Title: Worker First Act of 2020
Policy area: Labor and Employment

Summary:
Worker First Act of 2020  This bill provides incentive payments to states for unemployment compensation programs if the states implement certain policies with respect to worker safety, employment separation, compensation for individuals working reduced hours, and the minimum duration of benefits.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4252 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4252

      To provide funding for States to improve their unemployment 
             compensation programs, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 21, 2020

Mr. Wyden (for himself, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Sanders, Ms. Cortez Masto, 
Mr. Markey, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Blumenthal, and Ms. Warren) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                                Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
      To provide funding for States to improve their unemployment 
             compensation programs, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Worker First Act of 2020''.

SEC. 2. SPECIAL TRANSFERS FOR UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION IMPROVEMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Section 903 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1103) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(j) Special Transfers in Fiscal Years 2020, 2021, 2022 for 
Improvements.--
            ``(1) Transfers.--
                    ``(A) In general.--In addition to any other 
                amounts, the Secretary of Labor shall provide for the 
                making of unemployment compensation modernization 
                incentive payments (in this subsection referred to as 
                `incentive payments') to the accounts of the States in 
                the Unemployment Trust Fund, by transfer from amounts 
                reserved for that purpose in the Federal unemployment 
                account, in accordance with succeeding provisions of 
                this subsection.
                    ``(B) Maximum incentive payment.--The maximum 
                incentive payment allowable under this subsection with 
                respect to any State shall, as determined by the 
                Secretary of Labor, be equal to the amount obtained by 
                multiplying $10,000,000,000 by the same ratio as would 
                apply under subsection (a)(2)(B) for purposes of 
                determining such State's share of any excess amount (as 
                described in subsection (a)(1)) that would have been 
                subject to transfer to State accounts, as of October 1, 
                2019, under the provisions of subsection (a).
                    ``(C) Allotments.--Of the maximum incentive payment 
                determined under subparagraph (B) with respect to a 
                State--
                            ``(i) one-third shall be transferred to the 
                        account of such State upon a certification 
                        under paragraph (6) that the State meets the 
                        requirements of paragraph (2);
                            ``(ii) one-third shall be transferred to 
                        the account of such State upon a certification 
                        under paragraph (6) that the State law of such 
                        State meets the requirements of paragraph (3); 
                        and
                            ``(iii) the remainder shall be transferred 
                        to the account of such State upon a 
                        certification under paragraph (6) that the 
                        State law of such State meets the requirements 
                        of paragraph (4).
            ``(2) Worker safety.--A State meets the requirements of 
        this paragraph if the State provides the Secretary with 
        assurances that the State is enforcing laws, policies, or 
        regulations (and will continue to enforce such laws, policies, 
        or regulations through the later of December 31, 2021, or the 
        end of emergency period described in section 1135(g)(1)(B)) 
        under which--
                    ``(A) work is not considered to be suitable work 
                under the State law unless the work is in compliance 
                with all applicable health and safety guidelines and 
                standards related to the prevention of occupational 
                exposure to COVID-19, including such guidelines and 
                standards issued by the Occupational Safety and Health 
                Administration, under State plans approved under 
                section 18 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 
                1970, by the Centers for Disease Control and 
                Prevention, and Federal, State, or by local public 
                health authorities; and
                    ``(B) an individual is not disqualified from 
                regular unemployment compensation under the State law 
                for separating from employment if that separation is 
                because the work is not in compliance with all 
                applicable health and safety guidelines and standards 
                described in subparagraph (A).
            ``(3) Modernization.--The State law of a State meets the 
        requirements of this paragraph if such State law provides for 
        each of the following:
                    ``(A) An individual is not disqualified from 
                regular unemployment compensation for separating from 
                employment if that separation is for any compelling 
                family reason. For purposes of this subparagraph, the 
                term `compelling family reason' means the following:
                            ``(i) Domestic violence, sexual assault, 
                        stalking, or harassment, verified by such 
                        reasonable and confidential documentation as 
                        the State law may require, which causes the 
                        individual reasonably to believe that such 
                        individual's continued employment would 
                        jeopardize the safety of the individual or of 
                        any member of the individual's immediate family 
                        (as defined by the Secretary of Labor).
                            ``(ii) The illness or disability of a 
                        member of the individual's immediate family (as 
                        those terms are defined by the Secretary of 
                        Labor).
                            ``(iii) The need for the individual to 
                        accompany such individual's spouse--
                                    ``(I) to a place from which it is 
                                impractical for such individual to 
                                commute; and
                                    ``(II) due to a change in location 
                                of the spouse's employment.
                    ``(B) The State law--
                            ``(i) uses a base period that includes the 
                        most recently completed calendar quarter before 
                        the start of the benefit year for purposes of 
                        determining eligibility for unemployment 
                        compensation; or
                            ``(ii) 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 include the most recently completed 
                        calendar quarter before the start of the 
                        benefit year, eligibility is determined using a 
