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SF0138 • 2023

Unemployment insurance coverage period and reporting.

AN ACT relating to labor and employment; reducing the maximum length of unemployment benefits; renaming the unemployment insurance commission; specifying applicability; providing an appropriation; and providing for an effective date.

Budget
Inactive

Wyoming marks this bill as inactive, which usually means it is no longer moving in the current session.

Sponsor
Senator Kolb
Last action
2023-02-24
Official status
inactive
Effective date
3/1/2023

Plain English Breakdown

The bill does not provide specific details about the financial impacts or the exact changes to benefit amounts beyond reducing the maximum weeks from twenty-six to twenty.

Unemployment Insurance Changes

The bill reduces the maximum length of unemployment benefits and changes the name of the Unemployment Insurance Commission.

What This Bill Does

  • Reduces the maximum number of weeks someone can receive unemployment benefits from twenty-six to twenty weeks.
  • Changes the name of the Unemployment Insurance Commission to the Re-Employment Insurance Commission.

Who It Names or Affects

  • People who receive unemployment benefits in Wyoming.

Terms To Know

Unemployment Insurance Commission
A group that helps manage and oversee the state's unemployment insurance program.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This bill is inactive as of February 24, 2023.
  • It only applies to claims filed on or after January 1, 2024.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

SF0138SW001

Committee of the Whole • Senator Kolb

Adopted

Plain English: The amendment changes the maximum length of unemployment benefits from thirteen weeks to twenty weeks and adjusts the effective date for certain provisions to January 1, 2024.

  • Changes the maximum duration of unemployment benefits from 13 weeks to 20 weeks.
  • Adjusts the effective date for specific provisions from July 1, 2023, to January 1, 2024.
SF0138SS001

Standing Committee • Senate Agriculture, State and Public Lands & Water

Adopted

Plain English: The amendment changes the effective date of certain provisions in the bill from July to November and adds a new section appropriating $18,000 for updating and administering Wyoming's unemployment insurance system.

  • Changes the effective date of some sections from July to November.
  • Adds an appropriation of $18,000 from the general fund to the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services for updating and administering the state’s unemployment insurance system until June 30, 2024.
  • The amendment text does not specify how the change in effective date will affect existing provisions or their implementation.
  • It is unclear what specific updates to the unemployment insurance system this appropriation will fund.

Bill History

  1. 2023-02-24 House

    H:Died in Committee Returned Bill Pursuant to HR 5-4

  2. 2023-02-24 House

    H No report prior to CoW Cutoff

  3. 2023-02-15 House

    H02 - Appropriations:Do Pass Failed 2-5-0-0-0

  4. 2023-02-13 House

    H Introduced and Referred to H02 - Appropriations

  5. 2023-02-08 House

    H Received for Introduction

  6. 2023-02-08 Senate

    S 3rd Reading:Passed 27-4-0-0-0

  7. 2023-02-07 Senate

    S 2nd Reading:Passed

  8. 2023-02-06 Senate

    S COW:Passed

  9. 2023-02-02 Senate

    S Placed on General File

  10. 2023-02-02 Senate

    S02 - Appropriations:Recommend Do Pass 3-0-2-0-0

  11. 2023-02-01 Senate

    :Rerefer to S02 - Appropriations

  12. 2023-02-01 Senate

    S05 - Agriculture:Recommend Amend and Do Pass 5-0-0-0-0

  13. 2023-01-26 Senate

    :Refer to S05 - Agriculture

  14. 2023-01-20 Senate

    S Introduced and Referred to S07 - Corporations

  15. 2023-01-19 Senate

    S Received for Introduction

  16. 2023-01-18 LSO

    Bill Number Assigned

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
23LSO-0608
2023
STATE OF WYOMING
23LSO-0608
ENGROSSED
3.0

SENATE FILE NO. SF0138

Unemployment insurance coverage period and reporting.

Sponsored by: Senator(s) Kolb, Biteman, Driskill, Ide and Kinskey and Representative(s) Burkhart, Heiner, Jennings, Larsen, L, Neiman and Stith

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to labor and employment; reducing the maximum length of unemployment benefits; renaming the unemployment insurance commission; specifying applicability; providing an appropriation; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1.

W.S. 27
‑
3
‑
102(a)(v), 27
‑
3
‑
304, 27
‑
3
‑
316(c)(ii), 27
‑
3
‑
601(a) and 27
‑
14
‑
802(b) are amended to read:

27
‑
3
‑
102.

Definitions generally.

(a)

Except as otherwise provided, as used in this act:

(v)

"Commission" means the
unemployment
re
‑
employment
insurance commission of Wyoming within the department of workforce services;

27
‑
3
‑
304.

Maximum payment.

Except as provided by W.S. 27
‑
3
‑
316, the maximum amount of benefits payable to any eligible individual in a benefit year shall not exceed
twenty
‑
six (26)
twenty (20)
times his weekly benefit or thirty percent (30%) of his wages payable for insured work in his base period, whichever is less. This amount shall be computed to the next higher multiple of his weekly benefit.

27
‑
3
‑
316.

Applicability of regular claim and payment provisions to extended benefits; determination of amount.

(c)

An eligible individual's total extended benefit amount for his applicable benefit year is the lesser of:

(ii)

Thirteen (13)
Six and one
‑
half (6.5)
times his weekly benefit amount under this article for a week of total unemployment in the applicable benefit year.

A reduction in an eligible claimant's weekly and potential maximum extended benefit amount, resulting from the application of paragraph (b)(i) of this section, will not increase the number of weeks of extended benefit entitlement beyond that specified in paragraphs (i) and (ii) of this subsection.

27
‑
3
‑
601.

Re
‑
employment insurance commission created; composition; terms; vacancies; salary; chairman; quorum; removal; office; seal.

(a)

The
unemployment
re
‑
employment
insurance commission of Wyoming is created within the department of workforce services and shall consist of three (3) members serving a term of six (6) years each. Appointments, vacancies and expiration of terms shall be in accordance with W.S. 28
‑
12
‑
101 through 28
‑
12
‑
103. A member shall not hold any state office or serve as an officer or on a committee of any political organization during the term of membership. No more than seventy
‑
five percent (75%) of the members shall be of the same political party.

27
‑
14
‑
802.

Rulemaking power; fees; state's average wages; vocational rehabilitation; contracts with clerks of district court.

(b)

Before the last day of each quarter in each year, the department shall estimate the average monthly and weekly wage for the twelve (12) months preceding the quarter, based on
unemployment
re
‑
employment
insurance commission information and other available statistics.

Section 2.

This act shall only apply to unemployment claims filed on or after January 1, 2024.

Section 3.

There is appropriated eighteen thousand dollars ($18,000.00) from the general fund to the Wyoming department of workforce services for the purposes of updating and administering the Wyoming unemployment insurance system. This appropriation shall be for the period beginning with the effective date of this act and ending June 30, 2024. This appropriation shall not be transferred or expended for any other purpose and any unexpended, unobligated funds remaining from this appropriation shall revert as provided by law on June 30, 2024. It is the intent of the legislature that this appropriation not be included in the department of workforce service's standard budget for the immediately succeeding fiscal biennium.

Section 3
.

This act is effective January 1, 2024
.

(END)

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SF0138