HP0728
LD 1033
Session - 126th Maine Legislature
 
LR 870
Item 1
Bill Tracking, Additional Documents Chamber Status

An Act To Help the Unemployed Find Work

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:

Sec. 1. 26 MRSA §1192, sub-§2,  as amended by PL 2011, c. 645, §2, is further amended to read:

2. Has registered for work.   The individual has registered for work at, and continued to report at, an employment office in accordance with rules the commission adopts, except that the commission may, by rule, waive or alter either or both of the requirements of this subsection as to individuals attached to regular jobs and as to such other types of cases or situations with respect to which the commission finds that compliance with the requirements would be oppressive, or would be inconsistent with the purposes of this chapter. A rule under this subsection may not conflict with section 1191, subsection 1.

The individual must actively seek work each week in which a claim for benefits is filed unless the individual is participating in approved training under subsection 6 or work search has been waived in accordance with rules adopted by the commission and provide evidence of work search efforts in a manner and form as prescribed by the commission. Failure to provide required work search documentation results in a denial of benefits in accordance with section 1194, subsection 2 for the week or weeks for which no documentation was provided unless the commission determines there is good cause for the individual's failure to comply with this requirement ; .

In addition to the other requirements of this section, after receiving 13 times the individual's weekly benefit amount in a benefit year the individual must also register to work with a temporary employment agency. The commission may, by rule, waive or alter this requirement as necessary to accommodate hardship associated with this requirement for individuals not residing in reasonable proximity to a temporary employment agency. For purposes of this subsection, "temporary employment agency" means an employer that provides opportunities for individuals to perform work of a temporary nature for other employers;

Sec. 2. 26 MRSA §1194, sub-§14  is enacted to read:

14 Gaps in benefits.   A claimant who has received benefits and subsequently discontinued filing for benefits for a period of time may initiate a new claim for benefits within the same benefit year. The new claim is effective for both the week in which the claimant is initiating the new claim and the prior week.

summary

This bill creates a requirement that in order for an individual to maintain eligibility for unemployment benefits after receiving 13 times the individual's weekly benefit amount in a benefit year, the individual must register for temporary employment through a temporary employment agency. This bill also provides that a new claim for unemployment benefits for a claimant who has stopped filing for benefits and then begins again within the same benefit year is effective for both the week in which the claimant files and the prior week.


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