[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 923 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 923

  To provide for additional weeks of temporary extended unemployment 
 compensation, to provide for a program of temporary enhanced regular 
           unemployment compensation, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 11, 2003

  Mr. Kennedy (for himself, Mr. Smith, Mr. Daschle, Mrs. Clinton, Mr. 
  Reed, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Sarbanes, Mr. Bingaman, Mr. Rockefeller, Mr. 
 Dodd, Mr. Levin, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Harkin, Ms. Mikulski, Ms. Cantwell, 
 and Mr. Schumer)  introduced the following bill; which was read twice 
                and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide for additional weeks of temporary extended unemployment 
 compensation, to provide for a program of temporary enhanced regular 
           unemployment compensation, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Economic Security 
Act of 2003''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
 TITLE I--EXTENSION AND ENHANCEMENT OF TEMPORARY EXTENDED UNEMPLOYMENT 
                              COMPENSATION

Sec. 101. Extension of the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation 
                            Act of 2002.
Sec. 102. Entitlement to additional weeks of temporary extended 
                            unemployment compensation.
     TITLE II--TEMPORARY ENHANCED REGULAR UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION

Sec. 201. Federal-State agreements.
Sec. 202. Payments to States having agreements under this title.
Sec. 203. Financing provisions.
Sec. 204. Definitions.
Sec. 205. Applicability.
Sec. 206. Coordination with the Temporary Extended Unemployment 
                            Compensation Act of 2002.

 TITLE I--EXTENSION AND ENHANCEMENT OF TEMPORARY EXTENDED UNEMPLOYMENT 
                              COMPENSATION

SEC. 101. EXTENSION OF THE TEMPORARY EXTENDED UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION 
              ACT OF 2002.

    (a) In General.--Section 208 of the Temporary Extended Unemployment 
Compensation Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 30), as amended 
by Public Law 108-1 (117 Stat. 3), is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(2), by striking ``before June 1'' and 
        inserting ``on or before November 30'';
            (2) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ``May 31, 2003'' and 
        inserting ``November 30, 2003'';
            (3) in subsection (b)(2)--
                    (A) in the heading, by striking ``may 31, 2003'' 
                and inserting ``november 30, 2003''; and
                    (B) by striking ``May 31, 2003'' and inserting 
                ``November 30, 2003''; and
            (4) in subsection (b)(3), by striking ``August 30, 2003'' 
        and inserting ``February 28, 2004''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect as if included in the enactment of the Temporary Extended 
Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 
21).

SEC. 102. ENTITLEMENT TO ADDITIONAL WEEKS OF TEMPORARY EXTENDED 
              UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION.

