HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 19

(By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and Delegates Boggs, R. M. Thompson, Dempsey, C. White, Faircloth, Pethtel, Stephens, McGraw, Compton, Marshall, DeLong, Warner, Wills, Hrutkay, Givens, Butcher, Paxton, Brown, Stemple, Hall, Azinger, Proudfoot, Varner, Pino, Staton, G. White, Leggett, Schadler, Border, Caputo, Spencer, Perry, Fahey, Ferrell, Susman, Mahan, Kominar, Romine, Ellem, Carmichael, Smirl, Fletcher, Shaver, H. White, Yeager, Kuhn, Williams, Frederick, J. Smith, Campbell, Cann, Tucker, Shelton, Prunty, Hatfield, Craig, Mathews, Flanigan, Wright, Douglas, Coleman, Manuel, Hubbard, Perdue, R. Thompson, Webster, Stalnaker, Morgan, Louisos, Leach, Poling, Amores, Fragale, Webb, Manchin, Browning, Anderson, Walters, Beach, Keener, Beane, Fox, Evans, Swartzmiller, L. Smith, Martin, Angotti, Doyle, Canterbury and Fleischauer)


[Introduced March 9, 2001; referred to the

Committee on Rules.]



Urging the passage of national legislation to increase benefits to surviving spouses under the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974.

Whereas, For years many in the railroad industry have argued that annuities paid widows and widowers under the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 are grossly inadequate; and
Whereas, Under current law, during the lifetime of a railroad employee and his or her spouse, the employee and the spouse receive a full annuity; and
Whereas, After the employee's death, only a widow's or widower's annuity is payable in an amount the widow or widower received as a spouse in the month before the employee's death; and
Whereas, The widow's or widower's annuity is inadequate and often leaves the survivor with less than the amount of income needed to meet ordinary and necessary living expenses; and
Whereas, To remedy this inequity, no outside contributions from the American taxpayer are needed; and
Whereas , West Virginia Congressman Nick Rahall was the co- sponsor of HR 4844 in the 106th Congress which proposed expanded and broader benefits to widows and widowers under the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974; this legislation passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 391 to 25, but failed passage in the Senate; HR 180 was introduced in the House of Representatives on January 3, 2001, and contains the same provisions as HR 4844; and
Whereas, Any changes in law will be paid for from within the railroad industry itself; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That all parties of the railroad community, including labor, management and retirement organizations, actively support legislation to guarantee widow's or widower's annuities at amounts no less than that which the employee was receiving in the month before his or her death, irrespective of any other railroad retirement issue; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Congress of the United States enact annuity legislation that recognizes the concern of many that the widow's or widower's annuity under current law is inadequate to meet ordinary and necessary living expenses; and, be it
Further Resolved, That all other States join in this effort of support for modification of the guaranteed minimum benefit for widows and widowers whose annuities are converted from spousal annuity to a widow's or widower's annuity; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates is directed to provide a copy of this resolution to the State's Congressional Delegation, and the respective Legislatures of the remaining forty-nine states.