HB 6311

HOUSE BILL NO. 6311
A bill to amend 1936 (Ex Sess) PA 1, entitled
"Michigan employment security act,"
by amending section 32 (MCL 421.32), as amended by 2020
PA 258.
the people of the state of michigan enact:
Sec. 32. (a) Claims for benefits shall
must be made pursuant to in accordance
with regulations prescribed by the unemployment insurance agency. The unemployment insurance agency shall designate representatives who
shall promptly examine claims and make a determination on the facts. The
unemployment insurance agency may establish
rules providing for the examination of claims, the determination of the
validity of the claims, and the amount and duration of benefits to be paid. The Not later than 14
days after the determination is made, the claimant and other interested parties
shall must be
promptly notified of the determination and the of all of the
following information:
(i) The reasons for the determination.
(ii) The facts on
which the representative relied in making the determination.
(iii) The section
number of this act on which the representative based the determination.
(iv) The deadline
for a protest or appeal of the determination and how to file a protest or
appeal.
(b) The Except as otherwise
provided in this subsection, the unemployment insurance
agency shall mail to the claimant, to each
base period employer or employing unit, and to the
separating employer or employing unit, a monetary determination. The unemployment insurance agency
may electronically deliver the monetary determination if the claimant consents
to that delivery method or has submitted an application or other document through the
unemployment insurance agency's electronic portal or system. If the electronic delivery fails or is rejected, the
unemployment insurance agency must promptly mail the monetary determination. If
the monetary determination is delivered electronically, it is considered to
have been received by the claimant on 1 of the following dates:
(i) The date that
the unemployment insurance agency electronically delivered the monetary
determination.
(ii) If the
electronic delivery failed or was rejected, the date that the unemployment
insurance agency mailed the monetary determination.
(c) The
monetary determination shall must notify each of these
the employers or employing units described in subsection (b) that the claimant has
filed an application for benefits and the amount the claimant reported as
earned with the separating employer or employing unit, and shall must state
the name of each employer or employing unit in the base period and the name of
the separating employer or employing unit. The monetary determination shall must also
state the all of
the following:
(i) The claimant's weekly benefit rate, the amount
of base period wages paid by each base period employer, the maximum benefit
amount that could be charged to each employer's account or experience account,
and the reason for separation reported by the claimant. The monetary determination shall also state whether
(ii) Whether the claimant is monetarily eligible to
receive unemployment benefits.
(iii) The reasons for
the monetary determination.
(iv) The facts on
which the representative relied in making the monetary determination.
(v) The section
number of this act on which the representative based the monetary determination.
(vi) The deadline
for a protest or appeal of the monetary determination and how to file a protest
or appeal.
(d) Except for
separations under section 29(1)(a), no further reconsideration of a separation
from any base period employer will be made unless the base period employer
notifies the unemployment insurance agency of a
possible disqualifying separation within not later than 30 days of
after the separation in accordance with
this subsection. Charges to the employer and payments to the claimant shall must be as
described in section 20(a). New, additional, or corrected information received
by the unemployment insurance agency more than
10 days after mailing the monetary determination shall
under subsection (b) must be considered
a request for reconsideration by the employer of the monetary determination and
shall be reviewed as provided in under section
32a.
(e) (c) For
the purpose of determining a claimant's nonmonetary eligibility and
qualification for benefits, if the claimant's most recent base period or
benefit year separation was for a reason other than the lack of work, then a
determination shall must be issued concerning that separation to the
claimant and to the separating employer. If a claimant is not disqualified
based on his or her the claimant's most recent separation from employment
and has satisfied the requirements of section 29, the unemployment insurance agency shall issue a nonmonetary
determination as to that separation only. If a claimant is not disqualified
based on his or her the claimant's most recent separation from employment
and has not satisfied the requirements of section 29, the unemployment insurance agency shall issue 1 or more nonmonetary
determinations necessary to establish the claimant's qualification for benefits
based on any prior separation in inverse chronological order. The unemployment insurance agency shall consider all base period
separations involving disqualifications under section 29(1)(h), (i), (j), (k),
(m), or (n) in determining a claimant's nonmonetary eligibility and
qualification for benefits. An employer may designate in writing to the
unemployment insurance agency an individual or
another employer or an employing unit to receive any notice required to be
given by the unemployment insurance agency to
that employer or to represent that employer in any proceeding before the
unemployment insurance agency as provided in under section
31. Notwithstanding any other provision of this
act, beginning May 1, 2020, and until the effective date of the amendatory act
that added this subsection, in determining a claimant's nonmonetary eligibility
to qualify for benefits, the unemployment agency shall not issue a
determination with respect to the claimant's separation from a base period or
benefit year employer other than the separating employer, and the unemployment
agency shall consider the claimant to have satisfied the requirements of
section 29(2) and (3).
