BILL NUMBER: AB 2364	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Nava

                        FEBRUARY 19, 2010

   An act to amend Sections 1030, 1032, 1256, 1329, 1329.1, 1537, and
3011 of, and to repeal Division 5 (commencing with Section 12100)
of, the Unemployment Insurance Code, relating to unemployment
insurance, and making an appropriation therefor.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 2364, as introduced, Nava. Unemployment insurance: benefits:
good cause to leave work.
   Existing law provides for unemployment compensation benefits to
eligible individuals who are unemployed through no fault of their
own. Existing law authorizes any employer who is entitled to receive
specified notice of an unemployment claim, to, within 10 days after
mailing of the notice, submit to the Employment Development
Department specified facts disclosing whether the claimant for
benefits left the employer's employ voluntarily and with good cause
under certain circumstances, including, among other things, that the
claimant left the employer's employ to protect his or her children or
himself or herself from domestic violence abuse.
   This bill would revise various provisions governing eligibility
for unemployment compensation benefits to specify that a claimant is
eligible for benefits where he or she left an employer's employ to
protect his or her family from domestic violence abuse. By increasing
the number of persons who may be eligible to receive unemployment
compensation benefits, thereby providing for increased amounts
payable from the Unemployment Insurance Fund, the bill would make an
appropriation.
   Existing law requires the department, upon the filing of a new
claim for benefits, to promptly make a computation regarding the
maximum amount of benefits payable, and to promptly notify the
claimant of the computation.
   This bill would also require the department to promptly notify the
claimant of the method of computation.
   Existing law requires, whenever any warrant drawn on an account in
the Unemployment Fund, the Unemployment Administration Fund, the
Contingent Fund, or the Disability Fund by the Controller remains
unclaimed after 3 years, that amount reverts to the account and the
fund from which the amount was payable.
   This bill would reduce that time period for reversion of those
amounts to one year.
   Existing law requires the department to administer specified
provisions related to leisure sharing, to become operative upon the
date that any federal or other funds are received, and specifies that
those provisions shall remain in effect for a period of 3 years
after that date.
   This bill would repeal those laws related to leisure sharing.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 1030 of the Unemployment Insurance Code is
amended to read:
   1030.  (a) Any employer who is entitled under Section 1327 to
receive notice of the filing of a new or additional claim may, within
10 days after mailing of the notice, submit to the department any
facts within its possession disclosing whether the claimant left the
employer's employ voluntarily and without good cause or left under
one of the following circumstances:
   (1) The claimant was discharged from the employment for misconduct
connected with his or her work.
   (2) The claimant's discharge or quitting from his or her most
recent employer was the result of an irresistible compulsion to use
or consume intoxicants including alcoholic beverages.
   (3) The claimant was a student employed on a temporary basis and
whose employment began within, and ended with his or her leaving to
return to school at the close of, his or her vacation period.
   (4) The claimant left the employer's employ to accompany his or
her spouse or domestic partner to or join her or him at a place from
which it is impractical to commute to the employment, to which a
transfer of the claimant by the employer is not available.
   (5) The claimant left the employer's employ to protect his or her
 children   family  or himself or herself
from domestic violence abuse.
   The period during which the employer may submit these facts may be
extended by the director for good cause.
   (b) Any base period employer that is not entitled under Section
1327 to receive notice of the filing of a new or additional claim and
is entitled under Section 1329 to receive notice of computation may,
within 15 days after mailing of the notice of computation, submit to
the department any facts within its possession disclosing whether
the claimant left the employer's employ voluntarily and without good
cause or left under one of the following circumstances:
   (1) The claimant was discharged from the employment for misconduct
connected with his or her work.
   (2) The claimant was a student employed on a temporary basis and
whose employment began within, and ended with his or her leaving to
return to school at the close of, his or her vacation period.
   (3) The claimant left the employer's employ to accompany his or
her spouse or domestic partner to or join her or him at a place from
which it is impractical to commute to the employment, to which a
transfer of the claimant by the employer is not available.
   (4) The claimant left the employer's employ to protect his or her
 children   family  or himself or herself
from domestic violence abuse.
   The period during which the employer may submit these facts may be
extended by the director for good cause.
   (c) The department shall consider these facts together with any
information in its possession. If the employer is entitled to a
ruling under subdivision (b) or to a determination under Section
1328, the department shall promptly notify the employer of its ruling
as to the cause of the termination of the claimant's employment. The
employer may appeal from a ruling or reconsidered ruling to an
administrative law judge within 20 days after mailing or personal
service of notice of the ruling or reconsidered ruling. The 20-day
period may be extended for good cause, which includes, but is not
limited to, mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect.
The director is an interested party to any appeal. The department may
for good cause reconsider any ruling or reconsidered ruling within
either five days after the date an appeal to an administrative law
judge is filed or, if no appeal is filed, within 20 days after
mailing or personal service of notice of the ruling or reconsidered
ruling. However, a ruling or reconsidered ruling that relates to a
determination that is reconsidered pursuant to subdivision (a) of
Section 1332 may also be reconsidered by the department within the
time provided for reconsideration of that determination.
