Measuring Real Income Growth Act of 2019

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 3102 To require the Bureau of Economic Analysis of the Department of Commerce to provide estimates relating to the distribution of aggregate economic growth across specific percentile groups of income. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES DECEMBER 18, 2019 Mr. SCHUMER (for himself, Mr. HEINRICH, Mr. UDALL, Mr. PETERS, Ms. SMITH, Mr. CARDIN, Ms. HASSAN, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. DURBIN, Ms. WARREN, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. BROWN, Mr. BENNET, Mr. REED, Mr. WARNER, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. CASEY, and Mr. MARKEY) intro- duced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Com- mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation A BILL To require the Bureau of Economic Analysis of the Depart- ment of Commerce to provide estimates relating to the distribution of aggregate economic growth across specific percentile groups of income. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Measuring Real In- 4 come Growth Act of 2019’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:57 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3102.IS S3102 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •S 3102 IS SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 1 Congress finds the following: 2 (1) Economic inequality in the United States 3 has increased dramatically during the 4 decades pre- 4 ceding the date of enactment of this Act, with fewer 5 households taking home a larger share of the na- 6 tional income. 7 (2) While growth was once distributed relatively 8 evenly across all individuals in the United States, re- 9 search shows that economic gains are increasingly 10 enjoyed by the most affluent. By contrast, the ma- 11 jority of individuals in the United States have seen 12 income and wage growth significantly below what is 13 suggested by national measures of output and in- 14 come. 15 (3) The Bureau of Economic Analysis of the 16 Department of Commerce (referred to in this section 17 as ‘‘BEA’’) reports annual and quarterly estimates 18 of gross domestic product (referred to in this section 19 as ‘‘GDP’’) in the United States. These estimates 20 are important measures of the overall size and 21 health of the economy of the United States but do 22 not describe how economic gains are distributed 23 across the population of the United States. 24 (4) In a country of 325,000,000 individuals, 25 top-line GDP numbers do not capture the full range 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:57 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3102.IS S3102 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •S 3102 IS of household economic experiences and may be mis- 1 leading. For example, the real GDP grew more than 2 3 percent annually between 2003 and 2005, but the 3 average income for 1⁄2 of all individuals in the 4 United States fell during that period. 5 (5) Disaggregating economic growth by income 6 groups will provide a more complete picture of how 7 families in the United States are faring across all 8 rungs of the economic ladder and whether economic 9 growth is benefitting all individuals in the United 10 States. 11 (6) Recent academic estimates of distributional 12 growth show how much of the economic gains during 13 the 40 years preceding the date of enactment of this 14 Act have accrued to the top of the income distribu- 15 tion. Between 1980 and 2014, the average income of 16 the top 1 percent of the income distribution grew 5 17 times as much as the average income of the bottom 18 90 percent of the income distribution and more than 19 9 times as much as the average income of the bot- 20 tom 1⁄2. 21 (7) Official and timely estimates of distribu- 22 tional growth from BEA, reported alongside top-line 23 GDP numbers, would enable Congress to better 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:57 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3102.IS S3102 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •S 3102 IS evaluate economic policies that impact every indi- 1 vidual in the United States. 2 (8) Efforts to address slow wage growth, stag- 3 nant incomes, and growing economic inequality re- 4 quire broadening the focus beyond GDP and obtain- 5 ing metrics that better correspond to the experiences 6 of all families in the United States. 7 SEC. 3. ESTIMATES OF AGGREGATE ECONOMIC GROWTH 8 ACROSS INCOME GROUPS. 9 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 10 (1) BUREAU.—The term ‘‘Bureau’’ means the 11 Bureau of Economic Analysis of the Department of 12 Commerce. 13 (2) GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT ANALYSIS.— 14 The term ‘‘gross domestic product analysis’’— 15 (A) means a quarterly or annual analysis 16 conducted by the Bureau with respect to the 17 gross domestic product of the United States; 18 and 19 (B) includes a revision prepared by the 20 Bureau of an analysis described in subpara- 21 graph (A). 22 (b) INCLUSION IN REPORTS.— 23 (1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to each gross 24 domestic product analysis that is conducted on or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:57 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3102.IS S3102 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •S 3102 IS after the date that is 1 year after the date of enact- 1 ment of this Act, the Bureau shall include in the 2 gross domestic product analysis a recent estimate of, 3 with respect to specific percentile groups of income, 4 the total amount that was added to the economy of 5 the United States during the period to which the 6 gross domestic product analysis pertains, including 7 in— 8 (A) each of the 10 deciles of income; and 9 (B) the highest 1 percent of income. 10 (2) RECENT ESTIMATES.—With respect to each 11 recent estimate that, under paragraph (1), the Bu- 12 reau is required to include in a gross domestic prod- 13 uct analysis, that estimate shall be the most recent 14 estimate that is available on the date on which that 15 gross domestic product analysis is conducted. 16 (3) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 17 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec- 18 retary of Commerce such sums as are necessary to 19 carry out this subsection. 20 (c) AUTHORITY TO SHARE INFORMATION WITH 21 BEA.— 22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraph (B) of section 23 6103(j)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 24 amended by striking ‘‘such return information re- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:57 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3102.IS S3102 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •S 3102 IS flected on returns of corporations’’ and inserting 1 ‘‘such returns, or return information reflected there- 2 on,’’. 3 (2) APPLICATION OF SUBCHAPTER III OF CHAP- 4 TER 35 OF TITLE 44.—The provisions of subchapter 5 III of chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, re- 6 lating to the confidentiality and disclosure of infor- 7 mation shall apply to any return or return informa- 8 tion acquired by the Bureau under section 9 6103(j)(1)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code, as 10 amended by paragraph (1). 11 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:57 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S3102.IS S3102 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS