California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 399

Introduced by Assembly Member Ridley-Thomas

February 19, 2015

An act to amend Section 1253.3 of, and to repeal Sections 1451, 1452, and 1453 of, the Unemployment Insurance Code, relating to unemployment insurance, and making an appropriation therefor.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 399, as introduced, Ridley-Thomas. 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 State 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 of a public school, other than teachers, researchers, and administrators, as specified, between 2 academic years. The bill would phase in up to 8 weeks of benefits available to those specified employees over a 4-year timeframe and would make conforming changes, including 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 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 begin delete of 1954 end delete 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)  begin insert (1) end insert begin insert   end insert 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, begin insert except for a public school as
defined in Section 22161 of the Education Code, end insert 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.

begin insert

(2) Benefits specified by subdivision (a) are authorized for an
employee of a public school, as referenced in paragraph (1), as
follows:

end insert begin insert

(A) Two weeks of benefits during 2016 beginning July 1.

end insert begin insert

(B) Four weeks of benefits during 2017 beginning July 1.

end insert begin insert

(C) Six weeks of benefits during 2018 beginning July 1.

end insert begin insert

(D) Eight weeks of benefits during 2019 and each year thereafter
beginning July 1.

end insert

(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 service in any
other capacity than specified in subdivision (b) for an educational
institution shall not be payable to any individual with respect to
any week which commences during a period between two
successive academic years or terms if the individual performs the
service in the first of the academic years or terms and there is a
reasonable assurance that the individual will perform the service
in the second of the academic years or terms. However, if the
individual was not offered an opportunity to perform the services
for an educational institution for the second of the academic years
or terms, the individual shall be entitled to a retroactive payment
of benefits for each week for which the individual filed a timely
claim for benefits and for which benefits were denied solely by
reason of this subdivision. Retroactive benefits shall be claimed
in accordance with the department’s procedures which shall specify
that except where the individual was entitled to benefits based on
services performed for other than an educational institution, an
individual who has a reasonable assurance of reemployment may
satisfy the search for work requirement of subdivision (e) of
Section 1253, by registering for work pursuant to subdivision (b)
of Section 1253 during the period between the first and second
academic terms or years. A claim for retroactive benefits may be
made no later than 30 days following the commencement of the
second academic year or term.

(d) 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) or (c), 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 begin insert specified end insert services in the begin delete period end delete begin insert week end insert 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.

(e) With respect to any services specified by subdivision (b) or
(c), compensation payable on the basis of services in that capacity
may be denied as specified in subdivision (b), (c), or (d) 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” begin delete means end delete begin insert is defined
as end insert 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.

(f) 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), (d), and (h), if the services are provided to,
or on behalf of, an educational institution.

(g) 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.

(h) 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) or (c) 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.

(i) 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. 2.  

Section 1451 of the Unemployment Insurance Code
is repealed.

begin delete

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.

end delete

SEC. 3.  

Section 1452 of the Unemployment Insurance Code
is repealed.

begin delete

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.

end delete

SEC. 4.  

Section 1453 of the Unemployment Insurance Code
is repealed.

begin delete

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.

end delete