Senate Bill No. 423–Committee on Commerce and Labor

 

(On Behalf of the Department of Employment,
Training and Rehabilitation)

 

March 24, 2003

____________

 

Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor

 

SUMMARY—Makes various changes relating to unemployment compensation benefits. (BDR 53‑476)

 

FISCAL NOTE:  Effect on Local Government: No.

                           Effect on the State: No.

 

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EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.

 

AN ACT relating to unemployment compensation; increasing the period during which the Administrator of the Employment Security Division of the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation may recover an overpayment of unemployment compensation benefits; authorizing the Administrator to establish or provide support for job training programs in the public and private sectors for training, retraining or improving the skills of persons employed in this state; authorizing the filing of an action for judicial review of a final decision of the Board of Review concerning a claim for unemployment benefits in the district court of the county where the employment which is the basis of the claim was performed; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN

SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

 

1-1  Section 1. NRS 612.365 is hereby amended to read as follows:

1-2  612.365  1.  Any person who is overpaid any amount as

1-3  benefits under this chapter is liable for the amount overpaid unless:

1-4  (a) The overpayment was not due to fraud, misrepresentation or

1-5  willful nondisclosure on the part of the recipient; and

2-1  (b) The overpayment was received without fault on the part of

2-2  the recipient, and its recovery would be against equity and good

2-3  conscience, as determined by the Administrator.

2-4  2.  The amount of the overpayment must be assessed to the

2-5  liable person , and he must be notified of the basis of

2-6  the assessment. The notice must specify the amount for which the

2-7  person is liable. In the absence of fraud, misrepresentation or willful

2-8  nondisclosure, notice of the assessment must be mailed or

2-9  personally served not later than 1 year after the close of the benefit

2-10  year in which the overpayment was made.

2-11      3.  At any time within [3] 5 years after the notice of

2-12  overpayment, the Administrator may recover the amount of the

2-13  overpayment [either] by using the same methods of collection

2-14  provided in NRS 612.625 to 612.645, inclusive, 612.685 and

2-15  612.686 for the collection of past due contributions or by deducting

2-16  the amount of the overpayment from any benefits payable to the

2-17  liable person under this chapter.

2-18      4.  The Administrator may waive recovery or adjustment of all

2-19  or part of the amount of any such overpayment which he finds to be

2-20  uncollectible or the recovery or adjustment of which he finds to be

2-21  administratively impracticable.

2-22      5.  Any person against whom liability is determined under this

2-23  section may appeal therefrom within 10 days after the date the

2-24  notice provided for in this section was mailed to, or served upon, the

2-25  person. An appeal must be made and conducted in the manner

2-26  provided in this chapter for the appeals from determinations of

2-27  benefit status. The 10-day period provided for in this subsection

2-28  may be extended for good cause shown.

2-29      Sec. 2.  NRS 612.475 is hereby amended to read as follows:

2-30      612.475  1.  The last employing unit of any unemployed

2-31  claimant and the next to last employing unit of an unemployed

2-32  claimant who has not earned remuneration with his last covered

2-33  employer equal to or exceeding his weekly benefit amount in each

2-34  of 16 weeks[,] must be notified of [the] any new claim or

2-35  additional claim filed by the unemployed claimant following his

2-36  separation.

2-37      2.  The notice of the filing of a claim must contain the

2-38  claimant’s name and social security [account] number and may

2-39  contain the reason for separation from the employing unit affected

2-40  as given by the claimant, the date of separation[,] and such other

2-41  information as is deemed proper.

2-42      3.  Upon receipt of a notice of the filing of a claim, the

2-43  employing unit shall , within 10 days [of] after the date of the

2-44  mailing of the notice , submit to the Division any facts which may

2-45  affect the claimant’s rights to benefits.

3-1  4.  Any employing unit that receives a notice of the filing of a

3-2  claim may protest payment of benefits to the unemployed claimant

3-3  [,] if the protest is filed within 10 days after the notice is filed.

3-4  5.  Any employing unit which has filed a protest in accordance

3-5  with the provisions of this section must be notified in writing of the

3-6  determination arrived at by the Administrator or his deputy , and the

3-7  notice must contain a statement setting forth the right of appeal.

3-8  6.  As used in this section:

3-9  (a) “Additional claim” means a claim filed during the benefit

3-10  year when a break of 1 week or more has occurred in the series of

3-11  claims with intervening employment.

3-12      (b) “New claim” means an application for a determination of

3-13  eligibility and benefits, benefit amount and duration of benefits

3-14  which certifies to the beginning date of a first period of

3-15  unemployment in a benefit year or the continuance of a period of

3-16  unemployment into a new benefit year.

3-17      Sec. 3.  NRS 612.530 is hereby amended to read as follows:

3-18      612.530  1.  Within 10 days after the decision of the Board of

3-19  Review has become final, any party aggrieved thereby or the

3-20  Administrator may secure judicial review thereof by commencing

3-21  an action in thedistrict court of the county [wherein the appealed

3-22  claim or claims were filed against the Administrator] where the

3-23  employment which is the basis of the claim was performed for

3-24  the review of the decision, in which action any other party to the

3-25  proceedings before the Board of Review must be made a defendant.

3-26      2.  In such action, a petition which need not be verified, but

3-27  which must state the grounds upon which a review is sought, must

3-28  be served upon the Administrator, unless he is the appellant, or upon

3-29  such person as he may designate, and such service shall be deemed

3-30  completed service on all parties, but there must be left with the party

3-31  so served as many copies of the petition as there are defendants, and

3-32  the Administrator shall forthwith mail one such copy to each [such]

3-33  defendant.

3-34      3.  With his answer or petition, the Administrator shall certify

3-35  and file with the court originals or true copies of all documents and

3-36  papers and a transcript of all testimony taken in the matter, together

3-37  with the Board of Review’s findings of fact and decision therein.

3-38  The Administrator may [also, in his discretion,] certify to the court

3-39  questions of law involved in any decision.

3-40      4.  In any judicial proceedings under this section, the finding of

3-41  the Board of Review as to the facts, if supported by evidence and in

3-42  the absence of fraud, is conclusive, and the jurisdiction of the court

3-43  is confined to questions of law.

3-44      5.  Such actions, and the questions so certified, must be heard in

3-45  a summary manner and must be given precedence over all other

4-1  civil cases except cases arising under chapters 616A to 616D,

4-2  inclusive, or chapter 617 of NRS.

4-3  6.  An appeal may be taken from the decision of the district

4-4  court to the Supreme Court of Nevada[,] in the same manner, but

4-5  not inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter, as is provided in

4-6  civil cases.

4-7  7.  It is not necessary, in any judicial proceeding under this

4-8  section, to enter exceptions to the rulings of the Board of Review,

4-9  and no bond may be required for entering [such] the appeal.

4-10      8.  Upon the final determination of [such] the judicial

4-11  proceeding, the Board of Review shall enter an order in accordance

4-12  with the determination.

4-13      9.  A petition for judicial review does not act as a supersedeas

4-14  or stay unless the Board of Review so orders.

4-15      Sec. 4.  NRS 612.606 is hereby amended to read as follows:

4-16      612.606  1.  Except as otherwise provided in subsection 4, in

4-17  addition to any other contribution required by this chapter, each

4-18  employer shall make payments into the Unemployment

4-19  Compensation Administration Fund for the program for the

4-20  employment and training of [claimants and other] unemployed

4-21  persons and persons employed in this state at the rate of .05 percent

4-22  of the wages he pays.

4-23      2.  The interest and forfeit provisions of NRS 612.620 and

4-24  612.740, respectively, are inapplicable to the payments required by

4-25  this section.

4-26      3.  In determining unemployment compensation contribution

4-27  rates assigned to employers pursuant to this chapter, payments paid

4-28  into the Unemployment Compensation Administration Fund for the

4-29  program for the employment and training of [claimants and other]

4-30  unemployed persons and persons employed in this state pursuant to

4-31  this section must remain separate from any other contribution paid

4-32  pursuant to this chapter and must not be included in any manner in

4-33  computing the contribution rates to be assigned to employers under

4-34  NRS 612.550.

4-35      4.  The provisions of this section do not apply to an employer:

4-36      (a) Who has been assigned a contribution rate of 5.4 percent

4-37  pursuant to subsection 6 of NRS 612.550; or

4-38      (b) Who has elected to make reimbursement in lieu of

4-39  contributions pursuant to NRS 612.553.

4-40      Sec. 5.  NRS 612.607 is hereby amended to read as follows:

4-41      612.607  1.  All payments collected pursuant to NRS 612.606

4-42  must be deposited in the Unemployment Compensation

4-43  Administration Fund. At the end of each fiscal year, the State

4-44  Controller shall transfer to the Clearing Account in the

4-45  Unemployment Compensation Fund the amount by which the

5-1  unencumbered balance of the money deposited in the

5-2  Unemployment Compensation Administration Fund pursuant to this

5-3  subsection exceeds the amount of that money which the Legislature

5-4  has authorized for expenditure during the first 90 days of the

5-5  succeeding fiscal year.

5-6  2.  Except for money transferred from the Unemployment

5-7  Compensation Administration Fund pursuant to subsection 1, the

5-8  Administrator may only expend the money collected for the

5-9  employment and training of [claimants and other] unemployed

5-10  persons and persons employed in this state to:

5-11      (a) Establish and administer an employment training program

5-12  which must foster job creation, minimize unemployment costs of

5-13  employers and meet the needs of employers for skilled workers by

5-14  providing training to [unemployment compensation claimants and

5-15  other] unemployed persons; [and]

5-16      (b) Establish or provide support for job training programs in

5-17  the public and private sectors for training, retraining or improving

5-18  the skills of persons employed in this state; and

5-19      (c) Pay the costs of the collection of payments required pursuant

5-20  to NRS 612.606.

5-21      3.  The money used for the program for the employment and

5-22  training of [claimants and other] unemployed persons and persons

5-23  employed in this state must supplement and not displace money

5-24  available through existing employment training programs conducted

5-25  by any employer or public agency and must not replace, parallel,

5-26  supplant, compete with or duplicate in any way existing

5-27  apprenticeship programs approved by the State Apprenticeship

5-28  Council.

5-29      Sec. 6.  This act becomes effective on July 1, 2003.

 

5-30  H