this 
     subsection, for purposes of determining the Postal surplus or 
     supplemental liability for each of fiscal years 2016, 2017, 
     2018, 2019, and 2020--
       ``(i) paragraph (4)(A) shall not apply to a determination 
     under paragraph (1); and
       ``(ii) the determination under paragraph (1) shall be made 
     by applying the methodology that was used to carry out this 
     paragraph with respect to the fiscal year preceding the 
     fiscal year referred to in paragraph (4)(B)(i).''.
       (b) Relating to a Postal Surplus.--Section 8348(h)(2)(C) of 
     title 5, United States Code, is amended--
       (1) by inserting ``2021,'' after ``2015,''; and
       (2) by striking ``if the result is'' and all that follows 
     through ``terminated.'' and inserting the following: ``if the 
     result is a surplus--
       ``(i) that amount shall be transferred--
       ``(I) to the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund, 
     if the surplus is for fiscal year 2020 or a preceding fiscal 
     year; and
       ``(II) to the Postal Service Fund, if the surplus is for 
     fiscal year 2021 or a subsequent fiscal year; and
       ``(ii) any prior amortization schedule for payments shall 
     be terminated.''.

     SEC. 4. TREATMENT OF CERTAIN SURPLUS RETIREMENT 
                   CONTRIBUTIONS.

       Section 8423(b) of title 5, United States Code, is 
     amended--
       (1) by redesignating paragraph (5) as paragraph (6); and
       (2) by inserting after paragraph (4) the following:

[[Page S6093]]

       ``(5) If, for fiscal year 2010, the amount computed under 
     paragraph (1)(B) is less than zero (in this section referred 
     to as `surplus postal contributions'), the amount of such 
     surplus postal contributions shall be transferred--
       ``(A) to the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund to 
     pay any liability to the Postal Service Retiree Health 
     Benefits Fund for fiscal year 2011;
       ``(B) if all liability to the Postal Service Retiree Health 
     Benefits Fund for fiscal year 2011 has been paid, to the 
     Employees' Compensation Fund established under section 8147; 
     and
       ``(C) if all liability of the United States Postal Service 
     to the Employees' Compensation Fund has been paid, to the 
     United States Postal Service for the repayment of any 
     obligation issued under section 2005 of title 39.''.

     SEC. 5. RURAL POST OFFICES.

       Section 404(d) of title 39, United States Code, is amended 
     by adding at the end the following:
       ``(7) Notwithstanding any other provision of this 
     subsection, in making any determination under subsection 
     (a)(3) as to the necessity for the closing or consolidation 
     of any post office, the Postal Service may not close any post 
     office which is located more than 10 miles from any other 
     post office.''.

     SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.

       (a) In General.--This Act and the amendments made by this 
     Act shall take effect on the date of enactment of this Act.
       (b) Intent of Congress.--It is the intent of Congress that 
     this Act apply with respect to the allocation of past, 
     present, and future benefit liabilities between the United 
     States Postal Service and the Treasury of the United States.
                                 ______