Amendment
Bill No. HB 5019
Amendment No. 863345
CHAMBER ACTION
Senate House
.
.
.






1Representative Rader offered the following:
2
3     Amendment (with title amendment)
4     Remove line 140 and insert:
5     Section 2.  Effective October 1, 2009, subsection (7) of
6section 443.036, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
7     443.036  Definitions.--As used in this chapter, the term:
8     (7)  "Base period" means the first four of the last five
9completed calendar quarters immediately preceding the first day
10of an individual's benefit year. Wages in a base period used to
11establish a monetarily eligible benefit year may not be used to
12establish monetary eligibility in a subsequent benefit year.
13     (a)  If information regarding wages for the calendar
14quarters immediately preceding the benefit year has not been
15entered into the Agency for Workforce Innovation's mainframe
16database from the regular quarterly reports of wage information
17submitted under s. 443.163 or is otherwise unavailable, the
18agency shall request the information from the employer by mail.
19The employer must provide the requested information within 10
20days after the agency mails the request. An employer that fails
21to provide the requested wage information within the required
22time period is subject to the penalty for delinquent reports
23under s. 443.141.
24     (b)  For a benefit year commencing on or after January 1,
252010, if an individual is not monetarily eligible in the base
26period to qualify for benefits, the Agency for Workforce
27Innovation must designate an alternative base period. As used in
28this subsection, the term "alternative base period" means the
29last four completed calendar quarters immediately preceding the
30first day of an individual's benefit year. If the agency is
31unable to access wage information through its mainframe database
32for determining monetary eligibility for benefits based on the
33individual's alternative base period, the agency may base the
34determination on an affidavit submitted by the individual
35attesting to his or her wages for those calendar quarters. The
36individual must also furnish payroll information, if available,
37in support of the affidavit. Benefits based on an alternative
38base period must be adjusted if the quarterly report of wage
39information received from the employer under s. 443.141 results
40in a change in the monetary determination.
41     Section 3.  Effective October 1, 2009, paragraph (a) of
42subsection (1) and paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section
43443.101, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
44     443.101  Disqualification for benefits.--An individual
45shall be disqualified for benefits:
46     (1)(a)  For the week in which he or she has voluntarily
47leaves left his or her work without good cause attributable to
48his or her employing unit or is in which the individual has been
49discharged by his or her employing unit for misconduct connected
50with his or her work, based on a finding by the Agency for
51Workforce Innovation. As used in this paragraph, the term "work"
52means any work, whether full-time, part-time, or temporary.
53     1.  Disqualification for voluntarily quitting continues for
54the full period of unemployment next ensuing after the
55individual leaves he or she has left his or her full-time, part-
56time, or temporary work voluntarily without good cause and until
57the individual earns has earned income equal to or in excess of
5817 times his or her weekly benefit amount. As used in this
59subsection, the term "good cause" includes only that cause
60attributable to the employing unit or an which consists of
61illness or disability of the individual requiring separation
62from his or her work. Any other disqualification may not be
63imposed. An individual may not be is not disqualified for
64benefits under this subsection for voluntarily leaving temporary
65work to return immediately when called to work by the permanent
66employing unit that temporarily terminated his or her work
67within the previous 6 calendar months, or. For benefit years
68beginning on or after July 1, 2004, an individual is not
69disqualified under this subsection for voluntarily leaving work
70to relocate as a result of his or her military-connected
71spouse's permanent change of station orders, activation orders,
72or unit deployment orders.
73     2.  An unemployed individual may not be disqualified for
74benefits if he or she separates from work for the following
75compelling family reasons:
76     a.  Domestic violence, as defined in s. 741.28 and verified
77by an injunction, protective order, or other such reasonable and
78confidential documentation authorized by state law, which causes
79the individual to reasonably believe that continued employment
80will jeopardize the individual's safety, the safety of a member
81of his or her immediate family, or the safety of other
82employees.
83     b.  The illness or disability of a member of the
84individual's immediate family.