   (d) For purposes of this section only, if the claimant voluntarily
leaves the employer's employ without notification to the employer of
the reasons for the leaving, and if the employer submits all of the
facts within its possession concerning the leaving within the
applicable time period referred to in this section, the leaving is
presumed to be without good cause.
   (e) An individual whose employment is terminated under the
compulsory retirement provisions of a collective bargaining agreement
to which the employer is a party shall not be deemed to have
voluntarily left his or her employment without good cause.
  SEC. 2.  Section 1032 of the Unemployment Insurance Code is amended
to read:
   1032.  If it is ruled under Section 1030 or 1328 that the claimant
left the employer's employ voluntarily and without good cause, or
left under one of the following circumstances, benefits paid to the
claimant subsequent to the termination of employment that are based
upon wages earned from the employer prior to the date of the
termination of employment shall not be charged to the account of the
employer, except as provided by Section 1026, unless the employer
failed to furnish the information specified in Section 1030 within
the time limit prescribed in that section or unless that ruling is
reversed by a reconsidered ruling:
   (a) The claimant was discharged by reason of misconduct connected
with his or her work.
   (b) The claimant was a student employed on a temporary basis and
whose employment began within, and ended with his or her leaving to
return to school at the close of, his or her vacation period.
   (c) The claimant left the employer's employ to accompany his or
her spouse or domestic partner to or join her or him at a place from
which it is impractical to commute to the employment, to which a
transfer of the claimant by the employer is not available.
   (d) The claimant left the employer's employ to protect his or her
 children   family  or himself or herself
from domestic violence abuse.
   (e) The claimant left the employer's employ to take a
substantially better job.
   (f) The claimant's discharge or quitting from his or her most
recent employer was the result of an irresistible compulsion to use
or consume intoxicants including alcoholic beverages.
   For purposes of this section and Section 1030 "spouse" includes a
person to whom marriage is imminent.
  SEC. 3.  Section 1256 of the Unemployment Insurance Code is amended
to read:
   1256.  An individual is disqualified for unemployment compensation
benefits if the director finds that he or she left his or her most
recent work voluntarily without good cause or that he or she has been
discharged for misconduct connected with his or her most recent
work.
   An individual is presumed to have been discharged for reasons
other than misconduct in connection with his or her work and not to
have voluntarily left his or her work without good cause unless his
or her employer has given written notice to the contrary to the
department as provided in Section 1327, setting forth facts
sufficient to overcome the presumption. The presumption provided by
this section is rebuttable.
   An individual whose employment is terminated under the compulsory
retirement provisions of a collective bargaining agreement to which
the employer is a party, shall not be deemed to have left his or her
work without good cause.
   An individual may be deemed to have left his or her most recent
work with good cause if he or she leaves employment to accompany his
or her spouse or domestic partner to a place from which it is
impractical to commute to the employment. For purposes of this
section "spouse" includes a person to whom marriage is imminent.
   An individual may be deemed to have left his or her most recent
work with good cause if he or she leaves employment to protect his or
her  children   family  , or himself or
herself, from domestic violence abuse.
   An individual shall be deemed to have left his or her most recent
work with good cause if he or she elects to be laid off in place of
an employee with less seniority pursuant to a provision in a
collective bargaining agreement that provides that an employee with
more seniority may elect to be laid off in place of an employee with
less seniority when the employer has decided to lay off employees.
  SEC. 4.  Section 1329 of the Unemployment Insurance Code is amended
to read:
   1329.  (a) Upon the filing of a new claim for benefits, the
department shall promptly make a computation on the claim that shall
set forth the maximum amount of benefits potentially payable during
the benefit year, and the weekly benefit amount. The department shall
promptly notify the claimant of the computation  and the method
of computation  . The department shall promptly notify each of
the claimant's base period employers of the computation after the
payment of the first weekly benefit.
   (b) The department shall promptly notify each of the claimant's
base period employers of the computation on the claim that shall set
forth the number of weeks that the claimant will be eligible for
benefits in the benefit year, the weekly benefit amount, and the
maximum amount of benefits potentially payable during the benefit
year, based on a determination of eligibility under Article 1.5
(commencing with Section 1266).
  SEC. 5.  Section 1329.1 is added to the Unemployment Insurance
Code, to read:
   1329.1.  A claim for unemployment compensation benefits may be
canceled if all of the following apply:
   (a) The individual has not been deemed ineligible for unemployment
compensation benefits.
   (b) The individual has not been overpaid unemployment compensation
benefits.
   (c) The individual has not collected unemployment compensation
benefits.
  SEC. 6.  Section 1537 of the Unemployment Insurance Code is amended
to read:
   1537.  Whenever any warrant drawn on an account in the
Unemployment Fund or on the Unemployment Administration Fund or the
Contingent Fund by the  State  Controller remains
unclaimed after  three years   one year 
the amount thereof shall revert to the account and the fund from
which the amount was payable.
  SEC. 7.  Section 3011 of the Unemployment Insurance Code is amended
to read:
   3011.  Whenever any warrant is drawn on an account in the
Disability fund by the  State  Controller, and the
same remains unclaimed after  three years   one
year  , the amount thereof shall revert to that account in the
Disability Fund from which the amount was payable.
  SEC. 8.  Division 5 (commencing with Section 12100) of the
Unemployment Insurance Code is repealed.