    (a) Entitlement to Additional Weeks.--
            (1) In general.--Paragraph (1) of section 203(b) of the 
        Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002 
        (Public Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 28) is amended--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``50 percent'' 
                and inserting ``100 percent''; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``13 times'' 
                and inserting ``26 times''.
            (2) Repeal of restriction on augmentation during 
        transitional period.--Section 208(b) of the Temporary Extended 
        Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-147), as 
        amended by Public Law 108-1 (117 Stat. 3) and section 101(a), 
        is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)--
                            (i) by striking ``paragraphs (2) and (3)'' 
                        and inserting ``paragraph (2)''; and
                            (ii) by inserting before the period at the 
                        end the following: ``, including such 
                        compensation payable by reason of amounts 
                        deposited in such account after such date 
                        pursuant to the application of subsection (c) 
                        of such section'';
                    (B) by striking paragraph (2); and
                    (C) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph 
                (2).
            (3) Extension of transition limitation.--Section 208(b)(2) 
        of the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002 
        (Public Law 107-147), as amended by Public Law 108-1 (117 Stat. 
        3) and section 101(a)(4) and as redesignated by paragraph (2), 
        is amended by striking ``February 28, 2004'' and inserting 
        ``May 29, 2004''.
            (4) Conforming amendment for augmented benefits.--Section 
        203(c)(1) of the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation 
        Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 28) is amended by 
        striking ``the amount originally established in such account 
        (as determined under subsection (b)(1))'' and inserting ``7 
        times the individual's average weekly benefit amount for the 
        benefit year''.
    (b) Effective Date and Application.--
            (1) In general.--The amendments made by subsection (a) 
        shall apply with respect to weeks of unemployment beginning on 
        or after the date of enactment this Act.
            (2) TEUC-X amounts deposited in account prior to date of 
        enactment deemed to be the additional teuc amounts provided by 
        this section.--In applying the amendments made by subsection 
        (a) under the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act 
        of 2002 (Public Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 26), the Secretary of 
        Labor shall deem any amounts deposited into an individual's 
        temporary extended unemployment compensation account by reason 
        of section 203(c) of such Act (commonly known as ``TEUC-X 
        amounts'') prior to the date of enactment of this Act to be 
        amounts deposited in such account by reason of section 203(b) 
        of such Act, as amended by subsection (a) (commonly known as 
        ``TEUC amounts'').
            (3) Application to exhaustees and current beneficiaries.--
                    (A) Exhaustees.--In the case of any individual--
                            (i) to whom any temporary extended 
                        unemployment compensation was payable for any 
                        week beginning before the date of enactment of 
                        this Act; and
                            (ii) who exhausted such individual's rights 
                        to such compensation (by reason of the payment 
                        of all amounts in such individual's temporary 
                        extended unemployment compensation account) 
                        before such date,
                such individual's eligibility for any additional weeks 
                of temporary extended unemployment compensation by 
                reason of the amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
                apply with respect to weeks of unemployment beginning 
                on or after the date of enactment of this Act.
                    (B) Current beneficiaries.--In the case of any 
                individual--
                            (i) to whom any temporary extended 
                        unemployment compensation was payable for any 
                        week beginning before the date of enactment of 
                        this Act; and
                            (ii) as to whom the condition described in 
                        subparagraph (A)(ii) does not apply,
                such individual shall be eligible for temporary 
                extended unemployment compensation (in accordance with 
                the provisions of the Temporary Extended Unemployment 
                Compensation Act of 2002, as amended by subsection (a)) 
                with respect to weeks of unemployment beginning on or 
                after the date of enactment of this Act.
            (4) Redetermination of eligibility for augmented amounts 
        for individuals for whom such a determination was made prior to 
        the date of enactment.--Any determination of whether the 
        individual's State is in an extended benefit period under 
        section 203(c) of the Temporary Extended Unemployment 
        Compensation Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 28) 
        made prior to the date of enactment of this Act shall be 
        disregarded and the determination under such section shall be 
        made as follows:
                    (A) Individuals who exhausted all teuc and teuc-x 
                amounts prior to the date of enactment.--In the case of 
                an individual whose temporary extended unemployment 
                account has, prior to the date of enactment of this 
                Act, been both augmented under such section 203(c) and 
                exhausted of all amounts by which it was so augmented, 
                the determination shall be made as of such date of 
                enactment.
                    (B) All other individuals.--In the case of an 
                individual who is not described in subparagraph (A), 
                the determination shall be made at the time that the 
                individual's account established under such section 
                203, as amended by subsection (a), is exhausted.

     TITLE II--TEMPORARY ENHANCED REGULAR UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION

SEC. 201. FEDERAL-STATE AGREEMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Any State which desires to do so may enter into 
and participate in an agreement under this title with the Secretary of 
Labor (in this title referred to as the ``Secretary''). Any State which 
is a party to an agreement under this title may, upon providing 30 
days' written notice to the Secretary, terminate such agreement.
    (b) Provisions of Agreement.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (3), any agreement 
        under subsection (a) shall provide that the State agency of the 
        State, in addition to any amounts of regular compensation to 
        which an individual may be entitled under the State law, shall 
        make payments of temporary enhanced regular unemployment 
        compensation to an individual in an amount and to the extent 
        that the individual would be entitled to regular compensation 
        if the State law were applied with the modifications described 
        in paragraph (2).
            (2) Modifications described.--The modifications described 
        in this paragraph are as follows:
                    (A) In the case of an individual who is not 
                eligible for regular compensation under the State law 
                because of the use of a definition of base period that 
                does not count wages earned in the most recently 
                completed calendar quarter, then eligibility for 
                compensation shall be determined by applying a base 
                period ending at the close of the most recently 
                completed calendar quarter.
                    (B) In the case of an individual who is not 
                eligible for regular compensation under the State law 
                because such individual does not meet requirements 
                relating to availability for work, active search for 
                work, or refusal to accept work, because such 
                individual is seeking, or is available for, less than 
                full-time work, then compensation shall not be denied 
                by such State to an otherwise eligible individual who 
                seeks less than full-time work or fails to accept full-
                time work.
            (3) Reduction of amounts of regular compensation available 
        for individuals who sought part-time work or failed to accept 
        full-time work.--Any agreement under subsection (a) shall 
        provide that the State agency of the State shall reduce the 
        amount of regular compensation available to an individual who 
        has received temporary enhanced regular unemployment 
        compensation as a result of the application of the modification 
        described in paragraph (2)(B) by the amount of such temporary 
        enhanced regular unemployment compensation.
    (c) Coordination Rule.--The modifications described in subsection 
(b)(2) shall also apply in determining the amount of benefits payable 
under any Federal law to the extent that those benefits are determined 
by reference to regular compensation payable under the State law of the 
State involved.

