[First Reprint] ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION No. 168 STATE OF NEW JERSEY 221st LEGISLATURE INTRODUCED OCTOBER 28, 2024
[First Reprint]
ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION No. 168
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
INTRODUCED OCTOBER 28, 2024
Sponsored by: Assemblywoman TENNILLE R. MCCOY District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex) Assemblyman WAYNE P. DEANGELO District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex) Assemblywoman VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer) Assemblyman ANTHONY S. VERRELLI District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer) Co-Sponsored by: Assemblyman Atkins and Assemblywoman Quijano SYNOPSIS Urges US Congress to enact legislation allowing individuals with disabilities to retain federal disability benefits upon marriage. CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT As reported by the Assembly Aging and Human Services Committee on March 17, 2025, with amendments.
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman TENNILLE R. MCCOY
District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)
Assemblyman WAYNE P. DEANGELO
District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)
Assemblywoman VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON
District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)
Assemblyman ANTHONY S. VERRELLI
District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblyman Atkins and Assemblywoman Quijano
SYNOPSIS
Urges US Congress to enact legislation allowing individuals with disabilities to retain federal disability benefits upon marriage.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As reported by the Assembly Aging and Human Services Committee on March 17, 2025, with amendments.
An Assembly Resolution urging the United States Congress to enact legislation allowing individuals with disabilities to retain federal disability benefits upon marriage. Whereas, The Social Security Administration (SSA) manages retirement, disability, survivor, and family benefits, 1provides Social Security numbers,1 and is responsible for enrolling individuals in Medicare; and 1[Whereas, SSA also provide Social Security numbers, which are unique identifiers needed to work, handle financial transactions, and determine eligibility for certain government services; and]1 Whereas, The SSA administers two disability related programs known as Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI); and Whereas, SSI 1[are] is a needs-based program that provides1 monthly benefits 1[provided to people] to individuals1 with limited income and resources1, regardless of their work history,1 who are blind, age 65 or older, or have a qualifying disability; and 1[Whereas, SSI is a need-based program that provides financial assistance to disabled individuals, as well as seniors, with limited income and resources, regardless of their work history; and]1 Whereas, SSDI provides monthly payments 1[to people who have a disability] , based on an individual's work history and Social Security taxes paid, to individuals with disabilities1 that 1[stops] stop1 or 1[limits] limit1 their ability to work; and 1[Whereas, SSDI is based on an individual's work history and the Social Security taxes they have paid. It provides benefits to those who have worked and paid into Social Security for a sufficient number of years but have become disabled and are unable to work; and]1 Whereas, While SSDI and SSI have different work and financial rules in order to qualify1,1 both benefits are intended to provide financial support to individuals who are disabled; and Whereas, The most recent "Annual Statistical Report on the Social Security Disability Insurance Program" 1, issued by the SSA,1 revealed that disability benefits were paid to over 8.9 million people; and Whereas, In New Jersey, approximately 1[10.2] 11.21 percent of the population has a disability; and Whereas, 1[The SSA recently] Recently, the SSA1 recognized Patrice Jetter and Garry Wickham, subjects of "Patrice: The Movie", a documentary that focuses on the couple's concerns about losing their disability benefits if they were to get married; and Whereas, Patrice, who lives in Hamilton Township, and Garry, who lives in Princeton, are one of many couples who have disabilities and cannot live together or get married because, due to current federal statutes, the disability benefits they depend on would be terminated if they were to marry; and Whereas, Congress imposes limits on SSI applicants and recipients, including asset limits for individuals and married couples that have not been adjusted since 1989; and Whereas, 1[Present day] As applied today1, the partial 1989 update can make it difficult for SSI recipients to save money and can cause other hardships, as the movie emphasizes; and Whereas, The 1[film] movie also1 highlights how changes to the asset limit and related marriage rules can only be made by Congress because those have been set by 1federal1 statute; and Whereas, For decades, there has been Congressional interest in updating SSI asset limits. In 20211,1 the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee considered a bill that aimed to raise the 1[$2,000]1 asset limit cap 1from $2,000 to $3,0001 for individuals and 1[$3,000 for couples to] from1 $10,000 1[and] to1 $20,000 1[respectively] for couples1. The bill also aimed to index the caps to inflation, so that the asset limits would be adjusted annually; and Whereas, 1[To] While Congressional action is needed to raise the asset limit cap, to1 the extent possible by law1,1 the SSA has taken 1administrative1 steps to update SSI policies1[, administratively,]1 to simplify rules, reduce burdens, and better support people with disabilities; and Whereas, On September 30, 2024 the 1[Social Security Administration] SSA1 issued a public statement acknowledging that some of the policies enforced by the administration are antiquated and should be updated to reflect the modern day needs of individuals living with disabilities and receiving disability benefits; and Whereas, Along with the public statement 1[issued by the SSA on September 30]1, the SSA enacted three SSI enhancements that 1[is] are1 estimated to lead to new or increased SSI payments for hundreds of thousands of Americans with disabilities1: no longer including food assistance from family and friends in calculating eligibility; expanding the rental subsidy exception to all SSI applicants and recipients nationwide; and expanding the definition of public assistance housing by adding Supplemental Nutrition Assistance program to the types of public assistance used for eligibility and no longer requiring all household members receive public assistance to be considered a public assistance household1; and Whereas, Marriage is a formally recognized union of two 1[people] individuals1 as partners in a personal relationship 1, and the Supreme Court's 2015 decision in Obergefell v. Hodges ruled that marriage is a fundamental right guaranteed to all citizens1; and 1[Whereas, The Supreme Court has ruled in at least 15 cases since 1888, including 2015 in Obergefell v. Hodges, that marriage is a fundamental right guaranteed to all citizens; and]1 Whereas, In order to implement effective changes to the SSA's policies concerning SSI and SSDI, Congress should take action to enact legislation concerning these two programs that would allow individuals with disabilities to retain their federal disability benefits upon marriage; now, therefore, Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey: 1. The General Assembly respectfully urges the United States Congress to take action to enact legislation concerning SSI and SSDI that would allow individuals with disabilities to retain their federal disability benefits upon marriage. 2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly to the Majority and Minority Leaders of the United States Senate, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives, and to each member of the New Jersey Congressional delegation.
