[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 232 (Friday, December 3, 1999)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 67811-67814]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-31323]


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RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD

20 CFR Parts 325, 330, 335, and 336

RIN 3220-AB39


Registration for Railroad Unemployment Benefits; Sickness 
Benefits; Determination of Daily Benefit Rates; Duration of Normal and 
Extended Benefits

AGENCY: Railroad Retirement Board.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The Railroad Retirement Board (Board) proposes to amend its 
regulations to incorporate amendments made to the Railroad Unemployment 
Insurance Act, which shortened the waiting period for receipt of 
benefits under the RUIA, changed the method of computing the daily 
benefit rate, and eliminated certain extended benefits.

DATES: Comments should be submitted on or before February 1, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Secretary to the Board, Railroad Retirement Board, 844 North 
Rush Street, Chicago, Illinois 60611.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Thomas W. Sadler, Senior Attorney, 
(312) 751-4513, TDD (312) 751-4701.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Public Law 104-251 (110 Stat. 3161), 
commonly known as the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act Amendments of 
1996, amended the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (RUIA) to shorten 
the waiting period for receipt of unemployment and sickness benefits 
payable under that statute, to change the method of computing the daily 
benefit rate, and to eliminate certain extended payments of benefits, 
and the Board proposes to amend its regulations under the RUIA to 
conform to those amendments.
    Section 325.1 is proposed to be amended to reflect the change in 
the waiting period for unemployment benefits from 14 days to seven 
days. As amended, Sec. 325.1 would provide that unemployment benefits 
are payable to any qualified employee for each day of unemployment in 
excess of seven in his or her first two-week registration period, and 
then for up to ten days of unemployment in any subsequent registration 
period within the same period of continuing unemployment. However, if 
the unemployment is the result of a strike, no benefits are payable for 
the first day 14 days of unemployment. For purposes of applying the 
seven-day waiting period, a period of continuing unemployment would end 
when an employee exhausts his or her unemployment benefits for a 
benefit year. Section 325.1 would also be amended to incorporate a 
definition of ``period of continuing unemployment'', a concept added by 
the 1996 amendments. The concept of a period of continuing unemployment 
was added to the RUIA so as to permit the continued payment of benefits 
from one benefit year to the next without a new waiting period if the 
period of unemployment runs from one year to the next. Finally, 
Sec. 325.1 is proposed to be amended to provide that if an employee's 
earnings in a registration period exceed the monthly compensation base 
for the applicable base year, then no unemployment benefits are payable 
in that registration period. For example, for benefit year 1998 the 
base year is calendar year 1997 in which the monthly compensation base 
was $890. No benefits are payable for any days of unemployment in the 
benefit year beginning July 1, 1998, for any registration period in 
which the employee earns more than $890. An employee who declines 
suitable work during a registration period is treated as having earned 
the amount of earnings he would have received had he not declined 
employment.
    Section 330.2 is proposed to be amended to provide that the maximum 
daily benefit rate under the RUIA is the monthly compensation base, as 
computed under 20 CFR part 302, multiplied by 5%, rounded down to the 
nearest $1. This change is the result of a change in the RUIA enacted 
under the 1996 amendments. The Board will publish the maximum daily 
benefit rate for the upcoming benefit year by June 1 of each year.
    Section 335.6 is proposed to be revised to reflect the same changes 
with respect to the waiting period for sickness benefits that the 
proposed amendments to Sec. 325.1 make with respect to unemployment 
benefits.
    Finally, Sec. 336.13 is revised, and Sec. 336.14 is amended to 
reflect a change in the payment of extended benefits made by the 1996 
amendments. Under the RUIA, as amended, an employee with ten or more 
years of service will receive a maximum of 65 days of extended 
unemployment or sickness benefits after the employee has exhausted his 
or her normal 130 days of unemployment or sickness.
    The Board, with the concurrence of the Office of Management and 
Budget, has determined that this is not a significant regulatory action 
under Executive Order 12866; therefore no regulatory impact analysis is 
required. There are no information collections associated with these 
rules.

