II

104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 2594

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

SEPTEMBER 19, 1996

Received

AN ACT

To amend the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act to

reduce the waiting period for benefits payable under that

Act, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Railroad Unemploy3 ment Insurance Amendments Act of 1996’’.

4 SEC. 2. WAITING PERIOD FOR UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS.

5 Subparagraph (A) of section 2(a)(1) of the Railroad

6 Unemployment Insurance Act (45 U.S.C. 352(a)(1)(A)) is

7 amended to read as follows:

8 ‘‘(A) PAYMENT OF UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS.—

9 ‘‘(i) GENERALLY.—Except as otherwise pro10 vided in this subparagraph, benefits shall be payable

11 to any qualified employee for each day of unemploy12 ment in excess of 4 during any registration period

13 within a period of continuing unemployment.

14 ‘‘(ii) WAITING PERIOD FOR FIRST REGISTRA15 TION PERIOD.— Benefits shall be payable to any

16 qualified employee for each day of unemployment in

17 excess of 7 during that employee’s first registration

18 period in a period of continuing unemployment if

19 such period of continuing unemployment is the em20 ployee’s initial period of continuing unemployment

21 commencing in the benefit year.

22 ‘‘(iii) STRIKES.—

23 ‘‘(I) INITIAL 14-DAY WAITING PERIOD.—If

24 the Board finds that a qualified employee has

25 a period of continuing unemployment that in26 cludes days of unemployment due to a stoppage
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1 of work because of a strike in the establish2 ment, premises, or enterprise at which such em3 ployee was last employed, no benefits shall be

4 payable for such employee’s first 14 days of un5 employment due to such stoppage of work.

6 ‘‘(II) SUBSEQUENT DAYS OF UNEMPLOY7 MENT.—For subsequent days of unemployment

8 due to the same stoppage of work, benefits shall

9 be payable as provided in clause (i) of this sub10 paragraph.

11 ‘‘(III) SUBSEQUENT PERIODS OF CONTINU12 ING UNEMPLOYMENT.—If such period of con13 tinuing unemployment ends by reason of clause

14 (v) but the stoppage of work continues, the

15 waiting period established in clause (ii) shall

16 apply to the employee’s first registration period

17 in a new period of continuing unemployment

18 based upon the same stoppage of work.

19 ‘‘(iv) DEFINITION OF PERIOD OF CONTINUING

20 UNEMPLOYMENT.—Except as limited by clause (v),

21 for the purposes of this subparagraph, the term ‘pe22 riod of continuing unemployment’ means—

23 ‘‘(I) a single registration period that in24 cludes more than 4 days of unemployment;
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1 ‘‘(II) a series of consecutive registration

2 periods, each of which includes more than 4

3 days of unemployment; or

4 ‘‘(III) a series of successive registration pe5 riods, each of which includes more than 4 days

6 of unemployment, if each succeeding registra7 tion period begins within 15 days after the last

8 day of the immediately preceding registration

9 period.

10 ‘‘(v) SPECIAL RULE REGARDING END OF PE11 RIOD.—For purposes of applying clause (ii), a period

12 of continuing unemployment ends when an employee

13 exhausts rights to unemployment benefits under sub14 section (c) of this section.

15 ‘‘(vi) LIMIT ON AMOUNT OF BENEFITS.—No

16 benefits shall be payable to an otherwise eligible em17 ployee for any day of unemployment in a registra18 tion period where the total amount of the remunera19 tion (as defined in section 1(j)) payable or accruing

20 to him for days within such registration period ex21 ceeds the amount of the base year monthly com22 pensation base. For purposes of the preceding sen23 tence, an employee’s remuneration shall be deemed

24 to include the gross amount of any remuneration

25 that would have become payable to that employee
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1 but did not become payable because that employee

2 was not ready or willing to perform suitable work

3 available to that employee on any day within such

4 registration period.’’.

