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S 269
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Ending Improper Payments to Deceased People Act

Introduced Jan 28, 2025

Latest action (Feb 10, 2026) Became Public Law No: 119-77.

Referred to
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee
Policy area
Social Welfare
Issues
Economy & Taxes
Legislative subjects (3)
Disability assistanceIntergovernmental relationsSocial security and elderly assistance

Summary

The bill requires the Social Security Administration to share information about deceased individuals with the federal "Do Not Pay" system, which federal agencies use to identify and prevent improper payments. By improving coordination between Social Security and this system, the bill aims to reduce payments mistakenly sent to deceased people. The information sharing must comply with existing privacy protection requirements. The changes take effect on December 28, 2026.

AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.

Sponsor (1)
5 cosponsors

Actions (19)
  1. Feb 10, 2026 Became Public Law No: 119-77.
  2. Feb 10, 2026 Signed by President.
  3. Feb 3, 2026 Presented to President. · house
  4. Jan 12, 2026 Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection. · house
  5. Jan 12, 2026 On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H634) · house
  6. Jan 12, 2026 Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H634)
  7. Jan 12, 2026 DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on S. 269. · house
  8. Jan 12, 2026 Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H634-637) · house
  9. Jan 12, 2026 Mr. Smith (MO) moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill. · house
  10. Oct 10, 2025 Held at the desk. · house
  11. Oct 10, 2025 Received in the House. · house
  12. Oct 8, 2025 Message on Senate action sent to the House. · senate
  13. Sep 19, 2025 Passed Senate with an amendment by Unanimous Consent. (text of amendment in the nature of a substitute: CR S6798) · senate
  14. Sep 19, 2025 Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate with an amendment by Unanimous Consent.
  15. Sep 19, 2025 Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs discharged by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S6798) · senate
  16. Sep 19, 2025 Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs discharged by Unanimous Consent.
  17. Jul 30, 2025 Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably. · senate
  18. Jan 28, 2025 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. · senate
  19. Jan 28, 2025 Introduced in Senate

More bills on these subjects (8)

Other bills that carry the most legislative subjects in common with this one (topical discovery — distinct from the procedural related bills above).

  • HR 2716 — Ending Improper Payments to Deceased People Act (shares 3 subjects)
  • HR 5304 — Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026 (shares 3 subjects)
  • HCONRES 113 — Establishing the congressional budget for the United States Government for fiscal year 2027 and setting forth the appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years 2028 through 2036. (shares 2 subjects)
  • S 2120 — Older Americans Act Reauthorization Act of 2025 (shares 2 subjects)
  • HRES 1335 — Condemning actors seeking to defraud the United States Government, and expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that governmentwide fraud and improper payment prevention reforms will meaningfully improve the financial prosperity of the United States, and that Federal program eligibility should be verified before payment. (shares 2 subjects)
  • HR 8463 — Pre-Payment Fraud Prevention and Treasury Data Access Act (shares 2 subjects)
  • HR 7148 — Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 (shares 2 subjects)
  • HR 7006 — Financial Services and General Government and National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2026 (shares 2 subjects)

Similar bills (6)

Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.

  • HR 2716 — Ending Improper Payments to Deceased People Act · Introduced Jan 7, 2026 · Cong. 119 70%
  • S 1460 — Preserving Patient Access to Accountable Care Act · Introduced Apr 10, 2025 · Cong. 119 65%
  • HR 6424 — Social Security Survivor Benefits Equity Act · Introduced Dec 4, 2025 · Cong. 119 64%
  • S 3357 — Social Security Survivor Benefits Equity Act · Introduced Dec 4, 2025 · Cong. 119 64%
  • HR 8725 — Survivor Tax Filing Simplification Act · Introduced May 11, 2026 · Cong. 119 64%
  • S 1023 — Social Security Overpayment Relief Act · Introduced Mar 13, 2025 · Cong. 119 61%

Text versions (3)
  • Engrossed in Senate · Sep 19, 2025
  • Introduced in Senate · Jan 28, 2025
  • Enrolled Bill

Full text

An Act

To improve coordination between Federal and State agencies and the Do Not Pay working system.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the “Ending Improper Payments to Deceased People Act”.

SEC. 2. IMPROVING COORDINATION BETWEEN FEDERAL AND STATE AGENCIES AND THE DO NOT PAY WORKING SYSTEM.

(a) In General.—Section 205(r) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(r)), as amended by section 801(a)(7) of title VIII of division FF of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Public Law 116-260), is amended by striking paragraph (11) and inserting the following:

“(11) The Commissioner of Social Security shall, to the extent feasible, provide information furnished to the Commissioner under paragraph (1) to the agency operating the Do Not Pay working system described in section 3354(c) of title 31, United States Code, for the authorized uses of the Do Not Pay working system to help prevent improper payments of, and support the recovery of improperly paid, benefits or other payments through a cooperative arrangement with such agency, provided that the requirements of subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (3) are met with respect to such arrangement with such agency. The Commissioner of Social Security and the agency operating the Do Not Pay working system shall, while the data described in the preceding sentence is being provided to the agency operating the Do Not Pay working system, enter into an agreement based upon an agreed upon methodology, which covers the proportional share of State death data costs, which the Commissioner of Social Security and the agency operating the Do Not Pay working system may periodically review.

“(12) The Commissioner of Social Security may not record a death to a record that may be provided under this section for any individual unless the Commissioner of Social Security has found it has clear and convincing evidence to support that the individual should be presumed to be deceased.”.

(b) Improving Coordination Regarding Individuals Incorrectly Identified as Deceased.—Section 205(r)(7) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(r)(7)), as added by section 801(a)(4) of title VIII of division FF of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Public Law 116-260), is amended by striking “and” at the end of subparagraph

(A), by striking the period at the end of subparagraph (B) and inserting “; and”, and by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:

“(C) notify any agency that has a cooperative arrangement with the Commissioner of Social Security under paragraph (3) or (11) of the error.”.

(c) Effective Date.—The amendments made by this section shall take effect on December 27, 2026.

Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Vice President of the United States and President of the Senate.

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