HB-4950, As Passed Senate, October 17, 2013

SUBSTITUTE FOR

HOUSE BILL NO. 4950

     A bill to amend 1936 (Ex Sess) PA 1, entitled

"Michigan employment security act,"

by amending section 20 (MCL 421.20), as amended by 2011 PA 269.

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

     Sec. 20. (a) Benefits paid shall be charged against the

employer's account as of the quarter in which the payments are

made. If the unemployment agency determines that any benefits

charged against an employer's account were improperly paid, an

amount equal to the charge based on those benefits shall be

credited to the employer's account and a corresponding charge shall

be made to the nonchargeable benefits account as of the date of the

charge. Benefits paid to an individual as a result of an employer's

failure to provide the unemployment agency with separation,

employment, and wage data as required by section 32 shall be

considered as benefits properly paid to the extent that the

benefits are chargeable to the noncomplying employer.If an employer

or employer's agent has a pattern of failing to respond with timely

or adequate information required or requested under section 32,

benefits paid to a claimant as a result of the employer's or

employer's agent's failure to provide timely or adequate

information shall be charged to that employer's account. To

demonstrate a pattern sufficient to render the benefits chargeable,

the unemployment agency shall document repeated failure to provide

timely or adequate responses and shall take into consideration the

number of instances of failure in relation to the number of

requests. The number of failures must be more than 4 and constitute

2% or more of all the requests directed to the employer during the

prior calendar year. A determination that an employer's account

shall be charged and that the employer's account shall not be

credited for the benefit payments is appealable in the same manner

as other unemployment determinations. Recovery of benefits

improperly paid to the claimant under this subsection shall be as

provided in section 62(a).

     (b) For benefit years established before October 1, 2000,

benefits paid to an individual shall be based upon the credit weeks

earned during the individual's base period and shall be charged

against the experience accounts of the contributing employers or

charged to the accounts of the reimbursing employers from whom the

individual earned credit weeks. If the individual earned credit

weeks from more than 1 employer, a separate determination shall be

made of the amount and duration of benefits based upon the total

credit weeks and wages earned with each employer. Benefits paid in

accordance with the determinations shall be charged against the

experience account of a contributing employer or charged to the

account of a reimbursing employer beginning with the most recent

employer first and thereafter as necessary against other base

period employers in inverse order to that in which the claimant

earned his or her last credit week with those employers. If there

is any disqualifying act or discharge under section 29(1) with an

employer, benefits based upon credit weeks earned from that

employer before the disqualifying act or discharge shall be charged

only after the exhaustion of charges as provided above. Benefits

based upon those credit weeks shall be charged first against the

experience account of the contributing employer involved or to the

account of the reimbursing employer involved in the most recent

disqualifying act or discharge and thereafter as necessary in

similar inverse order against other base period employers involved

in disqualifying acts or discharges. The order of charges

determined as of the beginning date of a benefit year shall remain

fixed during the benefit year. For benefit years established on or

after October 1, 2000, the claimant's full weekly benefit rate

shall be charged to the account or experience account of the

claimant's most recent separating employer for each of the first 2

weeks of benefits payable to the claimant in the benefit year in

accordance with the monetary determination issued pursuant to

section 32. However, if the total sum of wages paid by an employer

totals $200.00 or less, those wages shall be used for purposes of

benefit payment, but any benefit charges attributable to those

wages shall be charged to the nonchargeable benefits account.

Thereafter, remaining weeks of benefits payable in the benefit year

shall be paid in accordance with the monetary determination and

shall be charged proportionally to all base period employers, with

the charge to each base period employer being made on the basis of

the ratio that total wages paid by the employer in the base period

bears to total wages paid by all employers in the base period.

However, if the claimant did not perform services for the most

recent separating employer or employing entity and receive earnings

for performing the services of at least 40 times the state minimum

hourly wage times 7 during the claimant's most recent period of

employment with the employer or employing entity, then all weeks of

benefits payable in the benefit year shall be charged

proportionally to all base period employers, with the charge to

each base period employer being made on the basis of the ratio that

total wages paid by the employer in the base period bears to total

wages paid by all employers in the base period. If the claimant

performed services for the most recent separating employing entity

and received earnings for performing the services of at least 40

times the state minimum hourly wage times 7 during the claimant's

most recent period of employment for the employing entity but the

separating employing entity was not a liable employer, the first 2

weeks of benefits payable to the claimant shall be charged

proportionally to all base period employers, with the charge to

each base period employer made on the basis of the ratio that total

wages paid by the employer in the base period bears to total wages

paid by all employers in the base period. The "separating employer"

is the employer that caused the individual to be unemployed as

defined in section 48.

