To amend title II of the Social Security Act to provide an exception to the nine-month duration of marriage requirement for widows and widowers in cases in which the marriage was postponed by legal impediments to the marriage caused by State restrictions on divorce from a prior spouse institutionalized due to mental incompetence or similar incapacity.

January 8, 2003

Mr. ALLEN introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means

To amend title II of the Social Security Act to provide an exception to the nine-month duration of marriage requirement for widows and widowers in cases in which the marriage was postponed by legal impediments to the marriage caused by State restrictions on divorce from a prior spouse institutionalized due to mental incompetence or similar incapacity.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. EXCEPTION TO NINE-MONTH DURATION OF MARRIAGE REQUIREMENT FOR WIDOWS AND WIDOWERS.

(a) WIDOWS- Section 216(c)(5) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 416(c)(5)) is amended by adding at the end the following: `for a period of shorter duration immediately preceding such day in any case in which (A) the individual had been married prior to the individual's marriage to the surviving wife, (B) the prior wife was institutionalized during the individual's marriage to the prior wife due to mental incompetence or similar incapacity, (C) for the period beginning nine months immediately prior to the individual's marriage to the surviving wife and ending with the death of the prior wife, the commencement of the individual's subsequent marriage to the surviving wife was postponed because the laws of the State in which the individual was domiciled at the time of his marriage to the prior wife did not provide grounds for divorce based on a spouse's institutionalization due to such mental incompetence or similar incapacity and therefore impeded any subsequent marriage, and (D) the marriage between the individual and his surviving wife occurred within 60 days after the removal of the impediment created by the individual's marriage to the prior wife, or'.

(b) WIDOWERS- Section 216(g)(5) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 416(g)(5)) is amended by adding at the end the following: `for a period of shorter duration immediately preceding such day in any case in which (A) the individual had been married prior to the individual's marriage to the surviving husband, (B) the prior husband was institutionalized during the individual's marriage to the prior husband due to mental incompetence or similar incapacity, (C) for the period beginning nine months immediately prior to the individual's marriage to the surviving husband and ending with the death of the prior husband, the commencement of the individual's subsequent marriage to the surviving husband was postponed because the laws of the State in which the individual was domiciled at the time of her marriage to the prior husband did not provide grounds for divorce based on a spouse's institutionalization due to such mental incompetence or similar incapacity and therefore impeded any subsequent marriage, and (D) the marriage between the individual and her surviving husband occurred within 60 days after the removal of the impediment created by the individual's marriage to the prior husband, or'.

SEC. 2. EFFECTIVE DATE.

The amendments made by this Act shall be effective with respect to applications for benefits under title II of the Social Security Act that are filed on or after March 1, 1991.

END