An Act To Allocate a Portion of the Reed Act Distribution of 2002 To Use for the Administration of the Unemployment Insurance and Employment Services Programs
Maine Legislature, Session 126, LD 1802
Committee: Labor, Commerce, Research and Economic Development
Sponsors: PATRICK, HERBIG, CUSHING, VOLK

Legislative Document 
No. 1802 
S.P. 719 
In Senate, March 4, 2014 
An Act To Allocate a Portion of the Reed Act Distribution of 2002 
To Use for the Administration of the Unemployment Insurance and 
Employment Services Programs 
(EMERGENCY) 
Reference to the Committee on Labor, Commerce, Research and Economic Development 
suggested and ordered printed. 
DAREK M. GRANT 
Secretary of the Senate 
Presented by Senator PATRICK of Oxford.  (GOVERNOR'S BILL) 
Cosponsored by Representative HERBIG of Belfast and 
Senator: CUSHING of Penobscot, Representative: VOLK of Scarborough. 
Emergency preamble. Whereas, acts and resolves of the Legislature do not 
become effective until 90 days after adjournment unless enacted as emergencies; and 
Whereas, the Unemployment Reform Blue Ribbon Commission, established by 
Executive Order 2013-003, recognized significant staffing shortages within the 
Department of Labor, Bureau of Unemployment Compensation and recommended the 
addition of full-time staff; and 
Whereas, as a result of being understaffed, the Bureau of Unemployment 
Compensation has been unable to serve the unemployed citizens of Maine adequately in 
relation to the timeliness of claims processing, call center wait times, adjudications and 
hearings, and this inability has resulted in a below-standard level of service for Maine 
citizens; and 
Whereas, Maine remains out of compliance with the United States Department of 
Labor's minimum performance measures for timeliness; and 
Whereas, the Bureau of Unemployment Compensation and the Maine 
Unemployment Insurance Commission need to add full-time, permanent staff to reverse 
this trend, yet there are no federal or state funds readily available for this purpose; and 
Whereas, the Department of Labor, Bureau of Employment Services needs to fully 
fund a modernization of the bureau's Maine Job Bank computer system, expand the 
functionality of the system and access to the system and create a stable technological 
platform from which to deliver the services offered by the Maine Job Bank; and 
Whereas, the Department of Labor, Center for Workforce Research and Information 
needs to develop economic data critical to the reemployment of unemployed workers; and 
Whereas, in order to rectify quickly the staffing shortages and deliver services to 
the unemployed citizens of Maine, it is necessary that this legislation take effect as soon 
as possible; and 
Whereas, in the judgment of the Legislature, these facts create an emergency within 
the meaning of the Constitution of Maine and require the following legislation as 
immediately necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health and safety; now, 
therefore, 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  Money credited to State of Maine account in Unemployment Trust 
Fund under Section 903(d) and Section 903(f) of federal Social Security Act.    
Money credited to the account of the State of Maine in the federal Unemployment Trust 
Fund by the United States Secretary of the Treasury on March 13, 2002 pursuant to 
Section 903(d) of the federal Social Security Act and on July 29, 2009 pursuant to 
Section 903(f) of the federal Social Security Act may not be requisitioned from the State's 
account or used except for the payment of benefits and for the payment of expenses 
incurred for the administration of the State's unemployment compensation law and public 
employment offices.  Money used for the payment of benefits is requisitioned as defined 
in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 26, section 1162.  Money requisitioned and used for 
the payment of expenses incurred for the administration of the State's unemployment 
compensation law and public employment offices requires a specific appropriation by the 
Legislature as provided in section 2.  That use is only permissible if the expenses are 
incurred and the money is requisitioned after the effective date of a law making an 
appropriation and specifying the purposes for which the money is appropriated and the 
amounts appropriated for those purposes.  Any amount that may be obligated under such 
an appropriation is limited to an amount that does not exceed the amount by which the 
aggregate of the amounts transferred to the account of the State of Maine pursuant to 
Section 903(d) and Section 903(f) of the federal Social Security Act exceeds the 
aggregate of the amounts used by the State pursuant to this Act and charged against the 
amounts transferred to the account of the State of Maine. 
For purposes of this section, the amounts obligated under an appropriation for 
administrative purposes must be charged against transferred amounts at the exact time the 
obligation is entered into.  The appropriation, obligation and expenditure or other 
disposition of money appropriated under this section must be accounted for in accordance 
with standards established by the United States Secretary of Labor.  Money appropriated 
as provided in this Act for the payment of administration must be requisitioned as needed 
for the payment of obligations incurred under the appropriation and, upon requisition, 
must be deposited in the Employment Security Administration Fund from which 
payments are made.  Money so deposited must, until expended, remain a part of the 
unemployment fund and, if it will not be immediately expended, must be returned 
promptly to the account of the State of Maine in the Federal Unemployment Trust Fund. 
Sec. 2.  Allocation maintaining state unemployment compensation and 
public employment system.  There is allocated out of funds made available to the 
State under Section 903(d) and Section 903(f) of the federal Social Security Act, as 
amended, the sum of $17,500,000 in accordance with section 1, to be used under the 
direction of the Department of Labor, for the purpose of maintaining and operating the 
State's unemployment compensation and public employment system.  The uses include 
both personnel and nonpersonnel administrative costs required to administer the 
unemployment insurance program, deliver employment assistance services through the 
Department of Labor's career center system and provide labor market information 
program services for workers and employers in the State.  Prior to using the funds made 
available to the State under Section 903(f) of the federal Social Security Act, the funds 
made available to the State under Section 903(d) of the federal Social Security Act must 
be exhausted. 
The amount obligated pursuant to this Act may not exceed at any time the amount by 
which the aggregate of the amounts transferred to the account of the State of Maine 
pursuant to Section 903(d) and Section 903(f) of the federal Social Security Act exceeds 
the aggregate of the amounts obligated for administration and paid out for benefits and 
required by law to be charged against the amounts transferred to the State of Maine 
account. 
Emergency clause.  In view of the emergency cited in the preamble, this 
legislation takes effect when approved. 
SUMMARY 
Under federal law, Reed Act funds may be used to maintain a state's unemployment 
and public employment system or to pay regular unemployment benefits.  Maine received 
$32,486,816 in Reed Act funds in 2002.  Approximately $9,760,000 was appropriated for 
administrative purposes in 2003, and an additional $5,200,000 was appropriated for 
administrative purposes in 2007.  These appropriations were made primarily to cover 
technological and infrastructure needs and improvements for delivering unemployment, 
employment and labor market information services to Maine workers and employers.  
Currently, approximately $16,803,000 of the 2002 Reed Act distribution remains in the 
federal Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund.  Additionally, in 2009 Maine received a 
$28,200,000 distribution to the trust fund under the federal American Recovery and 
Reinvestment Act of 2009, which may be allocated to cover administrative expenses 
under the same conditions as Reed Act funds. This distribution remains untouched in the 
Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. 
This bill authorizes the use of $17,500,000 of the funds in the Unemployment Trust 
Fund, requiring that all of the 2002 Reed Act funds be used first before using any of the 
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 funds to meet the $17,500,000 
allocation.  The funds will be used to maintain and operate the State's unemployment and 
employment programs, including paying the administrative costs required to administer 
the unemployment insurance program, delivering employment assistance services 
through the Department of Labor's career center system and providing labor market 
information program services for Maine workers and employers.