[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 79 (Monday, May 13, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2790-S2791]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. WYDEN (for himself, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Cardin, Mr. 
        Whitehouse, Mr. Brown, and Ms. Hassan):
  S. 1428. A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to permit 
treatment of student loan payments as elective deferrals for purposes 
of employer matching contributions, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on Finance.
  Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, today I have introduced the Retirement 
Parity for Student Loans Act. This legislation would permit employers 
to make matching contributions to workers under 401(k) and similar 
types of retirement plans as if worker student loan payments were 
salary reduction contributions to the retirement plan. This legislation 
will help workers who cannot afford to both save for retirement and pay 
off their student loan debt by providing them with employer 
contributions to build their retirement savings. This legislation is a 
common sense fix to our nation's laws that govern employer-sponsored 
retirement plans and I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
  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. 1428

       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 ``Retirement Parity for 
     Student Loans Act''.

     SEC. 2. TREATMENT OF STUDENT LOAN PAYMENTS AS ELECTIVE 
                   DEFERRALS FOR PURPOSES OF MATCHING 
                   CONTRIBUTIONS.

       (a) In General.--Subparagraph (A) of section 401(m)(4) of 
     the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking 
     ``and'' at the end of clause (i), by striking the period at 
     the end of clause (ii) and inserting ``, and'', and by adding 
     at the end the following new clause:
       ``(iii) subject to the requirements of paragraph (13), any 
     employer contribution made to a defined contribution plan on 
     behalf of an employee on account of a qualified student loan 
     payment.''.
       (b) Qualified Student Loan Payment.--Paragraph (4) of 
     section 401(m) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 
     amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
       ``(D) Qualified student loan payment.--The term `qualified 
     student loan payment' means a payment made by an employee in 
     repayment of a qualified education loan (as defined in 
     section 221(d)(1)) incurred to pay qualified higher education 
     expenses of the employee, but only--
       ``(i) to the extent such payments in the aggregate for the 
     year do not exceed an amount equal to--

       ``(I) the limitation applicable under section 402(g) for 
     the year (or, if lesser, the employee's compensation (as 
     defined in section 415(c)(3)) for the year), reduced by
       ``(II) the elective deferrals made by the employee for such 
     year, and

       ``(ii) if the employee certifies to the employer making the 
     matching contribution under this paragraph that such payment 
     has been made on such loan.

     For purposes of this subparagraph, the term `qualified higher 
     education expenses' means the cost of attendance (as defined 
     in section 472 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as in 
     effect on the day before the date of the enactment of the 
     Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997) at an eligible educational 
     institution (as defined in section 221(d)(2)).''.
       (c) Matching Contributions for Qualified Student Loan 
     Payments.--Subsection (m) of section 401 of the Internal 
     Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by redesignating paragraph 
     (13) as paragraph (14), and by inserting after paragraph (12) 
     the following new paragraph:
       ``(13) Matching contributions for qualified student loan 
     payments.--
       ``(A) In general.--For purposes of paragraph (4)(A)(iii), 
     an employer contribution made to a defined contribution plan 
     on account of a qualified student loan payment shall be 
     treated as a matching contribution for purposes of this title 
     if--
       ``(i) the plan provides matching contributions on account 
     of elective deferrals at the same rate as contributions on 
     account of qualified student loan payments,
       ``(ii) the plan provides matching contributions on account 
     of qualified student loan payments only on behalf of 
     employees otherwise eligible to make elective deferrals, and
       ``(iii) under the plan, all employees eligible to receive 
     matching contributions on account of elective deferrals are 
     eligible to receive matching contributions on account of 
     qualified student loan payments.
       ``(B) Treatment for purposes of nondiscrimination rules, 
     etc.--
       ``(i) Nondiscrimination rules.--For purposes of 
     subparagraph (A)(iii), subsection (a)(4), and section 410(b), 
     matching contributions described in paragraph (4)(A)(iii) 
     shall not fail to be treated as available to an employee 
     solely because such employee does not have debt incurred 
     under a qualified education loan (as defined in section 
     221(d)(1)).
       ``(ii) Student loan payments not treated as plan 
     contribution.--Except as provided in clause (iii), a 
     qualified student loan payment shall not be treated as a 
     contribution to a plan under this title.
       ``(iii) Matching contribution rules.--Solely for purposes 
     of meeting the requirements of paragraph (11)(B) or (12) of 
     this subsection, or paragraph (11)(B)(i)(II), (12)(B), or 
     (13)(D) of subsection (k), a plan may treat a qualified 
     student loan payment as an elective deferral or an elective 
     contribution, whichever is applicable.''.
       (d) Simple Retirement Accounts.--Paragraph (2) of section 
     408(p) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
       ``(F) Matching contributions for qualified student loan 
     payments.--
       ``(i) In general.--Subject to the rules of clause (iii), an 
     arrangement shall not fail to be treated as meeting the 
     requirements of subparagraph (A)(iii) solely because under 
     the arrangement, solely for purposes of such subparagraph, 
     qualified student loan payments are treated as amounts 
     elected by the employee under subparagraph (A)(i)(I) to the 
     extent such payments do not exceed--

       ``(I) the applicable dollar amount under subparagraph (E) 
     (after application of section 414(v)) for the year (or, if 
     lesser, the employee's compensation (as defined in section 
     415(c)(3)) for the year), reduced by
       ``(II) any other amounts elected by the employee under 
     subparagraph (A)(i)(I) for the year.

