Regular Session 2017-2018 Senate Bill 0250 P.N. 0630

HOUSE AMENDED

PRIOR PRINTER'S NOS. 541, 615

PRINTER'S NO. 630

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

SENATE BILL

No.

250

Session of

2017

INTRODUCED BY WARD, BROWNE, EICHELBERGER, STEFANO, VOGEL,

BROOKS, KILLION, VULAKOVICH, SCAVELLO, YAW, RAFFERTY,

TOMLINSON AND McILHINNEY, MARCH 20, 2017

AS REPORTED FROM COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND INDUSTRY, HOUSE OF

REPRESENTATIVES, AS AMENDED, APRIL 3, 2017

AN ACT

Amending the act of December 5, 1936 (2nd Sp.Sess., 1937

P.L.2897, No.1), entitled "An act establishing a system of

unemployment compensation to be administered by the

Department of Labor and Industry and its existing and newly

created agencies with personnel (with certain exceptions)

selected on a civil service basis; requiring employers to

keep records and make reports, and certain employers to pay

contributions based on payrolls to provide moneys for the

payment of compensation to certain unemployed persons;

providing procedure and administrative details for the

determination, payment and collection of such contributions

and the payment of such compensation; providing for

cooperation with the Federal Government and its agencies;

creating certain special funds in the custody of the State

Treasurer; and prescribing penalties," in administration of

act, providing for unemployment compensation call SERVICE

centers; and, in contributions by employers and employees,

further providing for contributions by employees and for

Service and Infrastructure Improvement Fund.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. The act of December 5, 1936 (2nd Sp.Sess., 1937

P.L.2897, No.1), known as the Unemployment Compensation Law, is

amended by adding a section to read:

Section 202.1. Unemployment Compensation Call SERVICE Centers.

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Before closing an unemployment compensation call SERVICE

center, the department shall submit a report to the chairperson

and minority chairperson of the Labor and Industry Committee of

the Senate and the chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Labor and Industry Committee of the House of Representatives.

The report shall include the performance data and operating

costs of the unemployment compensation call SERVICE center as

compared to other unemployment compensation call SERVICE centers

in this Commonwealth.

Section 2. Sections 301.4(e)(2) and 301.9 of the act are

amended to read:

SECTION 2. SECTION 301.4(E)(2) OF THE ACT IS AMENDED AND THE

SECTION IS AMENDED BY ADDING A SUBSECTION TO READ:

Section 301.4. Contributions by Employes.--* * *

(e) Contributions paid under this section shall be allocated

by the department among the Unemployment Compensation Fund, the

Reemployment Fund and the Service and Infrastructure Improvement

Fund as follows:

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(2) During each calendar year from 2013 through [2016] 2017,

an amount determined by the secretary with the approval of the

Governor shall be deposited into the Service and Infrastructure

Improvement Fund. For calendar year 2013, the amount determined

under this clause may not exceed forty million dollars

($40,000,000). For calendar year 2014, the amount determined

under this clause may not exceed thirty million dollars

($30,000,000). For calendar years 2015 and 2016, the amount

determined under this clause for each calendar year may not

exceed one hundred ninety million dollars ($190,000,000)

adjusted by the increase in the Bureau of Labor Statistics

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Consumer Price Index for the period from May 2013 through

January of the calendar year less the amount of Federal

administrative funding for the preceding Federal fiscal year.

For calendar year 2017, the amount determined under this clause

may not exceed fifteen million dollars ($15,000,000) and shall

be allocated for the purposes specified under section 301.9(c)

(1) and (3) .

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(F) DURING CALENDAR YEAR 2017, THE FOLLOWING SHALL APPLY TO

FUNDING TRANSFERRED TO THE SERVICE AND INFRASTRUCTURE

IMPROVEMENT FUND AND RELATED MATTERS REGARDING THE FUND:

(1) THE DEPARTMENT SHALL TEMPORARILY IMPROVE THE OPERATIONS

OF THE UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION SYSTEM PENDING THE GENERAL

ASSEMBLY'S REVIEW OF THE INFORMATION REQUIRED BY SECTION

301.9(H) AND (I) AND A SPECIAL PERFORMANCE AUDIT CONDUCTED BY

THE AUDITOR GENERAL. FUNDING UNDER THIS CLAUSE SHALL BE

ALLOCATED AS FOLLOWS:

(I) TEN MILLION EIGHT HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS ($10,800,000)

SHALL BE ALLOCATED FOR PERSONNEL COSTS RELATED TO CLAIMS

PROCESSING AND SERVICE TO CLAIMANTS.

(II) TWO MILLION THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS ($2,300,000)

SHALL BE ALLOCATED FOR PERSONNEL COSTS RELATED TO TAX SERVICES.

(III) ONE MILLION FOUR HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS ($1,400,000)

SHALL BE ALLOCATED FOR PERSONNEL COSTS RELATED TO APPEALS UNDER

ARTICLE V.

(IV) FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS ($500,000) MAY BE

ALLOCATED FOR THE PURPOSES AUTHORIZED UNDER SUBCLAUSES (I), (II)

AND (III) OR FOR PERSONNEL COSTS RELATED TO PROGRAM INTEGRITY

AND THE DETECTION AND PREVENTION OF OVERPAYMENTS TO CLAIMANTS.

(2) FUNDING SHALL BE EXPENDED IN A MANNER THAT WILL RESULT

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IN THE OPERATIONS OF THE UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION SYSTEM

REMAINING AT CONSISTENT LEVELS FOR AT LEAST NINE (9) CALENDAR

MONTHS FOLLOWING THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS CLAUSE.

