I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3010

To provide for the payment or reimbursement by the Federal Government 

of special unemployment assistance paid by States to individuals participating in qualified worker training programs, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 4, 2003

Mr. MICHAUD (for himself and Ms. LINDA T. SA ́NCHEZ of California) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways 

and Means 

A BILL

To provide for the payment or reimbursement by the Federal 

Government of special unemployment assistance paid by 

States to individuals participating in qualified worker 

training programs, 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,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Workforce Fairness 

5 and Tax Relief Act of 2003’’. 
2

•HR 3010 IH 

1 SEC. 2. AGREEMENTS WITH STATES HAVING QUALIFIED 

2 WORKER TRAINING PROGRAMS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Any State, the State unemploy4 ment compensation law of which is approved by the Sec5 retary of Labor (hereinafter in this Act referred to as the 

6 ‘‘Secretary’’) under section 3304 of the Internal Revenue 

7 Code of 1986, which desires to do so, may enter into and 

8 participate in an agreement with the Secretary under this 

9 Act, if such State law contains (as of the date such agree10 ment is entered into) a requirement that special unemploy11 ment assistance be payable to individuals participating in 

12 a qualified worker training program, as described in sub13 section (b). Any State which is a party to an agreement 

14 under this Act may, upon providing 30 days’ written no15 tice to the Secretary, terminate such agreement. 

16 (b) QUALIFIED WORKER TRAINING PROGRAM.—For 

17 purposes of this Act, the term ‘‘qualified worker training 

18 program’’ means a program—

19 (1) under which individuals who meet the re20 quirements described in paragraph (3) are eligible to 

21 receive special unemployment assistance while par22 ticipating in the program; 

23 (2) under which the assistance described in 

24 paragraph (1) is payable in the same amount, at the 

25 same interval, on the same terms, and subject to the 
3

•HR 3010 IH 

1 same conditions, as regular compensation under the 

2 State law, except that—

3 (A) State requirements relating to avail4 ability for work, active search for work, and re5 fusal to accept work are not applicable to such 

6 individuals; 

7 (B) assistance shall not be payable after 

8 the end of the 12-month period following the 

9 last day of the individual’s benefit year; and 

10 (C) such individuals are considered to be 

11 unemployed for the purposes of Federal and 

12 State laws applicable to unemployment com13 pensation, 

14 as long as such individuals meet the requirements 

15 applicable under this subsection; 

16 (3) under which individuals may receive the as17 sistance described in paragraph (1) if such individ18 uals—

19 (A)(i)(I) have exhausted all rights to reg20 ular compensation under the State law; 

21 (II) have exhausted all rights to extended 

22 compensation, or are not entitled thereto, be23 cause of the ending of their eligibility for ex24 tended compensation, in such State; 
4

•HR 3010 IH 

1 (ii) have no rights to compensation (includ2 ing both regular compensation and extended 

3 compensation) with respect to a week under 

4 such law or any other State unemployment 

5 compensation law or to compensation under any 

6 other Federal law; 

7 (iii) are not receiving compensation with 

8 respect to such week under the unemployment 

9 compensation law of Canada or any other for10 eign country; 

11 (B)(i) were terminated as a result of any 

12 permanent closure of a plant or facility; or 

13 (ii) are identified pursuant to a State 

14 worker profiling system as individuals who—

15 (I) are long-term unemployed and 

16 have limited opportunities for employment 

17 or reemployment in the same or a similar 

18 occupation in the area in which they re19 side; 

20 (II) are otherwise unlikely to return 

21 to their previous industry or occupation; or 

22 (III) satisfy such other criteria as 

23 may be established in or under the agree24 ment for purposes of this subclause; and 
5

•HR 3010 IH 

1 (C) are actively participating in training 

2 activities approved by the State agency pre3 paring them for suitable reemployment; and 

4 (4) which meets such other requirements as the 

5 Secretary determines to be appropriate. 

6 SEC. 3. PAYMENTS TO STATES HAVING AGREEMENTS. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—There shall be paid to each State 

8 which has entered into an agreement under this Act an 

9 amount equal to the applicable percentage of the covered 

10 costs of the qualified worker training program of such 

11 State. 

12 (b) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 

13 (1) APPLICABLE PERCENTAGE.—The term ‘‘ap14 plicable percentage’’, with respect to a State which 

15 has entered into an agreement under this Act, 

16 means—

17 (A) during each of the first 3 calendar 

18 years beginning on the date on which such 

19 agreement is entered into, 100 percent; and 

20 (B) during each calendar year thereafter, 

21 50 percent. 

