S-2214.1 _______________________________________________
SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5466
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State of Washington 53rd Legislature 1993 Regular Session
By Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce (originally sponsored by Senators Prentice, Moore, McAuliffe and Fraser)
Read first time 03/03/93.
AN ACT Relating to unemployment insurance for persons reentering the work force; amending RCW 50.06.010, 50.06.020, and 50.06.030; and creating a new section.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1. RCW 50.06.010 and 1984 c 65 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
This chapter is enacted
for the purpose of providing the protection of the unemployment compensation
system to persons who have suffered a temporary total disability compensable
under industrial insurance or crime victims compensation laws ((and)) or
who are reentering the work force after a temporary career disruption because
of participating in retraining or because of domestic reasons. Coverage under
this chapter is a recognition by the legislature that those persons who
temporarily leave the work force for retraining, whether to upgrade skills or
change careers, or because of choosing family responsibilities over career
opportunities such as providing care for preschool children or for ill family
members, have made a choice that benefits society as a whole. It is also
a recognition ((by this legislature)) of the economic hardship
confronting those persons who have not been promptly reemployed after a
prolonged period of ((temporary total disability)) absence from the
work force.
Sec. 2. RCW 50.06.020 and 1984 c 65 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
The benefits of this chapter may be allowed only to:
(1) Individuals
who have suffered a temporary total disability and have received compensation
under the industrial insurance or crime victims compensation laws of this
state, any other state or the United States for a period of not less than
thirteen consecutive calendar weeks by reason of such temporary total
disability ((shall be allowed the benefits of this chapter));
(2) Individuals who are reentering the work force after an absence related to: (a) Participating in a formal education or retraining program; or (b) domestic reasons, as defined by department rule, which include but are not limited to providing care for family members.
Sec. 3. RCW 50.06.030 and 1987 c 278 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) An application for initial determination made pursuant to this chapter, to be considered timely, must be filed in writing with the employment security department:
(a) For individuals eligible under RCW 50.06.020(1), within twenty-six weeks following the week in which the period of temporary total disability commenced. Notice from the department of labor and industries shall satisfy this requirement. The records of the agency supervising the award of compensation shall be conclusive evidence of the fact of temporary disability and the beginning date of such disability.
(b) For individuals eligible under RCW 50.06.020(2), within twenty-six weeks of termination of the individual's last employment. Notice must be provided by the individual under rules adopted by the employment security department.
(2) The employment security department shall process and issue an initial determination of entitlement or nonentitlement as the case may be.
(3) For the
purpose of this chapter, a special base year is established for an individual
consisting of either the first four of the last five completed calendar
quarters or the last four completed calendar quarters immediately prior to the
first day of the calendar week in which the individual's temporary total
disability or absence commenced, and a special individual benefit year
is established consisting of the entire period of disability or absence
and a fifty-two consecutive week period commencing with the first day of the
calendar week immediately following the week or part thereof with respect to
which the individual received his final temporary total disability compensation
under the applicable industrial insurance or crime victims compensation laws,
or the week in which the individual reentered the work force after an absence
under subsection (1)(b) of this section, as applicable, except that no
special benefit year shall have a duration in excess of three hundred twelve
calendar weeks((: PROVIDED)). However, ((That such))
the special benefit year will not be established unless the criteria
contained in RCW 50.04.030 has been met, except that an individual meeting the
((disability and filing)) eligibility requirements of this
chapter and who has an unexpired benefit year established which would overlap
the special benefit year provided by this chapter, notwithstanding the
provisions in RCW 50.04.030 relating to the establishment of a subsequent
benefit year and RCW 50.40.010 relating to waiver of rights, may elect to
establish a special benefit year under this chapter((: PROVIDED FURTHER,
that)). The unexpired benefit year shall be terminated with the
beginning of the special benefit year if the individual elects to establish
such special benefit year.
For the purposes of establishing a benefit year, the department shall initially use the first four of the last five completed calendar quarters as the base year. If a benefit year is not established using the first four of the last five calendar quarters as the base year, the department shall use the last four completed calendar quarters as the base year.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. If any part of this act is found to be in conflict with federal requirements that are a prescribed condition to the allocation of federal funds to the state or the eligibility of employers in this state for federal unemployment tax credits, the conflicting part of this act is hereby declared to be inoperative solely to the extent of the conflict, and such finding or determination shall not affect the operation of the remainder of this act. The rules under this act shall meet federal requirements that are a necessary condition to the receipt of federal funds by the state or the granting of federal unemployment tax credits to employers in this state.
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