Unemployment Insurance Improvement Act
Bill: S.2865 | Sponsor: Sen. Wyden, Ron (D-OR)
Policy area: Labor and Employment

Summary:
Unemployment Insurance Improvement Act
This bill expands the list of requirements a state unemployment compensation system must follow to be compliant under federal law.
Specifically, the bill requires the maximum benefit period available to an individual be at least 26 weeks. The base period used to determine unemployment eligibility must consist of at least four completed calendar quarters preceding the claim and must include the most recently completed calendar quarter. Further, compensation must not be denied to an otherwise eligible individual who earns at least $1,000 during the highest quarter and at least $1,500 during the entire base period. Finally, compensation must not be denied under an ability to work, active search for work, or refusal to accept work provision solely on the basis of the number of hours of work the individual is seeking, so long as the individual is seeking at least 20 hours of work or half the hours the individual typically worked.
Employers that pay unemployment taxes to a noncompliant state system cannot claim amounts paid into the state system as a credit against federal unemployment tax due.
The bill also requires states to meet specified online claim system accessibility requirements and to ensure that offline means of filing are available. A state that does not comply cannot receive federal funds for administration of its state unemployment system.


To improve the unemployment insurance program.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Unemployment 
Insurance Improvement Act''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Floor on the number of weeks.
Sec. 3. Base period.
Sec. 4. Minimum level of prior employment.
Sec. 5. Part-time work.
Sec. 6. Access to benefits.

SEC. 2. FLOOR ON THE NUMBER OF WEEKS.

    (a) In General.--Section 3304(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986 is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (18), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) by redesignating paragraph (19) as paragraph (20); and
            (3) by inserting after paragraph (18) the following new 
        paragraph:
            ``(19) the minimum duration of benefits is at least 26 
        weeks and no variable duration formula that provides for 
        maximum weeks of benefits of fewer than 26 weeks is used, or, 
        in the case of a State that uses a maximum benefit entitlement, 
        an individual's maximum benefit entitlement may not be less 
        than 26 times the individual's weekly benefit amount; and''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
apply to weeks of unemployment beginning on or after the earlier of--
            (1) the date the State changes its statutes, regulations, 
        or policies in order to comply with such amendments; or
            (2) January 1, 2024.

SEC. 3. BASE PERIOD.

    (a) In General.--Section 3304(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986, as amended by section 2, is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (19), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) by redesignating paragraph (20) as paragraph (21); and
            (3) by inserting after paragraph (19) the following new 
        paragraphs:
            ``(20) the State law--
                    ``(A) uses a base period that consists of at least 
                4 completed calendar quarters preceding the effective 
                date of the claim and includes the most recently 
                completed calendar quarter before the start of the 
                benefit year for purposes of determining eligibility 
                for unemployment compensation; or
                    ``(B) provides that, in the case of an individual 
                who would not otherwise be eligible for unemployment 
                compensation under the State law because of the use of 
                a base period that does not meet the requirements 
                described in subparagraph (A), eligibility is 
                determined using a base period that consists of at 
                least 4 completed calendar quarters preceding the 
                effective date of the claim and includes the most 
                recently completed calendar quarter before the start of 
                the benefit year; and''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
apply to weeks of unemployment beginning on or after the earlier of--
            (1) the date the State changes its statutes, regulations, 
        or policies in order to comply with such amendments; or
            (2) January 1, 2024.

SEC. 4. MINIMUM LEVEL OF PRIOR EMPLOYMENT.

    (a) Requirement.--
            (1) In general.--Section 3304(a) of the Internal Revenue 
        Code of 1986, as amended by sections 2 and 3, is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (20), by striking ``and'' at the 
                end;
                    (B) by redesignating paragraph (21) as paragraph 
                (22); and
                    (C) by inserting after paragraph (20) the following 
                new paragraph:
            ``(21) compensation is not denied to an otherwise eligible 
        individual if the individual earned at least $1,000 in covered 
        wages during the highest quarter of the base period and at 
        least $1,500 in covered wages during the base period; and''.
            (2) State may reduce minimum thresholds.--Nothing in 
        paragraph (21) of section 3304(a) of the Internal Revenue Code 
        of 1986, as added by paragraph (1), shall preclude a State from 
        reducing the dollar thresholds described in such paragraph 
        (22).
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
apply to weeks of unemployment beginning on or after the earlier of--
            (1) the date the State changes its statutes, regulations, 
        or policies in order to comply with such amendments; or
            (2) January 1, 2024.

