CLARIFICATION OF DEFINITIONS REGARDING CERTAIN SURVIVOR BENEFITS.

SEC. 414. CLARIFICATION OF DEFINITIONS REGARDING CERTAIN SURVIVOR BENEFITS.(a) Widows.—Section 216(c) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 416(c)) is amended—(1) by redesignating subclauses (A) through (C) of clause (6) as subclauses (i) through (iii), respectively;(2) by redesignating clauses (1) through (6) as clauses (A) through (F), respectively;(3) in clause (E) (as redesignated), by inserting “except as provided in paragraph (2),” before “she was married”;(4) by inserting “(1)” after “(c)”; and(5) by adding at the end the following:“(2) The requirements of paragraph (1)(E) in connection with the surviving wife of an individual shall be treated as satisfied if—“(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) during the period of the prior wife’s institutionalization, the individual would have divorced the prior wife and married the surviving wife, but the individual did not do so because such divorce would have been unlawful, by reason of the prior wife’s institutionalization, under the laws of the State in which the individual was domiciled at the time (as determined based on evidence satisfactory to the Commissioner of Social Security),“(D) the prior wife continued to remain institutionalized up to the time of her death, and“(E) the individual married the surviving wife within 60 days after the prior wife’s death.”.(b) Widowers.—Section 216(g) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 416(g)) is amended—(1) by redesignating subclauses (A) through (C) of clause (6) as subclauses (i) through (iii), respectively;(2) by redesignating clauses (1) through (6) as clauses (A) through (F), respectively;(3) in clause (E) (as redesignated), by inserting “except as provided in paragraph (2),” before “he was married”;(4) by inserting “(1)” after “(g)”; and118 STAT. 530(5) by adding at the end the following:“(2) The requirements of paragraph (1)(E) in connection with the surviving husband of an individual shall be treated as satisfied if—“(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) during the period of the prior husband’s institutionalization, the individual would have divorced the prior husband and married the surviving husband, but the individual did not do so because such divorce would have been unlawful, by reason of the prior husband’s institutionalization, under the laws of the State in which the individual was domiciled at the time (as determined based on evidence satisfactory to the Commissioner of Social Security),“(D) the prior husband continued to remain institutionalized up to the time of his death, and“(E) the individual married the surviving husband within 60 days after the prior husband’s death.”.(c) Conforming Amendment.—Section 216(k) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 416(k)) is amended by striking “clause (5) of subsection (c) or clause (5) of subsection (g)” and inserting “clause (E) of subsection (c)(1) or clause (E) of subsection (g)(1)”.(d) Effective Date.—The amendments made by this section shall be effective with respect to applications for benefits under title II of the Social Security Act filed during months ending after the date of the enactment of this Act.