BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó






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                                   THIRD READING 


          Bill No:  AB 1514
          Author:   Committee on Insurance  
          AmendedAmended:3/26/15 in Assembly
          Vote:     21  

           SENATE LABOR & IND. REL. COMMITTEE:  5-0, 6/10/15
           AYES:  Mendoza, Stone, Jackson, Leno, Mitchell

           SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE:  Senate Rule 28.8

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  78-0, 4/23/15 (Consent) - See last page for  
            vote

           SUBJECT:   Employment Development Department: training  
                     benefits: reports


          SOURCE:    Employment Development Department

          DIGEST:   This bill makes minor technical changes to the  
          California Training Benefits (CTB) Program and updates the  
          Employment Development Department (EDD) reporting requirements.

          ANALYSIS: 
          
          Existing law:

          1)Provides for the payment of unemployment compensation benefits  
            through the Unemployment Insurance (UI) program, administered  
            by the EDD, which is a federal-state program that provides  
            weekly UI payments to eligible workers who lose their jobs  
            through no fault of their own.  









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          2)Provides that an individual is eligible for UI benefits if  
            he/she meets the following:

             a)   Has received enough wages during the base period to  
               establish a claim. 

             b)   Is totally or partially unemployed.

             c)   Is unemployed through no fault of his/her own.

             d)   Is physically able to work.

             e)   Is available for work, meaning ready and willing to  
               immediately accept work.

             f)   Is actively looking for work.

             g)   Is approved for training before training benefits are  
               paid. 
          (Unemployment Insurance Code §1253 et al):

          3)Authorizes an unemployed individual who files a claim for UI  
            benefits or extended duration benefits, to apply to the EDD  
            for a determination of potential eligibility for benefits  
            during a period of training or retraining through the CTB  
            Program.  The CTB Program allows eligible claimants to receive  
            their UI benefits while attending training or retraining  
            programs approved by the EDD. Claimants attending an approved  
            training course are not required to look for work, be  
            available for work or accept work while in training.   
            (Unemployment Insurance Code §1268)

          4)Authorizes an automatic eligibility determination for UI  
            benefits to continue during a training program if it falls  
            within the following (Unemployment Insurance Code §1269):

             a)   The training is authorized by the federal Workforce  
               Investment Act of 1998 or by the Employment Training Panel.

             b)   The training is authorized by the federal Trade Act of  
               1974.

             c)   The individual is a participant of the CalWORKs program.








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             d)   The individual is a participant in training with a  
               provider that is certified and on the Eligible Training  
               Provider List.

             e)   The individual is a journey level union member and the  
               training/retraining course of instruction is  
               industry-related training necessary due to changes in  
               technology, or industry demands, or is necessary to retain  
               employment. 
          (Unemployment Insurance Code §1269)

          5)States that any unemployed individual receiving unemployment  
            compensation benefits who applies for a determination of  
            potential eligibility of benefits no later than the 16th week  
            of his or her receiving these benefits, and is determined  
            eligible is entitled to a training extension on his or her  
            employment compensation claim, if necessary, to complete  
            approved training. (Unemployment Insurance Code §1271)

          6)States that the training extension shall provide the claimant  
            with a maximum of 52 times the weekly benefit amount, which  
            shall include the maximum benefit award on the parent  
            unemployment compensation claim. (Unemployment Insurance Code  
            §1271)

          7)States that an unemployed individual who is able to work is  
            eligible to receive benefits due to training or retraining if  
            the director finds that the individual has been determined to  
            be potentially eligible and the individual submits a  
            certification from a responsible person connected with the  
            training or retraining program certifying that he or she is  
            enrolled in the training. (Unemployment Insurance Code §1271)

          8)Provides reporting requirements to the Legislature and various  
            state agencies on the EDD's fraud deterrence and detection  
            activities.  (Unemployment Insurance Code §§§2614, 4902 &  
            4903)

          This bill:

          1)Makes minor technical changes to the CTB Program and updates  
            the EDD reporting requirements.  

          2)Updates references to outdated federal workforce statutes in  







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            sections governing the CTB Program to the Workforce Innovation  
            and Opportunity Act.  

          3)Requires the EDD to automatically qualify individuals  
            participating in an employer sponsored training program for  
            benefits through the CTB Program. 

          4)Requires the EDD to automatically qualify individuals  
            participating in an apprenticeship program approved by either  
            the state or federal government.  

          5)Provides that benefits granted through the CTB Program shall  
            be reduced by the amount of any other UI benefits for which  
            the individual is eligible during the period of training.

          6)Eliminates the requirement that claimants receiving CTB  
            benefits have their weekly certification of benefits signed by  
            their training provider.

          7)Updates existing EDD reporting requirements.

          Comments
          
          Need for this bill?  The CTB Program allows unemployed  
          Californians who need further job training to be competitive in  
          the California labor market to receive UI benefits without  
          complying with the usual requirement to look for other work and  
          receive up to one year of benefits.  The CTB Program provides  
          financial support to individuals while they are participating in  
          a qualified job training program instead of providing partial  
          wage replacement while the individual looks for work.  

          According to the author's office, this bill makes minor changes  
          to the Program including:  updates reference to Workforce  
          Investment Act which was superseded by the recently enacted  
          Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, streamlines the  
          approval process for individuals in apprenticeship training and  
          for journey-level members of employer or trade associations by  
          adding them to the "automatic" approval category and clarifies  
          the calculations for CTB Training Extensions by clarifying that  
          training extension benefits cannot be paid when other types of  
          UI benefits are available. Lastly, according to the author, this  
          bill streamlines the process to verify an individual's ongoing  
          attendance in a training program by eliminating the requirement  







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          for a signature from the training instructor on every bi-weekly  
          claim form - allowing claimants receiving CTB benefits to  
          certify for benefits online or by phone.  

          Prior Legislation
          
          AB 2058 (Block, Chapter 591, Statutes of 2010) modified the  
          requirements for participating in the state's retraining  
          benefits program in order to allow unemployed people to  
          automatically continue receiving UI benefits while enrolled in a  
          training program on a full-time basis. 

          FISCAL EFFECT:   Appropriation:    Yes         Fiscal  
          Com.:YesLocal:   No


          SUPPORT:   (Verified6/10/15)


          Employment Development Department (source) 


          OPPOSITION:   (Verified6/10/15)


          None received
          ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT:  According to the Employment Development  
          Department, the CTB Program permits eligible unemployed  
          individuals that are enrolled in approved training to receive UI  
          benefits without the usual requirements to look for work, be  
          available for work, or accept offers of suitable work. The EDD  
          notes that by providing benefits to workers while they receive  
          training or re-training, the CTB Program enables workers to  
          become more competitive in the labor market and return to full  
          employment. 

          The EDD argues that AB 1514 will make a few modest but necessary  
          changes to the CTB Program. They note specifically that the  
          amendments ensure that state law conforms to recent federal  
          legislation and make other minor changes to streamline the  
          process for applicants and align the law with current procedures  
          and practices. 
             








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          ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  78-0, 4/23/15
          AYES:  Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom,  
            Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Chang, Chau,  
            Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly,  
            Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina  
            Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez,  
            Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden,  
            Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder,  
            Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina,  
            Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen,  
            Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez,  
            Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner,  
            Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Campos, Salas

          Prepared by:Deanna Ping / L. & I.R. / (916) 651-1556
          6/24/15 17:33:52


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