                        base period that includes such calendar 
                        quarter.
                    ``(C) An individual is not denied unemployment 
                compensation under any State law provisions relating to 
                availability for work, active search for work, or 
                refusal to accept work, solely because such individual 
                is seeking only part-time work (as defined by the 
                Secretary of Labor).
                    ``(D) The State's definition of suitable work 
                includes health and safety considerations that ensure 
                that a position shall not be deemed suitable for an 
                individual if the circumstances present any unusual 
                risk to the health or safety of the individual.
            ``(4) Expansion.--The State law of a State meets the 
        requirements of this paragraph if such State law provides for 
        each of the following:
                    ``(A) Payment of short-time compensation is made 
                under a short-time compensation program (as defined in 
                section 3306(v) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986).
                    ``(B) 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.
            ``(5) Application.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Any State seeking an incentive 
                payment under this subsection shall submit an 
                application therefor at such time, in such manner, and 
                complete with such information as the Secretary of 
                Labor may within 60 days after the date of the 
                enactment of this subsection prescribe (whether by 
                regulation or otherwise), including information 
                relating to compliance with the requirements of 
                paragraph (2), (3), or (4), as well as how the State 
                intends to use the incentive payment to improve or 
                strengthen the State's unemployment compensation 
                program. The Secretary of Labor shall, within 30 days 
                after receiving a complete application, notify the 
                State agency of the State of the Secretary's findings 
                with respect to the requirements of paragraph (2), (3), 
                or (4), as the case may be.
                    ``(B) Limitation.--No application under 
                subparagraph (A) may be considered if submitted--
                            ``(i) prior to the date of enactment of 
                        this subsection; or
                            ``(ii) after the latest date necessary (as 
                        specified by the Secretary of Labor) to ensure 
                        that all incentive payments under this 
                        subsection are made on or before December 31, 
                        2021.
            ``(6) Certification.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraphs (B) and 
                (C), if the Secretary of Labor finds that--
                            ``(i) the State meets the requirements of 
                        paragraph (2); or
                            ``(ii) the State law provisions 
                        (disregarding any State law provisions which 
                        are not then currently in effect as permanent 
                        law or which are subject to discontinuation) 
                        meet the requirements of paragraph (3) or (4), 
                        as the case may be;
                the Secretary of Labor shall make a certification to 
                that effect to the Secretary of the Treasury, together 
                with a certification as to the amount of the incentive 
                payment to be transferred to the State account pursuant 
                to that finding. The Secretary of the Treasury shall 
                make the appropriate transfer within 7 days after 
                receiving such certification.
                    ``(B) Special rule.--For purposes of subparagraph 
                (A)(ii), State law provisions that are to take effect 
                within 2 months after the date of their certification 
                under subparagraph (A) shall be considered to be in 
                effect as of the date of such certification.
                    ``(C) Additional requirements for certification.--
                            ``(i) Compliance with other state law 
                        requirements.--No certification of compliance 
                        with the requirements of paragraph (2), (3), or 
                        (4) may be made with respect to any State whose 
                        State law is not otherwise eligible for 
                        certification under section 303 or approvable 
                        under section 3304 of the Internal Revenue Code 
                        of 1986.
                            ``(ii) Compliance with worker safety 
                        requirements.--No certification of compliance 
                        with the requirements of paragraph (3) or (4) 
                        may be made with respect to any State that does 
                        not meet the requirements of paragraph (2).
            ``(7) Use of incentive payments.--
                    ``(A) Benefits.--Except as provided in subparagraph 
                (B), any amount transferred to the account of a State 
                under this subsection may be used by such State only in 
                the payment of cash benefits to individuals with 
                respect to their unemployment, exclusive of expenses of 
                administration.
                    ``(B) Administration.--A State may, subject to the 
                same conditions described in subsection (c)(2) 
                (excluding subparagraph (B) of such subsection, and 
                deeming the reference to `subsections (a) and (b)' in 
                subparagraph (D) of such subsection to include this 
                subsection), use any amount transferred to the account 
                of such State under this subsection for the 
                administration of its unemployment compensation law 
                (including administration for carrying out the 
                provisions of, and amendments made, by subtitle A of 
                title II of division A of the CARES Act) and public 
                employment offices, including improvements in 
                technology.
            ``(8) Funding.--Out of any money in the Federal 
        unemployment account not otherwise appropriated, the Secretary 
        of the Treasury shall reserve $10,000,000,000 for incentive 
        payments under this subsection. Any amount so reserved shall 
        not be taken into account for purposes of any determination 
        under section 902, 910, or 1203 of the amount in the Federal 
        unemployment account as of any given time. Any amount so 
        reserved for which the Secretary of the Treasury has not 
        received a certification under paragraph (6) by the deadline 
        described in paragraph (5)(B)(ii) shall, on January 1, 2022, 
        become unrestricted as to use as part of the Federal 
        unemployment account.
            ``(9) Definitions.--In this subsection, the terms `benefit 
        year', `base period', and `week' have the respective meanings 
        given such terms under section 205 of the Federal-State 
        Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970 (26 U.S.C. 3304 
        note).''.
    (b) Regulations.--The Secretary of Labor may prescribe any 
regulations, operating instructions, or other guidance necessary to 
carry out the amendment made by subsection (a).
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