Tribal Social Security Fairness Act of 2018

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.

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.

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. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the

gentleman from Texas (Mr. Sam Johnson).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Schweikert), a member of the Ways and Means Committee.

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. 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.

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. Speaker, I am prepared to close, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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. 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. 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.