
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document affected by Public Law 107-90 Section 108(a)]
[CITE: 45USC231u]

 
                           TITLE 45--RAILROADS
 
               CHAPTER 9--RETIREMENT OF RAILROAD EMPLOYEES
 
             SUBCHAPTER IV--RAILROAD RETIREMENT ACT OF 1974
 
Sec. 231u. Benefit preservation

    (a)(1) On or before May 1 of each year beginning in 1984, the 
Railroad Retirement Board shall prepare a five-year projection of 
anticipated revenues to and payments from the Railroad Retirement 
Account to determine the ability of such Account to pay benefits in each 
of the next succeeding five calendar years. No later than July 1 of each 
year, the Board shall submit a written report to the President, the 
Speaker of the House, and the President of the Senate setting forth the 
results of the projection prepared pursuant to the preceding sentence. 
If the projection indicates that the funds in the Railroad Retirement 
Account will be insufficient to pay the full amount of the benefits 
under this subchapter which are payable from that Account at any time 
during the five-year period, the Board's report shall include--
        (A) the first fiscal year during which benefits under this 
    subchapter must be reduced, in the absence of any adjustments, 
    because insufficient funds (including any general revenue borrowing 
    authority under this subchapter) would preclude payment of full 
    benefits (other than benfits \1\ payable from the Dual Benefits 
    Payments Account) for every month in such fiscal year;
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    \1\ So in original. Probably should be ``benefits''.
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        (B) the first fiscal year during which the Board would recommend 
    suspension of the authority to borrow contained in section 360(d) of 
    this title, in order to prevent depletion of the Railroad Retirement 
    Account; and
        (C) the amount, if any, of adjustments (stated in terms of 
    percentage of taxable payroll), and any other changes such as cash 
    flow adjustments, necessary to preserve the financial solvency of 
    the Railroad Retirement Account, if such adjustments were effective 
    at the beginning of the next succeeding fiscal year.

    (2) Not less than 20 nor more than 30 days after the submission of a 
written report under this subsection which indicates that, in the 
absence of any adjustments, the Railroad Retirement Account will contain 
insufficient funds to pay the full amount of the benefits under this 
subchapter which are payable from that Account at some time during the 
five-year period covered by the report, the Board shall publish such 
report in the Federal Register.
    (b) Not later than 180 days after the publication in the Federal 
Register of any Board report referred to in subsection (a) of this 
section which states an amount of adjustments (in terms of percentage of 
taxable payroll) necessary to preserve the financial solvency of the 
railroad retirement account--
        (1) representatives of railroad employees and carriers shall, 
    jointly or separately, submit to the President, the Speaker of the 
    House, and the President of the Senate, funding proposals designed 
    to preserve the financial solvency of the Railroad Retirement 
    Account; and
        (2) the President shall submit to the Speaker of the House and 
    the President of the Senate such recommendations as he may deem 
    appropriate with respect to the preservation of the Railroad 
    Retirement Account, including a specific proposal to assure 
    continuous payments of social security equivalent benefits by 
    separating the social security equivalent benefits from industry 
    pension equivalent benefits payable under this subchapter.

    (c) Not later than 180 days after the submission of a written report 
under subsection (a) of this section which states the first fiscal year 
during which benefits under this subchapter must be reduced because 
insufficient funds would preclude payment of full benefits for every 
month of that year, the Board shall issue and publish in the Federal 
Register such regulations as may be necessary which shall be designed 
to--
        (1) provide a constant level of benefits at the maximum level 
    possible for every month of that fiscal year; and
        (2) provide that no individual shall receive less during that 
    fiscal year than the amount otherwise payable if the employee's 
    service as an employee after December 31, 1936, had been covered 
    under the Social Security Act [42 U.S.C. 301 et seq.], minus the 
    amount of any reduction required under section 231b(m) or 231c(i) of 
    this title.

Unless otherwise provided by law enacted after August 13, 1981, or by a 
later report filed by the Board under subsection (a) of this section, 
regulations issued by the Board under this subsection shall apply 
beginning with the fiscal year designated by the Board in its written 
report under subsection (a) of this section. Any Board regulation which 
becomes effective under this subsection may be modified, rescinded, or 
superseded in the same manner and to the same extent as in the case of 
any other Board regulation issued under authority of this subchapter.

(Aug. 29, 1935, ch. 812, Sec. 22, as added Pub. L. 97-35, title XI, 
Sec. 1126(b), Aug. 13, 1981, 95 Stat. 639; amended Pub. L. 98-76, title 
I, Sec. 105, Aug. 12, 1983, 97 Stat. 416; Pub. L. 104-66, title II, 
Sec. 2221(b), Dec. 21, 1995, 109 Stat. 733.)

                       References in Text

    The Social Security Act, referred to in subsec. (c)(2), is act Aug. 
14, 1935, ch. 531, 49 Stat. 620, as amended, which is classified 
generally to chapter 7 (Sec. 301 et seq.) of Title 42, The Public Health 
and Welfare. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see 
section 1305 of Title 42 and Tables.


                               Amendments

    1995--Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 104-66 substituted ``May 1'' and 
``July 1'' for ``February 1'' and ``April 1'', respectively, in 
introductory provisions.
    1983--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 98-76 amended subsec. (a) generally, 
substituting provisions requiring Railroad Retirement Board to annually 
prepare and report on a five-year projection of ability of Railroad 
Retirement Account to pay benefits during five-year period for 
provisions which required Board to prepare a report in any fiscal year 
in which it determined that more than 50 percent of borrowing authority 
under this subchapter would be used.


                             Effective Date

    Section effective Oct. 1, 1981, see section 1129(g) of Pub. L. 97-
35, set out as an Effective Date of 1981 Amendment note under section 
231 of this title.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in section 231f-1 of this title.
