This bill amends the Unemployment Security Law in the following ways. It allows the Department of Labor, Bureau of Unemployment Compensation to use facial recognition technology for identity verification purposes. It amends the definition of "unemployment fraud" to include instances when an individual solicits someone else to file a fraudulent claim on the individual's behalf. The provision governing grounds for disqualifying an individual from benefits is also amended to include soliciting another person to make false statements or material omissions on behalf of the individual. That provision is also amended to escalate the progression of penalties in cases when a claim has been filed using illegally obtained identification information such that the first offense is treated as a 3rd offense, which requires the highest penalty. It amends provisions governing overpayments made to individuals by the bureau. The bill provides that the state minimum wage must be used to calculate the maximum amount of weekly unemployment compensation benefits that may be withheld from an individual who was overpaid by the bureau as the result of the individual's nondisclosure or misrepresentation. This change increases the limitations on the amount of wages that may be withheld. The bill provides that benefit overpayments recouped by reducing weekly benefits must be applied only to the principal amount owed. The bill also changes the appeal time frames for overpayment decisions to provide the same appeal time frames as non-overpayment decisions. It recodifies the section of law that governs eligibility for unemployment compensation benefits. The bill also makes substantive changes to that section, including narrowing the parameters defining an individual's availability for work to include work that aligns with the customary hours and commute of the individual before becoming unemployed; requiring that for certain training programs to qualify as approved training programs, those programs must conform with rules adopted by the Commissioner of Labor; amending the time frame during which an individual is excused from the work search requirements during a period of layoff from the individual's employer and removing the requirement that the individual stay in contact with the employer during that period; and modifying the definition of "good cause" as it applies to an individual's failure to comply with certain provisions governing the individual's eligibility for unemployment compensation benefits. It amends the provision of law governing the bureau's process for determining unemployment compensation benefit eligibility by creating several new exceptions from that process. A claim is excepted from that process when an individual fails to perform a work search and is not under a work search waiver; fails to adequately respond to a request for identity verification; or is unemployed due to a stoppage of work. It reorganizes provisions related to extended benefits for dislocated workers to conform with modern drafting standards. The bill also changes those provisions to require that a dislocated worker must be in training approved by a staff member of the bureau who has been designated by the commissioner, in accordance with rules adopted by the commissioner. It eliminates the self-employment assistance program and cross-references to that program. The bill also corrects and updates other cross-references. Finally, it makes additional changes including changing the employer charging methodology for employee leasing companies to report and pay contributions under the client company, using the client company’s contribution rate and changing the time frame for bureau staff background checks from every 10 years to every 5 years.

Statutes affected:
Bill Text LD 706, HP 445: 25.6001, 26.1043, 26.1051, 26.1082, 26.1085, 26.1191, 26.1192, 26.1193, 26.1194, 26.1195, 26.1196, 26.1197, 26.1198, 26.1199, 26.1221