The proposed legislation, General Assembly Raised Bill No. 357, aims to amend the current unemployment dependency allowance by increasing the amount paid to eligible individuals. Specifically, the bill replaces the existing allowance of fifteen dollars with forty-five dollars for each nonworking spouse and for each qualifying child or stepchild under certain conditions. These conditions include being under eighteen years of age, under twenty-one and in full-time education, or being mentally or physically handicapped. The bill also stipulates that the total dependency allowances cannot exceed the total unemployment benefit rate and are limited to five dependents. Additionally, the bill clarifies that dependency allowances are supplementary to unemployment benefits and will not be paid unless an unemployment benefit is also being received for that week. It specifies that if both spouses are receiving unemployment benefits, only one can claim the dependency allowance for the other spouse and for any children or stepchildren. The changes are set to take effect on July 1, 2028, as indicated in the bill.

Statutes affected:
Raised Bill: 31-234