SEC. 202. PAYMENTS TO STATES HAVING AGREEMENTS UNDER THIS TITLE.

    (a) General Rule.--There shall be paid to each State which has 
entered into an agreement under this title an amount equal to--
            (1) 100 percent of any temporary enhanced regular 
        unemployment compensation; and
            (2) 100 percent of any regular compensation which is paid 
        to individuals by such State by reason of the fact that its 
        State law contains provisions comparable to the modifications 
        described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of section 201(b)(2), 
        but only to the extent that those amounts would, if such 
        amounts were instead payable by virtue of the State law's being 
        deemed to be so modified pursuant to section 201(b)(1), have 
        been reimbursable under paragraph (1).
    (b) Determination of Amount.--Sums under subsection (a) payable to 
any State by reason of such State having an agreement under this title 
shall be payable, either in advance or by way of reimbursement (as may 
be determined by the Secretary), in such amounts as the Secretary 
estimates the State will be entitled to receive under this title for 
each calendar month, reduced or increased, as the case may be, by any 
amount by which the Secretary finds that the Secretary's estimates for 
any prior calendar month were greater or less than the amounts which 
should have been paid to the State. Such estimates may be made on the 
basis of such statistical, sampling, or other method as may be agreed 
upon by the Secretary and the State agency of the State involved.

SEC. 203. FINANCING PROVISIONS.

    (a) In General.--Funds in the extended unemployment compensation 
account (as established by section 905(a) of the Social Security Act 
(42 U.S.C. 1105(a))), and the Federal unemployment account (as 
established by section 904(g) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1104(g))), of the 
Unemployment Trust Fund (as established by section 904(a) of such Act 
(42 U.S.C. 1104(a))) shall be used for the making of payments to States 
having agreements entered into under this title.
    (b) Certification.--The Secretary shall from time to time certify 
to the Secretary of the Treasury for payment to each State the sums 
which are payable to such State under this title. The Secretary of the 
Treasury, prior to audit or settlement by the General Accounting 
Office, shall make payments to the State in accordance with such 
certification by transfers from the extended unemployment compensation 
account (as so established), or, to the extent that there are 
insufficient funds in that account, from the Federal unemployment 
account, to the account of such State in the Unemployment Trust Fund 
(as so established).
    (c) Assistance to States.--There are appropriated out of the 
employment security administration account of the Unemployment Trust 
Fund (as established by section 901(a) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1101(a))) $500,000,000 to reimburse States for the costs of the 
administration of agreements under this title (including any 
improvements in technology in connection therewith) and to provide 
reemployment services to unemployment compensation claimants in States 
having agreements under this title. Each State's share of the amount 
appropriated by the preceding sentence shall be determined by the 
Secretary according to the factors described in section 302(a) of the 
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 502(a)) and certified by the Secretary 
to the Secretary of the Treasury.
    (d) Appropriations for Certain Payments.--There are appropriated 
from the general fund of the Treasury, without fiscal year limitation, 
to the extended unemployment compensation account (as so established) 
of the Unemployment Trust Fund (as so established) such sums as the 
Secretary estimates to be necessary to make the payments under this 
section in respect of--
            (1) compensation payable under chapter 85 of title 5, 
        United States Code; and
            (2) compensation payable on the basis of services to which 
        section 3309(a)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
        applies.
Amounts appropriated pursuant to the preceding sentence shall not be 
required to be repaid.