22 (2) COVERED COSTS.—The term ‘‘covered 

23 costs’’, with respect to a qualified worker training 

24 program, means—
6

•HR 3010 IH 

1 (A) the amount of special unemployment 

2 assistance (as described in section 3(b)(1)) paid 

3 under such program; and 

4 (B) such amount as the Secretary deter5 mines to be necessary for the proper and effi6 cient administration of such program. 

7 (c) METHOD OF PAYMENT.—Sums payable to any 

8 State by reason of such State’s having an agreement 

9 under this Act shall be payable, either in advance or by 

10 way of reimbursement (as determined by the Secretary), 

11 in such amounts as the Secretary estimates the State will 

12 be entitled to receive under this Act for each calendar 

13 month, reduced or increased, as the case may be, by any 

14 amount by which the Secretary finds that the Secretary’s 

15 estimates for any prior calendar month were greater or 

16 less than the amounts which should have been paid to the 

17 State. Such estimates may be made on the basis of such 

18 statistical, sampling, or other method as may be agreed 

19 upon by the Secretary and the State agency of the State 

20 involved. 

21 SEC. 4. FINANCING PROVISIONS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Payments to States under section 

23 3 shall be made in accordance with this section. 

24 (b) CERTIFICATIONS.—The Secretary shall from time 

25 to time certify to the Secretary of the Treasury for pay-
7

•HR 3010 IH 

1 ment to each State the sums payable to such State under 

2 this Act. The Secretary of the Treasury, prior to audit 

3 or settlement by the General Accounting Office, shall 

4 make payments to the State in accordance with such cer5 tification, by transfers from general funds in the Treasury 

6 to—

7 (1) the account of such State in the Unemploy8 ment Trust Fund, to the extent that such payment 

9 is allocable to costs described in section 3(b)(2)(A); 

10 and 

11 (2) such fund or other repository as may be 

12 agreed upon by the Secretary and the State agency 

13 of the State involved, to the extent that such pay14 ment is allocable to costs described in section 

15 3(b)(2)(B). 

16 SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS. 

17 For purposes of this Act, the terms ‘‘State’’, ‘‘State 

18 law’’, ‘‘State agency’’, ‘‘regular compensation’’, ‘‘extended 

19 compensation’’, ‘‘benefit year’’, and ‘‘week’’ shall have the 

20 respective meanings assigned to them under section 205 

21 of the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Compensa22 tion Act of 1970. 
8

•HR 3010 IH 

1 SEC. 6. REPORTS BY THE SECRETARY OF LABOR. 

2 The Secretary shall prepare and transmit to the Con3 gress on an annual basis a written report on the operation 

4 of this Act, including—

5 (1) an assessment of this Act’s effectiveness 

6 within those States having an agreement in effect 

7 under this Act during the period covered by the re8 port; 

9 (2) the name of any State whose request to 

10 enter into an agreement under this Act was dis11 approved during the period covered by the report, in12 cluding the reasons for each such decision; and 

13 (3) such other information as the Secretary 

14 considers appropriate. 

15 SEC. 7. REPEAL OF TAX ON UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSA16 TION. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 85 of the Internal Rev18 enue Code of 1986 is hereby repealed. 

19 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

20 (1) Subsection (p) of section 3402 of such Code 

21 is amended by striking paragraph (2) and by redes22 ignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (2). 

23 (2) Section 6050B of such Code (relating to re24 turns relating to unemployment compensation) is 

25 hereby repealed. 
9

•HR 3010 IH 

1 (3) The table of sections for part II of sub2 chapter B of chapter 1 of such Code is amended by 

3 striking the item relating to section 85. 

4 (4) The table of sections for subpart B of part 

5 III of subchapter A of chapter 61 of such Code is 

6 amended by striking the item relating to section 

7 6050B. 

8 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

9 this section shall apply to amounts received after Decem10 ber 31, 2002.

Æ