5 SEC. 3. WAITING PERIOD FOR SICKNESS BENEFITS.

6 Subparagraph (B) of section 2(a)(1) of the Railroad

7 Unemployment Insurance Act (45 U.S.C. 352(a)(1)(B))

8 is amended to read as follows:

9 ‘‘(B) PAYMENT OF SICKNESS BENEFITS.—

10 ‘‘(i) GENERALLY.—Except as otherwise pro11 vided in this subparagraph, benefits shall be payable

12 to any qualified employee for each day of sickness

13 after the 4th consecutive day of sickness in a period

14 of continuing sickness but excluding 4 days of sick15 ness in any registration period in such period of con16 tinuing sickness.

17 ‘‘(ii) WAITING PERIOD FOR FIRST REGISTRA18 TION PERIOD.—Benefits shall be payable to any

19 qualified employee for each day of sickness in excess

20 of 7 during that employee’s first registration period

21 in a period of continuing sickness if such period of

22 continuing sickness is the employee’s initial period of

23 continuing sickness commencing in the benefit year.

24 For the purposes of this clause, the first registration

25 period in a period of continuing sickness is that reg-
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1 istration period that first begins with 4 consecutive

2 days of sickness and includes more than 4 days of

3 sickness.

4 ‘‘(iii) DEFINITION OF PERIOD OF CONTINUING

5 SICKNESS.—For the purposes of this subparagraph,

6 a period of continuing sickness means—

7 ‘‘(I) a period of consecutive days of sick8 ness, whether from 1 or more causes; or

9 ‘‘(II) a period of successive days of sick10 ness due to a single cause without interruption

11 of more than 90 consecutive days which are not

12 days of sickness.

13 ‘‘(iv) SPECIAL RULE REGARDING END OF PE14 RIOD.—For purposes of applying clause (ii), a period

15 of continuing sickness ends when an employee ex16 hausts rights to sickness benefits under subsection

17 (c) of this section.’’.

18 SEC. 4. MAXIMUM DAILY BENEFIT RATE.

19 Paragraph (3) of section 2(a) of the Railroad Unem20 ployment Insurance Act (45 U.S.C. 352(a)(3)) is amended

21 to read as follows:

22 ‘‘(3) The maximum daily benefit rate computed by

23 the Board under section 12(r)(2) shall be the product of

24 the monthly compensation base, as computed under sec25 tion 1(i)(2) for the base year immediately preceding the
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1 beginning of the benefit year, multiplied by 5 percent. If

2 the maximum daily benefit rate so computed is not a mul3 tiple of $1, it shall be rounded down to the nearest mul4 tiple of $1.’’.

5 SEC. 5. MAXIMUM NUMBER OF DAYS FOR BENEFITS.

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (c) of section 2 of the

7 Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (45 U.S.C. 352(c))

8 is amended to read as follows:

9 ‘‘(c) MAXIMUM NUMBER OF DAYS FOR BENEFITS.—

10 ‘‘(1) NORMAL BENEFITS.—

11 ‘‘(A) GENERALLY.—The maximum number

12 of days of unemployment within a benefit year

13 for which benefits may be paid to an employee

14 shall be 130, and the maximum number of days

15 of sickness within a benefit year for which bene16 fits may be paid to an employee shall be 130.

17 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—The total amount of

18 benefits that may be paid to an employee for

19 days of unemployment within a benefit year

20 shall in no case exceed the employee’s com21 pensation in the base year; and the total

22 amount of benefits that may be paid to an em23 ployee for days of sickness within a benefit year

24 shall in no case exceed the employee’s com25 pensation in the base year, except that notwith-
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1 standing section 1(i), in determining the em2 ployee’s compensation in the base year for the

3 purpose of this sentence, any money remunera4 tion paid to the employee for services rendered

5 as an employee shall be taken into account that

6 is not in excess of an amount that bears the

7 same ratio to $775 as the monthly compensa8 tion base for that year as computed under sec9 tion 1(i) bears to $600.