       ``(ii) Qualified student loan payment.--For purposes of 
     this subparagraph--

       ``(I) In general.--The term `qualified student loan 
     payment' means a payment made by an employee in repayment of 
     a qualified education loan (as defined in section 221(d)(1)) 
     incurred to pay qualified higher education expenses of the 
     employee, but only if the employee certifies to the employer 
     making the matching contribution that such payment has been 
     made on such a loan.
       ``(II) Qualified higher education expenses.--The term 
     `qualified higher education expenses' has the same meaning as 
     when used in section 401(m)(4)(D).

       ``(iii) Applicable rules.--Clause (i) shall apply to an 
     arrangement only if, under the arrangement--

       ``(I) matching contributions on account of qualified 
     student loan payments are provided only on behalf of 
     employees otherwise eligible to elect contributions under 
     subparagraph (A)(i)(I), and
       ``(II) all employees otherwise eligible to participate in 
     the arrangement are eligible to receive matching 
     contributions on account of qualified student loan 
     payments.''.

       (e) 403(b) Plans.--Subparagraph (A) of section 403(b)(12) 
     of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at 
     the end the following: ``The fact that the employer offers 
     matching contributions on account of qualified student loan 
     payments as described in section 401(m)(13) shall not be 
     taken into account in determining whether the arrangement 
     satisfies the requirements of clause (ii) (and any regulation 
     thereunder).''.
       (f) 457(b) Plans.--Subsection (b) of section 457 of the 
     Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end 
     the following: ``A plan which is established and maintained 
     by an employer which is described in subsection (e)(1)(A) 
     shall not be treated as failing to meet the requirements of 
     this subsection solely because the plan, or another plan 
     maintained by the employer which meets the requirements of 
     section 401(a), provides for matching contributions on 
     account of qualified student loan payments as described in 
     section 401(m)(13).''.
       (g) Regulatory Authority.--The Secretary shall prescribe 
     regulations for purposes of implementing the amendments made 
     by this section, including regulations--
       (1) permitting a plan to make matching contributions for 
     qualified student loan payments, as defined in sections 
     401(m)(4)(D) and 408(p)(2)(F) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
     1986, as added by this section, at a different frequency than 
     matching contributions are otherwise made under the plan, 
     provided that the frequency is not less than annually,
       (2) permitting employers to establish reasonable procedures 
     to claim matching contributions for such qualified student 
     loan payments under the plan, including an annual deadline 
     (not earlier than 3 months after the close of each plan year) 
     by which a claim must be made, and
       (3) promulgating model amendments which plans may adopt to 
     implement matching contributions on such qualified student 
     loan payments for purposes of sections 401(m), 408(p), 
     403(b), and 457(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
       (h) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall apply to contributions made for years beginning after 
     December 31, 2019.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. SCHUMER (for Mr. Brown (for himself, Ms. Klobuchar, and 
        Mr. Blunt)):
  S. 1436. A bill to make technical corrections to the computation of 
average pay under Public Law 110-279; considered and passed.

[[Page S2791]]

  


                                S. 1436

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

     SECTION 1. TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS TO COMPUTATION OF AVERAGE 
                   PAY UNDER PUBLIC LAW 110-279.

       (a) In General.--Section 1(c)(2)(A) of Public Law 110-279 
     (2 U.S.C. 2051(c)(2)(A)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``For purposes of'' and all that follows 
     through ``(i) any period'' and inserting the following:
       ``(i) Treatment of service.--For purposes of chapters 83, 
     84, and 87 of title 5, United States Code, any period'';
       (2) in clause (i), by striking ``; and'' and inserting a 
     period; and
       (3) in clause (ii)--
       (A) by inserting ``Treatment of pay.--For purposes of 
     chapter 87 of title 5, United States Code,'' before ``the 
     rate of basic pay''; and
       (B) by striking ``the covered'' and inserting ``a 
     covered''.
       (b) Regulations.--
       (1) In general.--The Director of the Office of Personnel 
     Management shall promulgate regulations to carry out this 
     section.
       (2) Effective date.--The regulations promulgated under 
     paragraph (1) shall take effect not later than 180 days after 
     the date of enactment of this Act.
       (c) Applicability of Amendments.--
       (1) Definitions.--In this subsection, the terms 
     ``contractor'', ``covered individual'', and ``food services 
     contract'' have the meanings given those terms in section 
     1(a) of Public Law 110-279 (2 U.S.C. 2051(a)).
       (2) Applicability.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall apply with respect to--
       (A) a covered individual who separates from service as an 
     employee of a contractor performing services under the food 
     services contract before, on, or after the date of enactment 
     of this Act; and
       (B) each payment to a covered individual under chapter 83 
     or 84 of title 5, United States Code, made on or after the 
     effective date of the regulations promulgated under 
     subsection (b).
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. Grassley, Mr. King, and Mr. 
        Alexander):
  S. 1437. A bill to amend title XI of the Social Security Act to 
require that direct-to-consumer advertisements for prescription drugs 
and biological products include truthful and non-misleading pricing 
information; to the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. DURBIN. 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. 1437

