Making DI Work For All Americans Act of 2018
Latest action. Referred to the subcommitteeA smaller panel inside a standing committee with jurisdiction over a slice of its subject matter. Most hearings and the first markup usually happen here.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) on Social SecurityThe federal retirement, survivors, and disability insurance program, funded by payroll taxes and paid as an entitlement under permanent law.Read the full definition (opens a new tab).
Making DI Work For All Americans Act of 2018
This bill revises requirements related to the Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) benefits program, the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits program, and disability determinations made by the Social Security Administration (SSA).
Specifically, the bill:
applies the judicial code of conduct applicable to U.S. judges to administrative law judges (ALJs) for the SSA,
prohibits the SSA from prescribing certain fees regarding the representation of claimants for OASDI and SSI benefits,
permits the SSA to withhold less than the amount required to correctly adjust a recipient's OASDI benefits amount under certain conditions,
disqualifies an individual from receiving OASDI benefits for any month for which the individual receives unemployment-insurance benefits,
eliminates the application stages for reconsideration reviews of disability determinations,
increases the frequency of benefits-eligibility reviews, and
decreases the amount of time provided to an individual to apply for OASDI benefits and receive funds retroactively from the first month of eligibility.
Additionally, the SSA must: review a sample of decisions in favor of claimants for OASDI benefits from outlier ALJs,
update the medical-vocational guidelines used in disability determinations,
consider any relevant evidence from a claimant's social media prior to issuing a disability determination,
update the data used to determine the full range of work available to individuals in the national economy,
ensure that communications between the SSA and an individual eligible for OASDI benefits include a description of the individual's responsibility to report to the SSA on any change of circumstance that may affect such individual's eligibility, and
include unearned income in the determination of an individual's substantial gainful activity.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on July 25, 2018. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on August 9, 2018: Referred to the Subcommittee on Social Security.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 115th Congress (2017-18), 442 of the 11,421 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Todd Rokita (R-IN) introduced it on July 25, 2018, and 1 member has since signed on as a cosponsor.
They are 1 Republican.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on July 25, 2018, 2969 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 2954 days ago, on August 9, 2018.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 115th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2019 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers