BILL NUMBER: AB 615 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 25, 2013
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Bocanegra
FEBRUARY 20, 2013
An act to amend Section Sections 1142 and
1253.3 of , and to repeal Sections 1451, 1452, 1453, and
1454 of, the Unemployment Insurance Code, relating to
unemployment insurance.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 615, as amended, Bocanegra. Unemployment insurance: classified
employees.
Existing law provides for the payment of unemployment compensation
benefits and extended duration benefits to eligible persons who meet
specified requirements. Existing law prohibits the payment of
unemployment benefits to education employees of a public entity, as
defined, including teachers, researchers, and administrators for the
period between 2 academic years when there is a reasonable assurance
that the employee will perform his or her regular services in the
subsequent academic year, except as specified. Existing law similarly
prohibits the payment of unemployment benefits to specified
education employees of a public entity, other than teachers,
researchers, or administrators between 2 academic years, except as
specified, but provides a procedure for this 2nd category of
educational employees, under certain conditions, to seek payment of
retroactive unemployment benefits for the period between 2 academic
years. Existing law requires specified notice regarding
reasonable assurance of employment in the following academic term be
sent to employees before the end of the current academic term.
Existing law also authorizes payment of unemployment insurance
benefits, using funds from the Department of Education, to the 2nd
category of educational employees at specified schools between
academic terms in circumstances where benefits would otherwise be
denied.
This bill would delete the prohibition on the payment of
unemployment benefits to education employees, other than teachers,
researchers, and administrators, as specified, between 2 academic
years and would make conforming changes , including deleting the
notice of reasonable assurance of employm ent
requirements regarding these employees and eliminating the provisions
for payment of unemployment benefits to these employees
at the specified schools .
Because this bill would expand the categories of people who could
receive benefits from the Unemployment Insurance Fund, a
continuously-appropriated fund, it would make an appropriation.
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 1142 of the
Unemployment Insurance Code is amended to read:
1142. (a) If the director finds that any employer or any
employee, officer, or agent of any employer, in submitting facts
concerning the termination of a claimant's employment pursuant to
Section 1030, 1327, 3654, 3701, 4654, or 4701, willfully makes a
false statement or representation or willfully fails to report a
material fact concerning that termination, the director shall assess
a penalty of an amount not less than 2 nor more than 10 times the
weekly benefit amount of that claimant. The director shall assess
this penalty in the following manner:
(1) If the director finds that the employer was at fault for
willfully making a false statement or representation or willfully
failing to report a material fact concerning that termination, the
director shall assess the penalty against the employer.
(2) If the director finds that the agent of the employer was at
fault for willfully making a false statement or representation or
willfully failing to report a material fact concerning that
termination, the director shall assess the penalty against the agent
of the employer.
(3) If the director finds that the employer and the agent of the
employer were both at fault for willfully making a false statement or
representation or willfully failing to report a material fact
concerning that termination, the director shall assess the penalty
against the employer and also shall assess another penalty against
the agent of the employer.
(b) If the director finds that any employer or any employee,
officer, or agent of any employer, in submitting a written statement
concerning the reasonable assurance, as defined in subdivision
(g) (f) of Section 1253.3, of a
claimant's reemployment, as required by subdivisions (b),
(c), and (i) subdivision (b) of Section 1253.3,
willfully makes a false statement or representation or willfully
fails to report a material fact concerning the reasonable assurance
of that reemployment, the director shall assess a penalty of an
amount not less than 2 nor more than 10 times the weekly benefit
amount of that claimant. The director shall assess this penalty in
the following manner:
(1) If the director finds that the employer was at fault for
willfully making a false statement or representation or willfully
failing to report a material fact concerning the reasonable assurance
of that reemployment, the director shall assess the penalty against
the employer.
(2) If the director finds that the agent of the employer was at
fault for willfully making a false statement or representation or
willfully failing to report a material fact concerning the reasonable
assurance of that reemployment, the director shall assess the
penalty against the agent of the employer.
(3) If the director finds that the employer and the agent of the
employer were both at fault for willfully making a false statement or
representation or willfully failing to report a material fact
concerning the reasonable assurance of that reemployment, the
director shall assess the penalty against the employer and also shall
assess another penalty against the agent of the employer.
(c) (1) This article, Article 9 (commencing with Section 1176) of
this chapter with respect to refunds, and Chapter 7 (commencing with
Section 1701) of this part with respect to collections shall apply to
the assessments provided by this section. Penalties collected under
this section shall be deposited in the contingent fund.
(2) Notwithstanding Section 1586, additional penalties that are
assessed against an agent of the employer and collected pursuant to
paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) and paragraph (3) of subdivision (b)
shall be available for the purposes specified in Section 1586 upon
appropriation by the Legislature for those purposes.
SECTION 1. SEC. 2. Section 1253.3 of
the Unemployment Insurance Code is amended to read:
1253.3. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this division,
unemployment compensation benefits, extended duration benefits, and
federal-state extended benefits are payable on the basis of service
to which Section 3309(a)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of
1954 applies, in the same amount, on the same terms, and
subject to the same conditions as benefits payable on the basis of
other service subject to this division, except as provided by this
section.
(b) Benefits specified by subdivision (a) based on service
performed in the employ of a nonprofit organization, or of any entity
as defined by Section 605, with respect to service in an
instructional, research, or principal administrative capacity for an
educational institution are not payable to any individual with
respect to any week which begins during the period between two
successive academic years or terms or, when an agreement provides
instead for a similar period between two regular but not successive
terms, during that period, or during a period of paid sabbatical
leave provided for in the individual's contract, if the individual
performs services in the first of the academic years or terms and if
there is a contract or a reasonable assurance that the individual
will perform services for any educational institution in the second
of the academic years or terms.
(c) Benefits specified by subdivision (a) based on service
performed in the employ of a nonprofit organization, or of any entity
as defined by Section 605, with respect to services specified by
subdivision (b), are not payable to any individual with respect to
any week that commences during an established and customary vacation
period or holiday recess if the individual performs the services in
the period immediately before the vacation period or holiday recess,
and there is a reasonable assurance that the individual will perform
the services in the period immediately following the vacation period
or holiday recess.
(d) With respect to any services specified by subdivision
(b), (b), compensation payable on the basis of
services in that capacity may be denied as specified in subdivision
(b) or (c) to any individual who performed the services in an
educational institution while in the employ of an educational service
agency, and for this purpose the term "educational service agency"
means a governmental agency or governmental entity that is
established and operated exclusively for the purpose of providing the
services to one or more educational institutions.
(e) Benefits specified by subdivision (a) based on service
performed in the employ of a nonprofit organization, or of any entity
as defined by Section 605, are not payable during the periods of
time, and subject to the same conditions, contained in subdivisions
(b), (c), and (g), if the services are provided to, or on behalf of,
an educational institution.
(f) For purposes of this section, "reasonable assurance" includes,
but is not limited to, an offer of employment or assignment made by
the educational institution, provided that the offer or assignment is
not contingent on enrollment, funding, or program changes. An
individual who has been notified that he or she will be replaced and
does not have an offer of employment or assignment to perform
services for an educational institution is not considered to have
reasonable assurance.
(g) For purposes of this section, if the time for service
performed during the period of and pursuant to any contract for any
academic year or term by an individual for any employing unit as
specified in subdivision (b) constitutes one-half or more of the time
in total service performed for the employing unit by the individual
during that same period for remuneration, all the services of the
individual for the employing unit for that period shall be deemed
subject to the benefit payment restriction provisions of this
section.
(h) Any entity as defined by Section 605, with respect to any
individual performing a service in any other capacity other than
specified in subdivision (b) for an educational institution, shall
provide a written statement indicating the following to the
individual no later than 30 days before the end of the first of the
academic years or terms:
(1) Whether or not there is a reasonable assurance of
reemployment.