(3) THE DEPARTMENT SHALL MAINTAIN A SEPARATE ACCOUNTING FOR

THE SERVICE AND INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT FUND. THE SECRETARY

SHALL PROVIDE A REPORT TO THE CHAIR OF THE LABOR AND INDUSTRY

COMMITTEE OF THE SENATE AND THE CHAIR OF THE LABOR AND INDUSTRY

COMMITTEE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES BEFORE THE FIFTEENTH

DAY OF EACH MONTH DURING THE PERIOD SPECIFIED IN CLAUSE (2). THE

REPORT SHALL INCLUDE ALL OF THE FOLLOWING:

(I) AN ACCOUNTING OF THE SERVICE AND INFRASTRUCTURE

IMPROVEMENT FUND FOR THE PRIOR CALENDAR MONTH.

(II) AN UPDATE ON OPERATIONS OF THE UNEMPLOYMENT

COMPENSATION SYSTEM.

(III) AN ACCOUNTING OF TOTAL FUNDS SPENT ON THE

ADMINISTRATION OF THE UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION SYSTEM FOR THE

PRIOR CALENDAR MONTH.

(IV) AN UPDATE ON THE PROGRESS OF THE PROCUREMENT OF

TECHNOLOGICAL UPGRADES TO THE DELIVERY SYSTEM FOR UNEMPLOYMENT

COMPENSATION BENEFITS.

SECTION 3. SECTION 301.9 OF THE ACT IS AMENDED TO READ:

Section 301.9. Service and Infrastructure Improvement

Fund.--(a) There is established a restricted account in the

State Treasury to be known as the Service and Infrastructure

Improvement Fund.

(b) Moneys in the Service and Infrastructure Improvement

Fund shall consist of contributions deposited into the fund

pursuant to section 301.4(e)(2).

Fund are appropriated on a continuing basis, upon approval of

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the Governor, to the department to be prioritized for the

following purposes:

(1) To improve the quality, efficiency and timeliness of

services provided by the service center system to individuals

claiming compensation under this act, including claim filing,

claim administration, adjudication services and staffing and

training of system employes.

(2) Expenditures for information management technology,

communications technology and other infrastructure components,

including technological upgrades to the delivery system for

unemployment compensation benefits, that the secretary

determines are likely to result in significant and lasting

improvements to the unemployment compensation system.

(3) To pay the costs of collecting the contributions

deposited into the Service and Infrastructure Improvement Fund

pursuant to section 301.4(e)(2).

(d) Consistent with the merit staffing requirement of

section 303(a)(1) of the Social Security Act (49 Stat. 620, 42

U.S.C. § 503(a)(1)), no moneys in the Service and Infrastructure

Improvement Fund may be expended or obligated to a third party

to perform unemployment compensation services of the department,

except services relating to technology and infrastructure

components deemed necessary by the secretary under subsection

(c)(2).

(e) Any moneys in the Service and Infrastructure Improvement

Fund that are not expended or obligated as of December 31,

[2018] 2019, shall be transferred to the Unemployment

Compensation Fund under section 601.

(f) Moneys in the Service and Infrastructure Improvement

Fund shall not lapse at any time nor be transferred to any other

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fund except as provided in subsection (e).

(g) No later than June 30 of each calendar year from 2014

through [2019] 2020, the department shall provide a report to

the Governor and the General Assembly, through the Secretary-

Parliamentarian of the Senate and the Chief Clerk of the House

of Representatives, regarding the Service and Infrastructure

Improvement Fund, which report shall include an accounting for

the contributions deposited into the fund, the expenditures and

transfers from the fund during the prior year and a description

of the purposes for which expenditures from the fund were made

in the prior year.

(h) No later than June 15, 2017, the department shall submit

a report to the chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Labor and Industry Committee of the Senate and the chairperson

and minority chairperson of the Labor and Industry Committee of

the House of Representatives. The report shall describe the

department's plan to eliminate the department's reliance on

moneys transferred into the Service and Infrastructure

Improvement Fund for recurring operational costs. The General

Assembly shall consider the information contained in the report

when reviewing a supplemental funding request by the department

FOR CALENDAR YEARS BEGINNING AFTER 2017 .

(i) A IT IS THE INTENTION OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY TO

SEPARATELY REVIEW A supplemental funding request by the

department for technological upgrades to the delivery system for

unemployment compensation benefits . for calendar years beginning

after 2017 THE REQUEST SHALL BE SUBMITTED WITH THE REPORT

REQUIRED BY SUBSECTION (H) AND shall include all of the

following:

(1) A detailed description of the technological upgrades to

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the delivery system for unemployment compensation benefits.

(2) An explanation of the improvements to the unemployment

compensation benefits delivery system that will result from the

technological upgrades.

(3) The total estimated cost of the technological upgrades

to the delivery system for unemployment compensation benefits,

including the total estimated cost each year and any additional

funding sources that can be used for the project.

(4) T he total estimated cost savings that will result from

the t echnological upgrades to the delivery system for

unemployment compensation benefits.

(5) The time period, as specified in years, that will be

necessary for the department to complete the technological

upgrades to the delivery system for unemployment compensation

benefits .

(6) Information on a proposal received or contract executed

for technological upgrades to the delivery system for

unemployment compensation benefits if publicly accessible under

the act of February 14, 2008 (P.L.6, No.3), known as the Right-

to-Know Law.

(7) A detailed description of how the technological upgrades

to the delivery system for unemployment compensation benefits

will impact any related recommendations in a special performance

audit conducted by the Auditor General.

Section 3 4. This act shall take effect immediately.

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