An Assembly Resolution urging the United States Congress to enact legislation allowing individuals with disabilities to retain federal disability benefits upon marriage.
Whereas, The Social Security Administration (SSA) manages retirement, disability, survivor, and family benefits, 1provides Social Security numbers,1 and is responsible for enrolling individuals in Medicare; and
1[Whereas, SSA also provide Social Security numbers, which are unique identifiers needed to work, handle financial transactions, and determine eligibility for certain government services; and]1
Whereas, The SSA administers two disability related programs known as Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI); and
Whereas, SSI 1[are] is a needs-based program that provides1 monthly benefits 1[provided to people] to individuals1 with limited income and resources1, regardless of their work history,1 who are blind, age 65 or older, or have a qualifying disability; and
1[Whereas, SSI is a need-based program that provides financial assistance to disabled individuals, as well as seniors, with limited income and resources, regardless of their work history; and]1
Whereas, SSDI provides monthly payments 1[to people who have a disability] , based on an individual's work history and Social Security taxes paid, to individuals with disabilities1 that 1[stops] stop1 or 1[limits] limit1 their ability to work; and
1[Whereas, SSDI is based on an individual's work history and the Social Security taxes they have paid. It provides benefits to those who have worked and paid into Social Security for a sufficient number of years but have become disabled and are unable to work; and]1
Whereas, While SSDI and SSI have different work and financial rules in order to qualify1,1 both benefits are intended to provide financial support to individuals who are disabled; and
Whereas, The most recent "Annual Statistical Report on the Social Security Disability Insurance Program" 1, issued by the SSA,1 revealed that disability benefits were paid to over 8.9 million people; and
Whereas, In New Jersey, approximately 1[10.2] 11.21 percent of the population has a disability; and
Whereas, 1[The SSA recently] Recently, the SSA1 recognized Patrice Jetter and Garry Wickham, subjects of "Patrice: The Movie", a documentary that focuses on the couple's concerns about losing their disability benefits if they were to get married; and
Whereas, Patrice, who lives in Hamilton Township, and Garry, who lives in Princeton, are one of many couples who have disabilities and cannot live together or get married because, due to current federal statutes, the disability benefits they depend on would be terminated if they were to marry; and
Whereas, Congress imposes limits on SSI applicants and recipients, including asset limits for individuals and married couples that have not been adjusted since 1989; and
Whereas, 1[Present day] As applied today1, the partial 1989 update can make it difficult for SSI recipients to save money and can cause other hardships, as the movie emphasizes; and
Whereas, The 1[film] movie also1 highlights how changes to the asset limit and related marriage rules can only be made by Congress because those have been set by 1federal1 statute; and
Whereas, For decades, there has been Congressional interest in updating SSI asset limits. In 20211,1 the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee considered a bill that aimed to raise the 1[$2,000]1 asset limit cap 1from $2,000 to $3,0001 for individuals and 1[$3,000 for couples to] from1 $10,000 1[and] to1 $20,000 1[respectively] for couples1. The bill also aimed to index the caps to inflation, so that the asset limits would be adjusted annually; and
Whereas, 1[To] While Congressional action is needed to raise the asset limit cap, to1 the extent possible by law1,1 the SSA has taken 1administrative1 steps to update SSI policies1[, administratively,]1 to simplify rules, reduce burdens, and better support people with disabilities; and
Whereas, On September 30, 2024 the 1[Social Security Administration] SSA1 issued a public statement acknowledging that some of the policies enforced by the administration are antiquated and should be updated to reflect the modern day needs of individuals living with disabilities and receiving disability benefits; and
Whereas, Along with the public statement 1[issued by the SSA on September 30]1, the SSA enacted three SSI enhancements that 1[is] are1 estimated to lead to new or increased SSI payments for hundreds of thousands of Americans with disabilities1: no longer including food assistance from family and friends in calculating eligibility; expanding the rental subsidy exception to all SSI applicants and recipients nationwide; and expanding the definition of public assistance housing by adding Supplemental Nutrition Assistance program to the types of public assistance used for eligibility and no longer requiring all household members receive public assistance to be considered a public assistance household1; and
Whereas, Marriage is a formally recognized union of two 1[people] individuals1 as partners in a personal relationship 1, and the Supreme Court's 2015 decision in Obergefell v. Hodges ruled that marriage is a fundamental right guaranteed to all citizens1; and
1[Whereas, The Supreme Court has ruled in at least 15 cases since 1888, including 2015 in Obergefell v. Hodges, that marriage is a fundamental right guaranteed to all citizens; and]1
Whereas, In order to implement effective changes to the SSA's policies concerning SSI and SSDI, Congress should take action to enact legislation concerning these two programs that would allow individuals with disabilities to retain their federal disability benefits upon marriage; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The General Assembly respectfully urges the United States Congress to take action to enact legislation concerning SSI and SSDI that would allow individuals with disabilities to retain their federal disability benefits upon marriage.
2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly to the Majority and Minority Leaders of the United States Senate, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives, and to each member of the New Jersey Congressional delegation.