Rep. Moylan Introduces the Supplemental Security Income Equality Act for U.S. Territories
This bill is currently in the early stages of the legislative process and is being reviewed by the House Committee on Ways and Means. No further actions are scheduled at this time. It is considered active but is not moving quickly.
Even though delegates from both parties support this, bills to give territories more money often fail because those delegates cannot vote on the final bill in the House.
This bill’s path across every version that has carried it.
Reintroduced
Reintroduced from H.R. 256 (118th), which died when its Congress ended.
H.R. 256 (118th) →Scores run from -100 (strongly harmful) to +100 (strongly beneficial) for each group, combining impact, certainty, scope, and duration ratings of 1-5. How impact scoring works
The SSI program, administered by the Social Security Administration, would permanently expand to cover eligible residents of four U.S. territories. This is a structural expansion of the federal safety net, adding potentially hundreds of thousands of new beneficiaries to the program who are aged, blind, or disabled with limited income. While SSI is distinct from Social Security retirement benefits, it is a core program under the Social Security Act.
“Such term when used in title XVI includes Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa.”
Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
Introduced in House
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
On July 29, 2025, Congressional representatives of Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and American Samoa reintroduced the bipartisan Supplemental Security Income Equality Act. The bill seeks to end the exclusion of these territories from the federal SSI program.
The bill, H.R. 4814, would extend the SSI program to Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and American Samoa. It aims to correct a disparity where residents of these territories are denied benefits available to those in the 50 states and the Northern Mariana Islands.
Resident Commissioner Pablo José Hernández (D-PR) noted that congressional representatives are rallying behind the SSI Equality Act to award benefits to U.S. citizens in Puerto Rico and three other territories, highlighting that geography currently determines access to this safety net.
No votes recorded for this bill yet.
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
Supplemental Security Income Equality Act
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