85     c.  The need for the individual to accompany his or her
86spouse to a place from which it is impractical for the
87individual to commute or due to a change in the location of the
88spouse's employment.
89     3.2.  Disqualification for being discharged for misconduct
90connected with his or her work continues for the full period of
91unemployment next ensuing after being having been discharged and
92until the individual is has become reemployed and earns has
93earned income of at least 17 times his or her weekly benefit
94amount and for not more than 52 weeks that immediately follow
95that week, as determined by the agency for Workforce Innovation
96in each case according to the circumstances in each case or the
97seriousness of the misconduct, under the agency's rules adopted
98for determinations of disqualification for benefits for
99misconduct.
100     (2)  If the Agency for Workforce Innovation finds that the
101individual has failed without good cause to apply for available
102suitable work when directed by the agency or the one-stop career
103center, to accept suitable work when offered to him or her, or
104to return to the individual's customary self-employment when
105directed by the agency, the disqualification continues for the
106full period of unemployment next ensuing after he or she failed
107without good cause to apply for available suitable work, to
108accept suitable work, or to return to his or her customary self-
109employment, under this subsection, and until the individual has
110earned income at least 17 times his or her weekly benefit
111amount. The Agency for Workforce Innovation shall by rule adopt
112criteria for determining the "suitability of work," as used in
113this section. The Agency for Workforce Innovation in developing
114these rules shall consider the duration of a claimant's
115unemployment in determining the suitability of work and the
116suitability of proposed rates of compensation for available
117work. Further, after an individual has received 25 weeks of
118benefits in a single year, suitable work is a job that pays the
119minimum wage and is 120 percent or more of the weekly benefit
120amount the individual is drawing.
121     (a)  In determining whether or not any work is suitable for
122an individual, the agency for Workforce Innovation shall
123consider the degree of risk involved to his or her health,
124safety, and morals; the individual's his or her physical
125fitness, and prior training,; the individual's experience, and
126prior earnings,; his or her length of unemployment, and
127prospects for securing local work in his or her customary
128occupation; and the distance of the available work from his or
129her residence. An unemployed individual may not be disqualified
130from eligibility for benefits solely because he or she is
131available for only part-time work. If an individual restricts
132his or her availability to part-time work, he or she may be
133considered able and available for work if it is determined that
134the claimant:
135     1.  Has a history of part-time employment;
136     2.  Is actively seeking and is willing to accept work under
137essentially the same conditions that existed when the wage
138credits were accrued; and
139     3.  Imposes no other restrictions and is in a labor market
140in which there is a reasonable demand for the part-time services
141he or she offers.
142     Section 4.  Except as otherwise expressly provided in this
143act, this act shall take effect July 1, 2009.
144
145
-----------------------------------------------------
146
T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T
147     Remove lines 2-15 and insert:
148An act relating to unemployment compensation; creating s.
149443.1113, F.S.; creating the Unemployment Compensation Claims
150and Benefits Information System Project; requiring the Agency
151for Workforce Innovation to replace and enhance the
152functionality provided in specified systems with an integrated
153Internet-based system; providing project business objectives;
154excluding certain functionality from the scope of the project;
155providing phases and timeframes for the project; requiring the
156agency to implement a specified project governance structure for
157a certain duration; providing membership and responsibilities of
158the executive steering committee and a project management team;
159amending s. 443.036, F.S.; redefining the term "base period";
160requiring an employer to provide wage information to support an
161individual's eligibility for benefits; providing for an
162alternative base period after a certain date; defining the term
163"alternative base period"; authorizing the Agency for Workforce
164Innovation to accept an affidavit from the claimant to support
165eligibility for benefits; amending s. 443.101, F.S.; prohibiting
166an individual from being disqualified from benefits if he or she
167leaves work due to certain compelling family reasons;
168prohibiting unemployed individuals from being disqualified for
169unemployment benefits based solely on the individual's
170availability for only part-time work under certain
171circumstances; providing effective dates.


CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.