     (c) For benefit years established before October 1, 2000,

charges for regular benefits to reimbursing employers or to a

contributing employer's experience account shall be as formerly

provided in this subsection. and except as otherwise provided in

section 11(d) or (g) or section 46a, the charges for regular

benefits to any reimbursing employer or to any contributing

employer's experience account shall not exceed the weekly benefit

rate multiplied by 3/4 the number of credit weeks earned by the

individual during his or her base period from that employer. If the

resultant product is not an even multiple of 1/2 the weekly benefit

rate, the amount shall be raised to an amount equal to the next

higher multiple of 1/2 the weekly benefit rate, and in the case of

an individual who was employed by only 1 employer in his or her

base period and who earned 34 credit weeks with that employer, the

product shall be raised to the next higher multiple of the weekly

benefit rate.

     (d) For benefit years beginning on or after October 1, 2000,

and except as otherwise provided in section 11(d) or (g) or section

46, the charges for regular benefits to any reimbursing employer's

account or to any contributing employer's experience account shall

not exceed either the amount derived by multiplying by 2 the weekly

benefit rate chargeable to the employer in accordance with

subsection (b) if the employer is the separating employer and is

chargeable for the first 2 weeks of benefits, or the amount derived

from the percentage of the weekly benefit rate chargeable to the

employer in accordance with subsection (b), multiplied by the

number of weeks of benefits chargeable to base period employers

based on base period wages, to which the individual is entitled as

provided in section 27(d), if the employer is a base period

employer, or both of these amounts if the employer was both the

chargeable separating employer and a base period employer.

     (e) For benefit years beginning before October 1, 2000,

benefits and charging for multiemployer credit weeks shall be

determined as formerly provided in this subsection. :

     (1) If an individual has multiemployer credit weeks in his or

her base period, and if it becomes necessary to use those credit

weeks as a basis for benefit payments, a single determination shall

be made of the individual's weekly benefit rate and maximum amount

of benefits based on the individual's multiemployer credit weeks

and the wages earned in those credit weeks. Each employer involved

in the individual's multiemployer credit weeks shall be an

interested party to the determination. The proviso in section 29(2)

does not apply to multiemployer credit weeks, nor does the

reduction provision of section 29(4) apply to benefit entitlement

based upon those credit weeks.

     (2) The charge for benefits based on multiemployer credit

weeks shall be allocated to each employer involved on the basis of

the ratio that the total wages earned during the total

multiemployer credit weeks counted under section 50(b) with the

employer bears to the total amount of wages earned during the total

multiemployer credit weeks counted under section 50(b) with all

such employers, computed to the nearest cent. However, if an

adjusted weekly benefit rate is determined in accordance with

section 27(f), the charge to the employer who has contributed to

the financing of the retirement plan shall be reduced by the same

amount by which the weekly benefit rate was adjusted under section

27(f). Benefits for a week of unemployment allocated under this

subsection to a contributing employer shall be charged to the

nonchargeable benefits account if the claimant during that week

earns remuneration with that employer that equals or exceeds the

amount of benefits allocated to that employer.

     (3) Benefits paid in accordance with the determination based

on multiemployer credit weeks shall be allocated to each employer

involved and charged as of the quarter in which the payments are

made. Notice of charges made under this subsection shall be given

to each employer by means of a current listing of charges, at least

weekly, or of a quarterly statement of charges. The listing or

statement shall specify the weeks for which benefits were paid

based on multiemployer credit weeks and the amount of benefits paid

chargeable to that employer for each week. The notice shall be

considered to satisfy the requirements of sections 21(a) and 32(d)

that notification be given each employer of benefits charged

against that employer's account by means of a listing of the

benefit payment, and all protest and appeal rights applicable to

benefit payment listings shall also apply to the notice of charges.

If an employer receives both a current listing of charges and a

quarterly statement of charges under this subsection, all protest

and appeal rights shall only apply to the first notice given.

     (f) For benefit years beginning on or after October 1, 2000

and before January 1, 2014, if a base period contributing employer

notifies the unemployment agency that it paid gross wages to a

claimant in a week at least equal to the employer's benefit charge

for that claimant for the week, then the unemployment agency shall

issue a monetary redetermination noncharging the account of the

employer for that week and for the remaining weeks of the benefit

year for benefits payable to the claimant that would otherwise be

charged to the employer's account. For benefit years beginning on

or after January 1, 2014, benefits payable to an individual for a

week and for each remaining payable week in the benefit year shall

be charged to the nonchargeable benefits account if either of the

following occurs:

     (1) The individual reports gross earnings in the week with a

contributing base period employer at least equal to the employer's

benefit charges for that individual for the week.

     (2) A contributing base period employer timely protests a

determination charging benefits to its account for a week in which

the employer paid gross wages to an individual at least equal to

the employer's charges for benefits paid to that individual for

that week.

     (g) For benefit years beginning before October 1, 2000,

training benefits are determined as formerly provided in this

subsection. :

     (1) Training benefits as provided in section 27(g), and

extended benefits as provided in section 64, shall be allocated to

each reimbursing employer involved in the individual's base period

of the claim to which the benefits are related, on the basis of the

ratio that the total wages earned during the total credit weeks

counted under section 50(b) with a reimbursing employer bears to

the total amount of wages earned during the total credit weeks

counted under section 50(b) with all employers.