(f) (d) If
the unemployment insurance agency requests
additional monetary or nonmonetary information from an employer or employing
unit and the unemployment insurance agency fails to does not receive
a written response from the employer or employing unit within 10 calendar days or
sooner after the date of mailing the request for information, the
unemployment insurance agency shall make a
determination based upon on the available information at the time the
determination is made. Charges to the employer and payments to the claimant shall be are as
described in section 20(a).
(g) (e) The
claimant or interested party may file an application with an office of the
unemployment insurance agency for a
redetermination in accordance with section 32a.
(h) (f) The
issuance of each benefit check shall be is considered a determination by the unemployment insurance agency that the claimant receiving the
check was covered during the compensable period , and eligible and qualified for benefits. A
chargeable employer, upon on receipt of a listing of the check as provided in under section
21(a), may protest by requesting a redetermination of the claimant's
eligibility or qualification as to that period and a determination as to later
weeks and benefits still unpaid that are affected by the protest. Upon On receipt of
the protest or request, the unemployment insurance agency
shall investigate and redetermine whether the claimant is eligible and
qualified as to that period. If, upon on the redetermination, the claimant is found
ineligible or not qualified, the unemployment insurance
agency shall proceed as described in section 62. In addition, the
unemployment insurance agency shall investigate
and determine whether the claimant obtained benefits for 1 or more preceding
weeks within the series of consecutive weeks that includes the week covered by
the redetermination and, if so, shall proceed as described in section 62 as to
those weeks. Notwithstanding any other provision of
this act, for benefits charged after March 15, 2020 but before April 1, 2021,
an employer has 1 year after the date a benefit payment is charged against the
employer's account to protest that charge.
(i) (g) If
a claimant commences to file continued claims through a different state claim
office in this state or elsewhere, the unemployment insurance
agency promptly shall issue written
notice of that fact to the chargeable employer not
later than 14 days after the claimant commences to file.
(j) (h) If
a claimant refuses an offer of work, or fails to apply for work of which the
claimant has been notified, as provided in under section 29(1)(c) or (e), the unemployment insurance agency shall promptly make a written
determination as to whether or not the refusal or failure requires
disqualification under section 29. Notice of the determination, specifying the
name and address of the employing unit offering or giving notice of the work
and of the chargeable employer, shall must be sent to the claimant, the employing unit
offering or giving notice of the work, and the chargeable employer.
(k) (i) The
unemployment insurance agency shall issue a
notification to the claimant of claimant rights and responsibilities within not later than 2
weeks after the initial benefit payment on a claim and 6 months after the
initial benefit payment on the claim. Except as
otherwise provided in subsection (l), the
unemployment insurance agency shall mail the notification to the claimant. The
unemployment insurance agency may electronically deliver the notification if
the claimant consents to that delivery method or has submitted an application
or other document through the unemployment insurance agency's electronic portal
or system. If the electronic delivery fails or is rejected, the unemployment
insurance agency must promptly mail the notification. If the notification is delivered
electronically, it is considered to have been received by the claimant on 1 of the
following dates:
(i) The date that the
unemployment insurance agency electronically delivered the notification.
(ii) If the
electronic delivery failed or was rejected, the date that the unemployment
insurance agency mailed the notification.
(l) If the claimant selected a preferred form
of communication, the notification required under
subsection (k) must be conveyed delivered by that form. Issuing the notification must
not delay or interfere with the claimant's benefit payment. The notification
must contain clear and understandable information pertaining to all of the
following:
(i) Determinations as provided in section
62.
(ii) Penalties and other sanctions as
provided in this act.
(iii) Legal right to protest the determination
and the right to appeal through the administrative hearing system.
(iv) Other information needed to understand
and comply with agency rules and regulations not specified in this section.