Text of Senate Amendment 6242

On 2026-06-24, Senator John Kennedy (R-LA) delivered a floor speech titled "Text Of Senate Amendment 6242" in the Senate.

Text of Senate Amendment 6242

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 106 (Wednesday, June 24, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 106 (Wednesday, June 24, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S3405-S3407] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SA 6242. Mr. KENNEDY submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill S. 4784, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2027 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the appropriate place, insert the following: SEC. __. ADJUSTMENT OF CENSUS INCOME INEQUALITY CALCULATION. (a) Definitions and Special Rules.--In this section: (1) Administering agency.--The term ``administering agency'' means a Federal, State, or local governmental agency responsible for assessing income, collecting revenue, administering a benefit, or collecting, compiling, and analyzing data related to income assessments, revenue collections, or benefits administration. (2) Director.--The term ``Director'' means the Director of the Bureau of the Census. (3) Earned income.-- (A) In general.--The term ``earned income'' means income paid to individuals from the following: (i) Earnings from employment or self-employment, including employment by a governmental entity to perform specific services, with continued employment conditional on successful delivery of those services. [[Page S3406]] (ii) Interest. (iii) Dividends. (iv) Rents, royalties, and estates and trusts. (v) Realized capital gains. (vi) The monetary value of employer-paid benefits, including-- (I) health insurance premiums; (II) the actuarial value of-- (aa) employer-funded health insurance net of employee contributions; (bb) life insurance premiums; (cc) contributions to a health savings account (as defined in section 223(d) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986); (dd) contributions to a qualified cash or deferred arrangement (as defined in section 401(k)(2) of such Code); (ee) contributions to an individual retirement plan (as defined in section 7701(a)(37) of such Code); and (ff) employer contributions to a defined contribution retirement plan (as defined in section 414(i) of such Code); (III) benefits from a defined benefit retirement plan (as defined in section 414(j) of such Code) at the time the benefits are delivered; (IV) benefits provided to government employees tied specifically to their employment, including veterans benefits; and (V) other benefits paid by an employer during retirement, including pensions, healthcare coverage, and other benefits, counted at the time at which the benefit is received. (vii) In-kind compensation such as cost-free or reduced- cost lodging or meals, except for items required by the employer for performing work, such as uniforms or personal protective equipment. (B) Special rules for earned income.-- (i) Adjustments generally.--For purposes of subparagraph (A), all types of earned income shall be reconciled and adjusted to known, reliable independent benchmarks, including benchmarks produced by statistical agencies, programmatic agencies, the Internal Revenue Service, private sources, and such other sources as the Director determines appropriate. (ii) Readjustments.--In addition to adjusting earned income under clause (i), additional adjustments shall be made for missing and misreported data based on existing and future research by the Bureau of the Census, other government agencies, academic researchers, and other private research. (4) Government transfer payments.-- (A) In general.--The term ``government transfer payments'' means any money, goods, services, or discounts provided to individuals, families, or households by or at the direction of Federal Government or State, local, or other government sources, including agencies and agents thereof, or by private entities at the direction of any such source, that are not payments for services performed as an employee or that are not provided equally to all legal residents of the United States without any conditions related to income, assets, economic status, age, social condition, or any other restriction. (B) Inclusions.--The term ``government transfer payments'' includes the following: (i) Unemployment insurance compensation. (ii) Workers' compensation. (iii) Benefits administered by the Social Security Administration, including-- (I) old-age insurance benefits and disability insurance benefits under title II of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 401 et seq.); and (II) supplemental security income benefits under title XVI of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.). (iv) Benefits under the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 (45 U.S.C. 231 et seq.). (v) Other disability benefits from government, except those provided to government employees as part of their employment compensation. (vi) Benefits provided under the Medicare program under title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.), including any income-related subsidy described in section 1860D-14 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1395w-114), and any other reduction in premiums or cost sharing, such as deductibles, copaymentss, or coinsurance under such title. (vii) So much of the amount of any income tax refund paid to a taxpayer which is attributable to-- (I) the earned income credit under section 32 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; (II) the child tax credit under section 24 of such Code; and (III) any other refundable credit under subpart C of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of such Code. (viii) Assistance or benefits provided under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program established under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). (ix) Medical assistance provided under the Medicaid program established under title XIX of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.). (x) Child health assistance or pregnancy-related assistance provided under the State Children's Health Insurance Program established under title XXI of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1397aa et seq.). (xi) Benefits provided pursuant to an Indian health program (as defined in section 4 of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1603)). (xii) Premium tax credits under section 36B of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, cost-sharing reduction payments under section 1402 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18071), or any other payment that reduces the premium amount paid by the enrollee. (xiii) Any other government payments to assist in purchasing medical care or health insurance. (xiv) Benefits under the supplemental nutrition assistance program established under the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.). (xv) Free and reduced price meals provided under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.) and section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1773). (xvi) Benefits and services provided under the special supplemental nutrition program for women, infants, and children established by section 17 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786). (xvii) Meals provided under the child and adult care food program established under section 17 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1766). (xviii) rental assistance under section 8 of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f), including housing choice vouchers and project-based rental assistance. (xix) Assistance provided by the Rural Housing Service of the Department of Agriculture, including rental assistance. (xx) Assistance (including services) under the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, established under the Low- Income Home Energy Assistance Act of 1981 (42 U.S.C. 8621 et seq.). (xxi) A Federal Pell Grant under section 401 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a). (xxii) So much of the American Opportunity Tax Credit under section 25A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 as is allowed under subsection (i) thereof. (xxiii) Such other transfers by or at the direction of Federal Government or State, local, or other government sources that the Director determines to be consistent with subparagraph (A) using available data sources. (5) Income tax data.--The term ``income tax data'' means return information, as defined in section 6103(b)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 6103(b)(2)). (6) Statistical agency.--The term ``statistical agency'' means-- (A) the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Department of Labor; (B) the Bureau of Economic Analysis of the Department of Commerce; and (C) any other Federal, State, or local government entity that collects, processes, or publishes data related to any of the components of income covered by this section. (7) Taxes.-- (A) In general.-- (i) General definition.--The term ``taxes'' means all money revenues paid by individuals, families, or households to the Federal Government or a State, local, or other government either directly or indirectly through an employer or other entity based on their earnings from employment, savings, investing, real estate, trusts, or other sources or on the value, ownership, or usage of real estate property, personal property, other assets of any kind, or purchases of goods and services (including both real and financial). (ii) Inclusions.--The term ``taxes'' includes-- (I) employment taxes under subtitle C of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (whether paid by the employer or employee); (II) income taxes, including taxes on investment income; (III) corporate income taxes allocated to shareholders based on best research on share of corporate taxes that reduce dividends; (IV) corporate income taxes allocated to employees based on best research on share of corporate taxes that reduce compensation; (V) self-employment income and payroll taxes; (VI) p