[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 124 (Tuesday, July 24, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H7118-H7119]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              TRIBAL SOCIAL SECURITY FAIRNESS ACT OF 2018

  Mr. REICHERT. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 6124) to amend title II of the Social Security Act to 
authorize voluntary agreements for coverage of Indian tribal council 
members, and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 6124

       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 ``Tribal Social Security 
     Fairness Act of 2018''.

     SEC. 2. VOLUNTARY AGREEMENTS FOR COVERAGE OF SERVICES BY 
                   AMERICAN INDIAN TRIBAL COUNCIL MEMBERS.

       (a) In General.--Title II of the Social Security Act (42 
     U.S.C. 401 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 218 
     the following new section:


  ``VOLUNTARY AGREEMENTS FOR COVERAGE OF INDIAN TRIBAL COUNCIL MEMBERS

                         ``Purpose of Agreement

       ``Sec. 218A. (a)(1) The Commissioner of Social Security 
     shall, at the request of any Indian tribe, enter into an 
     agreement with such Indian tribe for the purpose of extending 
     the insurance system established by this title to services 
     performed by individuals as members of such Indian tribe's 
     tribal council. Any agreement with an Indian tribe under this 
     section applies to all members of the tribal council, and 
     shall include all services performed by individuals in their 
     capacity as council members.
       ``(2) Notwithstanding section 210(a), for the purposes of 
     this title, the term `employment' includes any service 
     included under an agreement entered into under this section.

                             ``Definitions

       ``(b) For the purposes of this section:
       ``(1) The term `member' means, with respect to a tribal 
     council, an individual appointed or elected to serve as a 
     member or the head of the tribal council.
       ``(2) The term `tribal council' means the appointed or 
     elected governing body of a federally recognized Indian 
     tribe.

                     ``Effective Date of Agreement

       ``(c)(1) Any agreement under this section shall be 
     effective with respect to services performed after an 
     effective date specified in such agreement, provided that 
     such date may not be earlier than the first day of the next 
     calendar month after the month in which the agreement is 
     executed by both parties.
       ``(2) At the request of the Indian tribe at the time of the 
     agreement, such agreement may apply with respect to services 
     performed before such effective date for which there were 
     timely paid in good faith (and not subsequently refunded) to 
     the Secretary of the Treasury amounts equivalent to the sum 
     of the taxes which would have been imposed by sections 3101 
     and 3111 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 had such 
     services constituted employment for purposes of chapter 21 of 
     such Code. No agreement under this section may require 
     payment to be made after the effective date specified in such 
     agreement of any taxes with respect to services performed 
     before such effective date.

                        ``Duration of Agreement

       ``(d) No agreement under this section may be terminated on 
     or after the effective date of the agreement.''.
       (b) Conforming Amendments.--
       (1) Social security act.--Section 210(a) of the Social 
     Security Act (42 U.S.C. 410(a)) is amended--
       (A) in paragraph (20), by striking ``or'' at the end;
       (B) in paragraph (21), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; or''; and
       (C) by inserting after paragraph (21) the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(22) Service performed by members of Indian tribal 
     councils as tribal council members in the employ of an Indian 
     tribal government, except that this paragraph shall not apply 
     in the case of service included under an agreement under 
     section 218A.''.
       (2) Internal revenue code of 1986.--The Internal Revenue 
     Code of 1986 is amended--
       (A) in section 3121(b)--
       (i) in paragraph (20), by striking ``or'' at the end;
       (ii) in paragraph (21), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; or''; and
       (iii) by inserting after paragraph (21) the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(22) service performed by members of Indian tribal 
     councils as tribal council members in the employ of an Indian 
     tribal government, except that this paragraph shall not apply 
     in the case of service included under an agreement under 
     section 218A of the Social Security Act.''; and
       (B) in section 3121(d)(4), by inserting ``or 218A'' after 
     ``section 218''.
       (c) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this Act or the 
     amendments made by this Act shall be construed to affect 
     application of any Federal income tax withholding 
     requirements under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Washington (Mr. Reichert) and the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. 
Neal) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Washington.