(2) Whether or not it is stated that the individual has no
reasonable assurance of reemployment, that the individual should file
a claim for benefits at the close of the academic year or term.
(3) If it is stated that the individual has reasonable assurance
of reemployment, the written statement shall also inform the employee
that he or she may file a claim for benefits and that the
determination for eligibility for benefits is made by the Employment
Development Department and not by the employer.
(4) If it is stated that the individual has reasonable assurance
of reemployment, that the individual shall be entitled to a
retroactive payment of benefits if the individual is not offered an
opportunity to perform the services for the educational institution
for the second of the academic years or terms, if the individual is
otherwise eligible and he or she filed a claim for each week benefits
are claimed, and if a claim for retroactive benefits is made no
later than 30 days following the commencement of the second academic
year or term.
SEC. 3. Section 1451 of the
Unemployment Insurance Code is repealed.
1451. Nonprofessional employees of the Fremont and Riverside
campuses of the California School for the Deaf, the Fremont campus of
the California School for the Blind, and the diagnostic schools for
individuals with neurological disabilities located in Los Angeles,
San Francisco, and Fresno, shall be eligible for benefits provided by
this chapter, on the same terms and conditions as are specified by
this part, Part 3 (commencing with Section 3501), and Part 4
(commencing with Section 4001), for all other individuals, except
where inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter. Except where
inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter, the provisions of
this division and authorized regulations shall apply to any matter
arising pursuant to this chapter.
SEC. 4. Section 1452 of the
Unemployment Insurance Code is repealed.
1452. Notwithstanding Section 1253.3, between terms unemployment
compensation benefits are payable by the Controller, from funds
appropriated for support of the State Department of Education and
allocated to the state special schools, upon authorization by the
Employment Development Department to individuals who are eligible to
receive these benefits under this chapter. These benefits shall only
be paid for weeks of unemployment occurring between school terms and
during an established and customary vacation period or holiday recess
when other benefits are denied solely by reason of Section 1253.3.
SEC. 5. Section 1453 of the
Unemployment Insurance Code is repealed.
1453. (a) There shall be transferred to the Employment
Development Department from funds appropriated for support of the
State Department of Education and allocated to the state special
schools, at the times and in the manner provided in subdivision (b),
an amount equal to the additional cost to the Employment Development
Department for added administrative work arising out of this chapter.
(b) The director shall determine the sums he or she estimates the
department will be entitled to receive from the State Department of
Education under this section for each fiscal year, reduced or
increased by any sum by which he or she finds that his or her
estimates for any prior fiscal year were greater or less than the
amounts which were actually required. The sum of the amounts
transferred or expended pursuant to Section 1452, subdivision (a),
and this subdivision in any one fiscal year shall not exceed the
amount appropriated in the then current fiscal year to the State
Department of Education for the purposes of this chapter.
(c) The director may require from the State Department of
Education such employment, wage, financial, statistical, or other
information and reports, properly verified, as may be deemed
necessary by the director to carry out his or her duties under this
division, which shall be filed with the director at the time and in
the manner prescribed by him or her.
(d) The director may tabulate and publish information obtained
pursuant to this chapter in statistical form and may divulge the name
of the employing unit.
(e) The State Department of Education shall provide each employee
subject to this chapter, at the end of each school term, with written
information advising the employee of benefit rights pursuant to this
chapter.
SEC. 6. Section 1454 of the
Unemployment Insurance Code is repealed.
1454. An individual who receives any unemployment compensation
benefits otherwise payable irrespective of this chapter, including
retroactive unemployment compensation benefits paid pursuant to
subdivision (c) of Section 1253.3, who has received benefits under
this chapter for the same period, shall be liable for repayment to
the state of the amount of benefits paid under this chapter for that
period.