SEC. 204. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this title, the terms ``compensation'', ``base 
period'', ``regular compensation'', ``State'', ``State agency'', 
``State law'', and ``week'' have the respective meanings given such 
terms under section 205 of the Federal-State Extended Unemployment 
Compensation Act of 1970.

SEC. 205. APPLICABILITY.

    (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), an agreement 
entered into under this title shall apply to weeks of unemployment--
            (1) beginning after the date on which such agreement is 
        entered into; and
            (2) ending before July 1, 2004.
    (b) Phase-Out of TERUC.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), in the case of 
        an individual who has established eligibility for temporary 
        enhanced regular unemployment compensation, but who has not 
exhausted all rights to such compensation, as of the last day of the 
week ending before July 1, 2004, such compensation shall continue to be 
payable to such individual for any week beginning after such date for 
which the individual meets the eligibility requirements of this title.
            (2) Limitation.--No compensation shall be payable by reason 
        of paragraph (1) for any week beginning after December 31, 
        2004.

SEC. 206. COORDINATION WITH THE TEMPORARY EXTENDED UNEMPLOYMENT 
              COMPENSATION ACT OF 2002.

    (a) In General.--The Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation 
Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 30) is amended--
            (1) in section 202(b)(1), by inserting ``, and who have 
        exhausted all rights to temporary enhanced regular unemployment 
        compensation'' before the semicolon at the end;
            (2) in section 202(b)(2), by inserting ``, temporary 
        enhanced regular unemployment compensation,'' after ``regular 
        compensation'';
            (3) in section 202(c), by inserting ``(or, as the case may 
        be, such individual's rights to temporary enhanced regular 
        unemployment compensation)'' after ``State law'' in the matter 
        preceding paragraph (1);
            (4) in section 202(c)(1), by inserting ``and no payments of 
        temporary enhanced regular unemployment compensation can be 
        made'' after ``under such law'';
            (5) in section 202(d)(1), by inserting ``or the amount of 
        any temporary enhanced regular unemployment compensation 
        (including dependents' allowances) payable to such individual 
        for such a week,'' after ``total unemployment'';
            (6) in section 202(d)(2)(A), by inserting ``, or, as the 
        case may be, to temporary enhanced regular unemployment 
        compensation,'' after ``State law'';
            (7) in section 203(b)(1)(A), by inserting ``plus the amount 
        of any temporary enhanced regular unemployment compensation 
        payable to such individual for such week,'' after ``under such 
        law''; and
            (8) in section 203(b)(2), by inserting ``or the amount of 
        any temporary enhanced regular unemployment compensation 
        payable to such individual for such week,'' after ``total 
        unemployment''.
    (b) Amount of TEUC Offset by Amount of TERUC.--Section 203(b)(1) of 
the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002 (Public 
Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 28) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end 
        and inserting a comma; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
        ``minus the number of weeks in which the individual was 
        entitled to temporary enhanced regular unemployment 
        compensation as a result of the application of the modification 
        described in section 201(b)(2)(A) of the Economic Security Act 
        of 2003 (relating to the alternative base period) multiplied by 
        the individual's average weekly benefit amount for the benefit 
        year.''.
    (c) Temporary Enhanced Regular Unemployment Compensation Defined.--
Section 207 of the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 
2002 (Public Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 30) is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 207. DEFINITIONS.

    ``In this title:
            ``(1) General definitions.--The terms `compensation', 
        `regular compensation', `extended compensation', `additional 
        compensation', `benefit year', `base period', `State', `State 
        agency', `State law', and `week' have the respective meanings 
        given such terms under section 205 of the Federal-State 
        Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970 (26 U.S.C. 3304 
        note).
            ``(2) Temporary enhanced regular unemployment 
        compensation.--The term `temporary enhanced regular 
        unemployment compensation' means temporary enhanced regular 
        unemployment benefits payable under title II of the Economic 
        Security Act of 2003.''.
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