Introduced
by
To increase the state maximum weekly unemployment insurance benefit from $300 to $315, and increase the additional dependent benefit from $6 to $20 per person, up to a maximum of five dependents, or a potential total maximum weekly benefit of $415. The bill would also add a benefit deductible in the form of a one-week waiting period before the first payment. Because of existing delays between a layoff and the first unemployment check this would not necessarily mean a longer wait, but it would mean one less payment to those who are unemployed for less than the maximum 26 weeks of coverage. The bill would consider severance pay in determining when a claimant would first be eligible for benefits, require a beneficiary to accept alternative work that pays at least 70% of the previous compensation at any time (rather than a sliding scale of 80-percent dropping to 70-percent over time), and institute a $3 per-quarter employee contribution to the state unemployment agency. Finally, the bill would lower by 80-percent the non-chargeable benefit tax on employers who have had no benefit claims in five or more years. This is a tax for the portion of unemployment insurance benefits and costs which are not attributable to a particular employer (the “socialized costs”).
Referred to the Committee on Human Resources and Labor