SEC. 5. PART-TIME WORK.

    (a) In General.--Section 3304(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986, as amended by sections 2, 3, and 4, is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (21), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) by redesignating paragraph (22) as paragraph (25); and
            (3) by inserting after paragraph (21) the following new 
        paragraphs:
            ``(22) an individual is not denied unemployment 
        compensation under any State law provisions relating to ability 
        to work, availability for work, active search for work, or 
        refusal to accept work, solely on the basis of the number of 
        hours of work such individual is seeking, provided that the 
        individual is seeking at least the lesser of--
                    ``(A) 20 hours of work per week; or
                    ``(B) a number of hours of work per week equal to 
                at least one half of the typical number of hours worked 
                per week in the individual's base period;
            ``(23) an individual may claim benefits for a week of 
        partial unemployment, including in circumstances where an 
        individual has had their hours reduced or performs part-time 
        work while continuing to search for additional part-time or 
        full-time work, if their earnings are less than the 
        individual's weekly benefit amount;
            ``(24) when determining the weekly benefit amount for an 
        individual claiming a benefit for a week of partial 
        unemployment, the State disregards, at a minimum, earnings 
        equal to \1/3\ of the individual's weekly benefit amount in 
        computing the individual's weekly benefit for partial 
        unemployment; and''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
apply to weeks of unemployment beginning on or after the earlier of--
            (1) the date the State changes its statutes, regulations, 
        or policies in order to comply with such amendments; or
            (2) January 1, 2024.

SEC. 6. ACCESS TO BENEFITS.

    Section 303 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 503) is amended 
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(n) Access to Benefits.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than January 1, 2024, the 
        State agency charged with the administration of the State law 
        shall, in accordance with standards established by the 
        Secretary--
                    ``(A) require that employers in the State provide 
                information regarding claim-filing for unemployment 
                compensation to employees upon separation from 
                employment;
                    ``(B) have in place methods for employers to notify 
                the State workforce agency of employees who may apply 
                for unemployment compensation due to short-term 
                layoffs, business shutdowns, partial unemployment, and 
                short-time compensation;
                    ``(C) ensure that any online claim-filing system 
                used by the State--
                            ``(i) can be readily understood and used by 
                        the vast majority of applicants and claimants, 
                        including individuals with limited English 
                        proficiency, individuals with disabilities, 
                        older individuals, and individuals with 
                        literacy challenges;
                            ``(ii) is available in any language spoken 
                        by more than 1 percent of the State's 
                        population (with such translations completed by 
                        human translators rather than translation 
                        software);
                            ``(iii) is accessible and optimized for all 
                        commonly used desktop computers, tablets, and 
                        mobile devices and operating systems such that 
                        any features of the online claim filing 
                        component (such as the ability to upload 
                        documentation) that are available in the 
                        desktop version of the online claim filing 
                        component are also available in the tablet and 
                        mobile versions;
                            ``(iv) allows for electronic submission of 
                        documentation required to support a claim, 
                        including the ability of applicants and 
                        claimants to scan or photograph and submit 
                        documentation using a tablet or mobile device;
                            ``(v) is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a 
                        week, with the exception of scheduled and 
                        emergency maintenance that shall be conducted, 
                        to the extent practicable, at nonpeak hours;
                            ``(vi) provides self-service account 
                        recovery that can be completed online; and
                            ``(vii) deploys multiple methods of 
                        communication with applicants and claimants, 
                        such as short message service (SMS) message, 
                        email, postal mail, live chat, or chatbots; and
                    ``(D) ensure that alternate means of claim filing 
                are available for individuals who are unable to file 
                through the State's online claim-filing system.
            ``(2) Enforcement.--Whenever the Secretary of Labor, after 
        reasonable notice and opportunity for hearing to the State 
        agency charged with the administration of the State law, finds 
        that there is a failure to comply substantially with the 
        requirements of paragraph (1), the Secretary of Labor shall 
        notify such State agency that further payments will not be made 
        to the State until the Secretary of Labor is satisfied that 
        there is no longer any such failure. Until the Secretary of 
        Labor is so satisfied, such Secretary shall make no future 
        certification to the Secretary of the Treasury with respect to 
        the State.''.
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