10 ‘‘(2) EXTENDED BENEFITS.—

11 ‘‘(A) GENERALLY.—With respect to an

12 employee who has 10 or more years of service

13 as defined in section 1(f) of the Railroad Re14 tirement Act of 1974, who did not voluntarily

15 retire and (in a case involving exhaustion of

16 rights to normal benefits for days of unemploy17 ment) did not voluntarily leave work without

18 good cause, and who had current rights to nor19 mal benefits for days of unemployment or days

20 of sickness in a benefit year but has exhausted

21 such rights, the benefit year in which such

22 rights are exhausted shall be deemed not to be

23 ended until the last day of the extended benefit

24 period determined under this paragraph, and

25 extended unemployment benefits or extended
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1 sickness benefits (depending on the type of nor2 mal benefit rights exhausted) may be paid for

3 not more than 65 days of unemployment or 65

4 days of sickness within such extended benefit

5 period.

6 ‘‘(B) BEGINNING DATE.—An employee’s

7 extended benefit period shall begin on the em8 ployee’s first day of unemployment or first day

9 of sickness, as the case may be, following the

10 day on which the employee exhausts the em11 ployee’s then current rights to normal benefits

12 for days of unemployment or days of sickness

13 and shall continue for 7 consecutive 14-day pe14 riods, each of which shall constitute a registra15 tion period, but no such extended benefit period

16 shall extend beyond the beginning of the first

17 registration period in a benefit year in which

18 the employee is again qualified for benefits in

19 accordance with section 3 on the basis of com20 pensation earned after the first of such con21 secutive 14-day periods has begun.

22 ‘‘(C) TERMINATION WHEN EMPLOYEE

23 REACHES AGE OF 65.—Notwithstanding any

24 other provision of this paragraph, an extended

25 benefit period for sickness benefits shall termi-
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1 nate on the day next preceding the date on

2 which the employee attains age 65, except that

3 it may continue for the purpose of paying bene4 fits for days of unemployment.

5 ‘‘(3) ACCELERATED BENEFITS.—

6 ‘‘(A) GENERAL RULE.—With respect to an

7 employee who has 10 or more years of service

8 as defined in section 1(f) of the Railroad Re9 tirement Act of 1974, who did not voluntarily

10 retire, and (in a case involving unemployment

11 benefits) did not voluntarily leave work without

12 good cause, who has 14 or more consecutive

13 days of unemployment, or 14 or more consecu14 tive days of sickness, and who is not a qualified

15 employee with respect to the general benefit

16 year current when such unemployment or sick17 ness commences but is or becomes a qualified

18 employee for the next succeeding general bene19 fit year, such succeeding general benefit year

20 shall, in that employee’s case, begin on the first

21 day of the month in which such unemployment

22 or sickness commences.

23 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—In the case of a suc24 ceeding benefit year beginning in accordance

25 with subparagraph (A) by reason of sickness,
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1 such sentence shall not operate to permit the

2 payment of benefits in the period provided for

3 in such sentence for any day of sickness begin4 ning with the date on which the employee at5 tains age 65, and continuing through the day

6 preceding the first day of the next succeeding

7 general benefit year.

8 ‘‘(C) DETERMINATION OF AGE.—For the

9 purposes of this subsection, the Board may rely

10 on evidence of age available in its records and

11 files at the time determinations of age are

12 made.’’.

13 (b) REPEAL OF DEADWOOD PROVISION.—Section

14 2(h) of the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (45

15 U.S.C. 352(h)) is repealed.

16 (c) REPEAL OF EXPIRED PROVISION.—Section 17 of

17 the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (45 U.S.C.

18 368), relating to payment of supplemental unemployment

19 benefits, is repealed.

20 SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.

21 The amendments made by this Act shall take effect

22 on the date of the enactment of this Act.

Passed the House of Representatives September 18,

1996.

Attest: ROBIN H. CARLE,

Clerk.