Miners Protection Act of 2017

Summary

Miners Protection Act of 2017 This bill amends the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) to transfer certain funds to the Multiemployer Health Benefit Plan and the 1974 United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) Pension Plan to provide health and pension benefits to retired coal miners and their families. The bill expands the group whose retiree health benefits are taken into account in determining the amount that the Department of the Treasury must transfer from the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund and the General Fund of the Treasury to the Multiemployer Health Benefit Plan. Treasury must also transfer additional funds to the 1974 UMWA Pension Plan to pay pension benefits required under that plan if the amounts available for transfer under SMCRA's $490 million annual limit exceed the amounts required to be transferred for other purposes (including to the UMWA Health Plans). The bill also: (1) prohibits the pension plan from making certain changes to benefits during any year in which a transfer is received, and (2) establishes additional reporting requirements for the plan. The bill repeals requirements for current and former signatories to labor agreements with the UMWA to pay unassigned beneficiaries premiums or backstop premiums if transfers under SMCRA are less than the amount required to be transferred. As an offset, the bill amends the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 to extend the authority of Treasury to collect certain customs user fees.

This text is taken from the official record. PoliticalRepo does not editorialize.

Timeline

1. 17 January 2017

   Introduced

   Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S343)

   Source: IntroReferral

2. 17 January 2017

   Introduced

   Introduced in Senate

   Source: IntroReferral

Votes

No vote records are attached yet.

Versions

• Introduced in Senate · 17 January 2017 · Official file

Documents

3 official files

• Introduced in Senate (text)

  Introduced in Senate · EN · 17 January 2017

  ViewDownloadOpen at official source

• Introduced in Senate (PDF)

  Introduced in Senate · EN · 17 January 2017

  ViewDownloadOpen at official source

• Introduced in Senate

  summary · EN · 17 January 2017

  Open at official source

Sponsors

• Sen. Manchin, Joe, III [I-WV] · D · Sponsor
• Shelley Capito · R · Sponsor
• Sen. Casey, Robert P., Jr. [D-PA] · D · Sponsor
• Sen. Brown, Sherrod [D-OH] · D · Sponsor
• Timothy Kaine · D · Sponsor
• Mark Warner · D · Sponsor
• Sen. Portman, Rob [R-OH] · R · Sponsor
• Sen. Tester, Jon [D-MT] · D · Sponsor
• Patty Murray · D · Sponsor
• Bernie Sanders · I · Sponsor
• Richard Durbin · D · Sponsor
• Sen. Franken, Al [D-MN] · D · Sponsor
• Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ] · D · Sponsor
• Sen. Donnelly, Joe [D-IN] · D · Sponsor
• Martin Heinrich · D · Sponsor
• Sen. McCaskill, Claire [D-MO] · D · Sponsor
• Sen. Heitkamp, Heidi [D-ND] · D · Sponsor
• Rep. Nelson, Bill [D-FL-11] · D · Sponsor
• Sen. Burr, Richard [R-NC] · R · Sponsor
• Dan Sullivan · R · Sponsor
• Sheldon Whitehouse · D · Cosponsor
• Lisa Murkowski · R · Cosponsor
• Elizabeth Warren · D · Cosponsor
• James Risch · R · Cosponsor
• Tammy Duckworth · D · Cosponsor
• Tom Cotton · R · Cosponsor
• Sen. Udall, Tom [D-NM] · D · Cosponsor
• Sen. Harris, Kamala D. [D-CA] · D · Cosponsor
• · ssfi00 · Standing

Related records

• related to → Miners Protection Act of 2017
• related to ← Miners Pension Protection Act
• related to ← American Miners Pension Act of 2017
• related to ← American Miners Pension Act of 2017
• related to ← Sustainable Energy Development Reform Act