                             General Leave

  Mr. REICHERT. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 6124, currently under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Washington?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. REICHERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to rise today in support of my bill, the 
Tribal Social Security Fairness Act. This bipartisan bill supports our 
community's Tribal leaders and their fair access to the Social Security 
system and the benefits they have earned by ensuring Tribal governments 
have the same opportunity to participate in the Social Security Program 
that so many others across the country rely on. It was unanimously 
approved by the Ways and Means Committee in late June.
  This bill provides a simple solution to a problem facing Tribal 
leaders across the country, including in my home State of Washington. 
In Washington State, many Tribal leaders have been paying into the 
Social Security system with the expectation of future benefits. 
However, a Social Security Administration policy ruling issued in 2006 
prevented them from continuing to pay into the program and have their 
earnings count toward future benefits.
  This problem was brought to my attention a few years ago when I met 
with Virginia Cross. Virginia Cross is the chairwoman of the 
Muckleshoot Tribal Council in Washington State. After this meeting, we 
discovered other Tribal leaders in Washington and across the country 
face the same challenges, including the Snoqualmie Tribe in Washington. 
Hearing these examples, it just didn't seem fair that those who wanted 
to pay into the system could not pay into the system. That is when my 
staff and I went to work to find a solution.
  Thanks to the dedicated advocacy of the Muckleshoot and the 
Snoqualmie Tribes and the leadership of fellow Washingtonians, 
Representatives DelBene and Kilmer, as well as Representatives Cole and 
Schweikert, we were able to find a bipartisan, comprehensive solution 
to the problem. I would also like to thank Chairman Brady and Ranking 
Member Neal of the Ways and Means Committee and their staff for all the 
hard work they have put in on this most important bill.
  I urge my colleagues to join me today in righting this wrong so our 
Tribal leaders can receive the Social Security benefits they deserve.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. NEAL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6124, which closes a 
longstanding gap in Social Security coverage for members of Indian 
Tribal councils.
  Let me thank Representatives Dave Reichert and Suzan DelBene for 
their good work to resolve this issue.
  H.R. 6124 allows Indian Tribal councils to voluntarily cover their 
members under Social Security in a way that is similar to how State and 
local governments do so today. This would allow individuals employed as 
members of Tribal councils to contribute to Social Security and 
Medicare and, therefore, earn benefit protection.
  I want to emphasize that the decision to participate would be 
voluntary. Each Tribal council will have the right to decide for 
itself.
  In addition, because there has been confusion around this issue for 
many years, the legislation allows Tribal council members to receive 
benefit credit if they have erroneously paid Social Security taxes in 
the past, even though they were not required to. This is only fair, and 
I am pleased that the legislation addresses this problem as well.
  Social Security and Medicare coverage are valuable protections for 
all Americans. I am pleased that this bipartisan legislation is moving 
forward, and I urge its support.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. REICHERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the

[[Page H7119]]

gentleman from Texas (Mr. Sam Johnson).
  Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Mr. Reichert, 
Ms. DelBene, Mr. Cole, and Mr. Kilmer for introducing this commonsense 
bill.
  As chairman of the Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee, I 
held a hearing last year on Social Security coverage for some State and 
local governments. During the hearing, we discussed how State and local 
governments were initially excluded from Social Security. But over 
time, the law was changed to provide State and local governments the 
choice to extend Social Security coverage to their employees.
  However, Tribal councils don't have this same option. The IRS and 
Social Security have a rule that Tribal council members are not 
eligible for Social Security coverage. That isn't right. Tribal 
councils should be able to participate in Social Security if they want 
to. The bill on the floor today fixes this by giving Tribal councils 
the choice.
  I also want to be clear that this bill does not mandate Social 
Security coverage. Tribes will still have the ability to make their own 
decision.
  This bill treats Tribal council members fairly when it comes to 
Social Security benefits and is the result of a request from several 
Tribal councils. I encourage my colleagues to support this bill. It is 
a bipartisan bill.
  Mr. NEAL. Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to close, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. REICHERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Arizona (Mr. Schweikert), a member of the Ways and Means Committee.
  Mr. SCHWEIKERT. Mr. Speaker, I will do this really quickly.

  Being from Arizona, where I have, functionally, 23 Tribes, 21 or 22 
reservations, it is surprising how often this becomes a subject and 
trying to understand how big and complex many of our Tribal communities 
are. We think our lives are sometimes complex. Imagine having to 
operate in the world of multiple layers, where you have to deal with 
State and local, Federal, and then Tribal politics, issues, and those 
things.
  I was visiting some of my friends on a Tribal community called Ak-
Chin. It was interesting. One of the gentleman there basically said: I 
am on council. I can't participate in Social Security. But before I was 
on council, I managed one of the Tribal operations, and there I could 
participate in Social Security.
  I know this is sort of a glitch, but this is one of those honorable 
things where we step up and we create some optionality. Within that 
optionality, I think we respect Tribal sovereignty, and we are just 
doing the right thing here.
  Mr. NEAL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  I want to thank the sponsors for their hard work. I urge colleagues 
on both sides of the aisle to support this legislation, and I yield 
back the balance of my time.
  Mr. REICHERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 6124, the Tribal Social Security Fairness Act, is a 
straightforward, commonsense, bipartisan bill. It ensures our Tribal 
leaders have access to Social Security benefits that they so deserve.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this 
bipartisan bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GALLEGO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 6124, the 
Tribal Social Security Fairness Act.
  I am pleased to support this common sense, bipartisan bill that will 
extend a basic right to tribal leaders across the country: the ability 
to retire with dignity and security.
  Astonishing as it may seem, elected tribal leaders, including those 
who have already paid into Social Security, can no longer contribute 
to--or access the benefits of--this critical safety net program.
  After a lifetime of service to their communities, tribal leaders 
shouldn't have to struggle to make ends meet.
  They deserve the same access to Social Security as every other 
American.
  This speaks to a broader problem, Mr. Speaker.
  As the first inhabitants of our homeland, the interests of Native 
Americans should be a primary consideration when federal policy makers 
go to work--not an afterthought.
  But, too often, the unique considerations of Indian Country are just 
that . . . an afterthought.
  Nevertheless, every decision we make in this body--from the Farm Bill 
to healthcare to tax policy--every decision we make impacts our Native 
American brothers and sisters.
  Earlier today, in the Subcommittee on Indian Affairs, we heard from 
the tribe whose members helped the Pilgrims survive that first winter 
in Plymouth. Their good will is part of the reason you and I are here 
today.
  Moving forward, it's incumbent upon us to demonstrate the same 
generosity of spirit that was shown to our nation's founders.
  And we can start here and now.
  I urge my colleagues to support this common sense legislation today, 
and to fully consider the implications of new policies on Indian 
Country in the future.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Washington (Mr. Reichert) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 6124, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________