     (2) Training benefits and extended benefits, to the extent

that they are not reimbursable by the federal government and have

been allocated to a reimbursing employer, shall be charged to that

reimbursing employer. A contributing employer's experience account

shall not be charged with training benefits. Training benefits

based on service with a contributing employer, to the extent that

they are not reimbursable by the federal government, shall be

charged to the nonchargeable benefits account. Extended benefits

paid and based on service with a contributing employer, to the

extent that they are not reimbursable by the federal government,

shall be charged to that employer's experience account.

     (3) If the training benefits or extended benefits are

chargeable only to a single reimbursing employer, the benefits

shall be charged in accordance with subsection (a). If the training

benefits or extended benefits are chargeable to more than 1

reimbursing employer, or to 1 or more reimbursing employers and the

nonchargeable benefits account, the benefits shall be charged as of

the quarter in which the payments are made.

     (4) Notice of charges made under this subsection shall be

given to each employer by means of a current listing of charges, at

least weekly, and subsequently by a quarterly summary statement of

charges. The listing shall specify the name and social security

number of each claimant paid benefits during the week, the weeks

for which the benefits were paid, and the amount of benefits

chargeable to that employer paid for each week. The quarterly

statement of charges shall list each claimant by name and social

security number and shall show total benefit payments chargeable to

that employer and made to each claimant during the calendar

quarter. The listing shall be considered to satisfy the

requirements of sections 21(a) and 32(d) that notification be given

each employer of benefits charged against that employer's account

by means of a listing of the benefit payment. All protest and

appeal rights applicable to benefit payment listings shall also

apply to the notice of charges. If an employer receives both a

current listing of charges and a quarterly statement of charges

under this subsection, all protest and appeal rights shall only

apply to the first notice given.

     (h) For benefit years beginning on or after October 1, 2000:

     (1) Training benefits as provided in section 27(g), and

extended benefits as provided in section 64, shall be charged to

each reimbursing employer in the base period of the claim to which

the benefits are related, on the basis of the ratio that the total

wages paid by a reimbursing employer during the base period bears

to the total wages paid by all reimbursing employers in the base

period.

     (2) Training benefits, and extended benefits to the extent

they are not reimbursable by the federal government and have been

allocated to a reimbursing employer, shall be charged to that

reimbursing employer. A contributing employer's experience account

shall not be charged with training benefits. Training benefits

based on service with a contributing employer, to the extent they

are not reimbursable by the federal government, shall be charged to

the nonchargeable benefits account. Extended benefits paid and

based on service with a contributing employer, to the extent they

are not reimbursable by the federal government, shall be charged to

that employer's experience account.

     (3) If the training benefits or extended benefits are

chargeable only to a single reimbursing employer, the benefits

shall be charged in accordance with subsection (a). If the training

benefits or extended benefits are chargeable to more than 1

reimbursing employer, or to 1 or more reimbursing employers and the

nonchargeable benefits account, the benefits shall be charged as of

the quarter in which the payments are made.

     (4) Notice of charges made under this subsection shall be

given to each employer by means of a current listing of charges, at

least weekly, and subsequently by a quarterly summary statement of

charges. The listing shall specify the name and social security

number of each claimant paid benefits in the week, the weeks for

which the benefits were paid, and the amount of benefits chargeable

to that employer paid for each week. The quarterly summary

statement of charges shall list each claimant by name and social

security number and shall show total benefit payments chargeable to

that employer and made to each claimant during the calendar

quarter. The listing shall be considered to satisfy the

requirements of sections 21(a) and 32(d) 32(f) that notification be

given to each employer of benefits charged against that employer's

account by means of a listing of the benefit payment. All protest

and appeal rights applicable to benefit payment listings shall also

apply to the notice of charges. If an employer receives both a

current listing of charges and a quarterly summary statement of

charges under this subsection, all protest and appeal rights shall

only apply only to the first notice given.

     (i) If a benefit year is established on or after October 1,

2000, the portion of benefits paid in that benefit year that are

based on wages used to establish the immediately preceding benefit

year that began before October 1, 2000 shall not be charged to the

employer or employers who paid those wages but shall be charged

instead to the nonchargeable benefits account.

     (j) For benefits benefit years beginning after March 30, 2009,

benefits paid to a person who leaves employment to accompany a

spouse who is a full-time member of the United States armed forces

and is reassigned for military service in a different geographic

location are not chargeable to the employer, but shall be charged

to the nonchargeable benefits account.

     Enacting section 1. The provisions in section 20(a) of the

Michigan employment security act, 1936 (Ex Sess) PA 1, MCL 421.20,

as amended by this amendatory act, governing benefits that are

considered to be improperly paid because of failure to provide the

unemployment agency with timely or adequate information apply to

benefit payments made after October 21, 2013.

     Enacting section 2. This amendatory act does not take effect

unless all of the following bills of the 97th Legislature are

enacted into law:

     (a) House Bill No. 4949.

     (b) House Bill No. 4951.

     (c) House Bill No. 4952.

     (d) House Bill No. 4953.

     (e) House Bill No. 4954.