       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 ``Drug-price Transparency in 
     Communications (DTC) Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) Direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription 
     pharmaceuticals is legally permitted in only 2 developed 
     countries, the United States and New Zealand.
       (2) In 2018, pharmaceutical ad spending exceeded 
     $6,046,000,000, a 4.8-percent increase over 2017, resulting 
     in the average American seeing 9 drug advertisements per day.
       (3) In 2015, pharmaceutical companies spent more than 
     $100,000,000 on advertising with respect to each of the 16 
     most advertised brand-name drugs and biological products, 
     primarily new and relatively high-cost medications.
       (4) The 10 most commonly advertised drugs have list prices 
     ranging from $535 to $11,000 per 30-day supply or usual 
     course of therapy.
       (5) According to a 2011 Congressional Budget Office report, 
     direct-to-consumer advertising is used to promote only a 
     small set of specific drugs, typically the expensive, brand-
     name medications. And the top-selling drugs in any given year 
     are frequently among the drugs with the largest expenditures 
     for direct-to-consumer advertising.
       (6) According to a 2011 Congressional Budget Office report, 
     pharmaceutical manufacturers advertise their products 
     directly to consumers in an attempt to boost demand for their 
     products and thereby raise the price that consumers are 
     willing to pay, increase the quantity of drugs sold, or 
     achieve some combination of the two.
       (7) Studies show that patients are more likely to ask their 
     doctor for a specific medication and for the doctor to write 
     a prescription for it, if a patient has seen an advertisement 
     for such medication, regardless of whether the medication is 
     clinically appropriate for the patient or whether a lower-
     cost generic may be available.
       (8) According to a 2011 Congressional Budget Office report, 
     the average number of prescriptions written for newly 
     approved brand-name drugs with direct-to-consumer advertising 
     was 9 times greater than the average number of prescriptions 
     written for newly approved brand-name drugs without direct-
     to-consumer advertising.
       (9) Approximately half of Americans have high-deductible 
     health plans, under which they often pay the list price of a 
     drug until their insurance deductible is met. All of the top 
     Medicare prescription drug plans use coinsurance rather than 
     fixed-dollar copayments for medications on nonpreferred drug 
     tiers.
       (10) The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is the 
     single largest drug payer in the Nation. Drug price inflation 
     accounts for a significant portion of the 22-percent, 32-
     percent, and 42-percent growth in Medicare parts D and B and 
     Medicaid expenditures, respectively, on a per beneficiary 
     basis between 2013 and 2016.
       (11) The 20 most advertised drugs on television cost 
     Medicare and Medicaid a combined $24,000,000,000 in 2017.
       (12) Price shopping is the mark of rational economic 
     behavior, and markets operate more efficiently when consumers 
     have relevant information about a product, including its 
     price, before making an informed decision about whether to 
     buy that product.
       (13) The American Medical Association has passed 
     resolutions supporting the requirement for price transparency 
     in any direct-to-consumer advertising.
       (14) The Kaiser Family Foundation found that 88 percent of 
     the public favors the Federal Government requiring 
     prescription drug advertisements to include a statement on 
     how much the drug costs.
       (15) Pursuant to its existing authority under sections 1102 
     and 1871 of the Social Security Act, on May 10, 2019, the 
     Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services published 
     regulations (subpart L of part 403 of title 42, Code of 
     Federal Regulations) to require direct-to-consumer television 
     advertisements of prescription drugs and biological products 
     for which payment is available through or under Medicare or 
     Medicaid to include the wholesale acquisition cost of that 
     drug or biological product.
       (16) To support the permanence and clarity of this policy, 
     and to facilitate future planning, Congress finds a benefit 
     to codifying such regulation.

     SEC. 3. REQUIREMENT THAT DIRECT-TO-CONSUMER ADVERTISEMENTS 
                   FOR PRESCRIPTION DRUGS AND BIOLOGICAL PRODUCTS 
                   INCLUDE TRUTHFUL AND NON-MISLEADING PRICING 
                   INFORMATION.

       Part A of title XI of the Social Security Act is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new section:


 ``requirement that direct-to-consumer advertisements for prescription 
   drugs and biological products include truthful and non-misleading 
                          pricing information

       ``Sec. 1150C.  (a) In General..--The Secretary shall 
     require that each direct-to-consumer advertisement for a 
     prescription drug or biological product for which payment is 
     available under title XVIII or XIX includes an appropriate 
     disclosure of truthful and non-misleading pricing information 
     with respect to the drug or product.
       ``(b) Determination by CMS.--The Secretary, acting through 
     the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid 
     Services, shall determine the components of the requirement 
     under subsection (a), such as the forms of advertising, the 
     manner of disclosure, the price point listing, and the price 
     information for disclosure.''.

                          ____________________