I 
112TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2120 
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to include individuals who 
have exhausted all rights to emergency unemployment compensation 
under title IV of the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008 as a tar-
geted group for purposes of the work opportunity tax credit. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 3, 2011 
Ms. JACKSON LEE of Texas introduced the following bill; which was referred 
to the Committee on Ways and Means 
A BILL 
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to include 
individuals who have exhausted all rights to emergency 
unemployment compensation under title IV of the Sup-
plemental Appropriations Act, 2008 as a targeted group 
for purposes of the work opportunity tax credit. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds the following: 
(1) 99ers are a group of people whose numbers 
have increased six fold in the past 3 years, and com-
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prise nearly 10 percent of the unemployment in the 
third quarter of 2010 (Department of Labor). 
(2) From December 2007 to October 2010, the 
unemployment rate for persons unemployed for more 
than 99 weeks rose from 0.1 percent to 1.0 percent 
with an estimate taken in October of 2010 of 1.4 
million very long-term unemployed (CRS – R41559). 
(3) Before extended benefits expired on Novem-
ber 30, 2010, 24 States and Washington, District of 
Columbia, offered the full 99 weeks of unemploy-
ment benefits, 6 States offered unemployment bene-
fits for 93 weeks, 5 States had unemployment bene-
fits for 86 weeks, 9 States allowed 73 weeks, and 5 
States were at 60 weeks, with only Mississippi offer-
ing 79 weeks of unemployment benefits (The Center 
on Budget and Policy Priorities). 
(4) The number of unemployed persons in De-
cember 2010 dropped to 14.5 million with an unem-
ployment rate of 9.4 percent (Department of Labor). 
SEC. 2. WORK OPPORTUNITY CREDIT FOR 99ERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) of section 51(d) of 
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking 
‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph (H), by striking the pe-
riod at the end of subparagraph (I) and inserting ‘‘, or’’, 
and by adding at the end the following: 
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‘‘(J) a 99er.’’. 
(b) 99ER DEFINED.—Subsection (d) of section 51 of 
such Code is amended by redesignating paragraphs (11) 
through (14) as paragraphs (12) through (15), respec-
tively, and by inserting after paragraph (10) the following: 
‘‘(11) 99ER.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘99er’ 
means an individual who, before the end of the 
2-year period beginning on the date of the en-
actment of this paragraph, is certified by the 
designated local agency as having exhausted all 
rights to emergency unemployment compensa-
tion under title IV of the Supplemental Appro-
priations Act, 2008 during the period beginning 
on December 1, 2007, and ending on the hiring 
date. 
‘‘(B) EXHAUSTION OF RIGHTS.—An indi-
vidual shall be considered to satisfy subpara-
graph (A) only if— 
‘‘(i) no payments of emergency unem-
ployment compensation under title IV of 
the 
Supplemental 
Appropriations 
Act, 
2008 can be made because— 
‘‘(I) such individual has received 
the maximum level of regular com-
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pensation, 
extended 
compensation, 
and emergency unemployment com-
pensation within their State, or 
‘‘(II) such individual’s rights to 
such compensation have been termi-
nated by reason of section 4007(b)(3) 
of such Act, and 
‘‘(ii) in the case of an individual to 
whom an election described in section 
4001(e) of such Act applies, no payments 
of extended compensation can be made 
under the applicable State law because— 
‘‘(I) such individual has ex-
hausted the maximum level of regular 
compensation, extended compensation, 
and emergency unemployment com-
pensation 
applicable 
within 
their 
State, or 
‘‘(II) such individual’s rights to 
such compensation have been termi-
nated by reason of such individual has 
exhausted the maximum level of such 
compensation applicable within their 
State. 
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‘‘(C) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this 
paragraph— 
‘‘(i) the terms ‘regular compensation’, 
‘extended compensation’, and ‘State law’ 
have the respective meanings given them 
under section 205 of the Federal-State Ex-
tended Unemployment Compensation Act 
of 1970, and 
‘‘(ii) the term ‘employment’ has the 
meaning given such term under the appli-
cable State law. 
‘‘(D) SPECIAL RULES.— 
‘‘(i) FIRST-YEAR CREDIT AMOUNT FOR 
INDIVIDUALS
PERFORMING
BETWEEN
120 
AND
400
HOURS
OF
SERVICE.—Notwith-
standing subsection (i)(3)(B), in the case 
of qualified first year wages paid to a 99er 
who has performed at least 120 hours, but 
less than 400 hours, of service for the em-
ployer, subsection (a) shall be applied by 
substituting ‘25 percent’ for ‘40 percent’. 
‘‘(ii) 
SECOND-YEAR
CREDIT 
AMOUNT.—With respect to the employment 
of a 99er, the amount of the work oppor-
tunity credit determined under this section 
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for the taxable year shall include 25 per-
cent of the qualified second-year wages for 
such year. 
‘‘(E) QUALIFIED SECOND-YEAR WAGES.— 
The term ‘qualified second-year wages’ means 
qualified wages— 
‘‘(i) which are paid to a 99er, and 
‘‘(ii) which are attributable to service 
rendered during the 1-year period begin-
ning on the day after the last day of the 
1-year period with respect to such recipient 
determined under subsection (b)(2). 
‘‘(F) LIMITATION
ON
WAGES
PER
YEAR 
TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT.—For purposes of this 
paragraph, the amount of the qualified first- 
year wages and qualified second-year wages 
which may be taken into account with respect 
to any individual shall not exceed $10,000 per 
year. 
‘‘(G) CREDIT MADE REFUNDABLE.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an 
eligible employer of an employee, the ag-
gregate credits allowed to a taxpayer under 
subpart C shall be increased by the credit 
which would be allowed under this section 
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