S. 2492 would permanently require the Social Security Administration (SSA) to share all of its data on deaths with the Do Not Pay program—a program administered by the Department of the Treasury that allows agencies to identify ineligible recipients by checking various databases before payments are made. Under current law, that requirement expires on December 27, 2026. 

SSA collects information on deaths and maintains a record of all deaths reported to the agency, dating to 1936. SSA has more than 142 million death records that contain the deceased person’s name, Social Security number, date of birth, and date of death, including 40 million records of deaths reported by states. SSA uses those data to administer its programs and shares the information with other agencies that administer federal benefit programs.

SSA provides the complete death file (also known as the full file of death information) to eight federal agencies, including the Internal Revenue Service, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and the Department of Defense. Other agencies that pay federal benefits can access that information using the Do Not Pay program.