List of Subjects in 20 CFR Parts 325, 330, 335, and 336

    Railroad employees, Railroad unemployment insurance, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements.

    For the reasons set out in the preamble, the Railroad Retirement 
Board proposes to amend chapter II, title 20 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations as follows:

PART 325--REGISTRATION FOR RAILROAD UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS

    1. The authority for part 325 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 45 U.S.C. 362(i) and 362(l).

    2. Paragraphs (a) through (d) of Sec. 325.1 are revised, paragraph 
(e) is redesignated as paragraph (h), and new

[[Page 67812]]

paragraphs (e) through (g) are added as follows:


Sec. 325.1  General.

    (a) Day of unemployment. A ``day of unemployment'' is a calendar 
day on which an employee, although ready and willing to work, is 
unemployed, and on which no remuneration is payable and for which the 
employee has registered, as required by this part. The amount of 
compensable days of unemployment shall be computed in accordance with 
this section.
    (b) Registration period. Except for registration periods in 
extended unemployment benefit periods, a ``registration period'' means 
a period of 14 consecutive days beginning with the first day for which 
an employee registers following:
    (1) His or her last day of work, or
    (2) The last day of the employee's last preceding registration 
period, and with respect to which the employee properly files a claim 
for benefits on such form and in such manner as the Board prescribes.
    (c) General waiting period. Benefits are payable to any qualified 
employee for each day of unemployment in excess of seven during his or 
her first registration period in a period of continuing unemployment if 
such period of continuing unemployment is his or her initial period of 
continuing unemployment beginning in the benefit year, and then for 
each day of unemployment in excess of four during any subsequent 
registration period within the same period of continuing unemployment. 
A strike waiting period, described in paragraph (d) of this section, 
will satisfy a general waiting period with respect to a benefit year.
    (d) Strike waiting period. If a qualified employee has a period of 
continuing unemployment that includes days of unemployment due to a 
stoppage of work because of a strike in the establishment, premises, or 
enterprise at which he or she was last employed, no benefits are 
payable for his or her first 14 days of unemployment due to such 
stoppage of work. For subsequent days of unemployment due to the same 
stoppage of work, benefits are payable for days of unemployment in 
excess of four in each subsequent registration period within the period 
of continuing unemployment. If such period of continuing unemployment 
ends because the employee has exhausted his or her benefits as provided 
for under part 336 of this chapter, but the stoppage of work continues, 
benefits are payable for days of unemployment in excess of seven in the 
employee's first registration period in a new period of continuing 
unemployment based upon the same stoppage of work and for days of 
unemployment in excess of four in subsequent registration periods in 
the same period of continuing unemployment.
    (e) Period of continuing unemployment. A ``period of continuing 
unemployment'' means a single registration period that includes more 
than four days of unemployment or a series of consecutive periods each 
of which includes more than four days of unemployment, or a series of 
successive registration periods, each of which includes more than four 
days of unemployment, if each succeeding registration period begins 
within 15 days after the last day of the immediately preceding 
registration period. An employee's period of continuing unemployment 
ends on the last day of a benefit year in which he or she exhausts 
rights to unemployment benefits as provided for in part 336 of this 
chapter.
    (f) Computation of compensable days. (1) Example 1. An employee has 
an initial period of continuing unemployment from June 14 through July 
25 and is unemployed on all days in that period. The employee's first 
registration period covers June 14 to June 27, and his subsequent 
registration periods cover June 28 to July 11 and July 12 to July 25. 
Under paragraph (c) of this section, a one-week waiting period applies 
to his first registration period and the employee is therefore paid 
benefits for days of unemployment in excess of seven in that period. 
The employee is then paid benefits for days of unemployment in excess 
of four in each of the two ensuing registration periods. [Note: if this 
employee's period of continuing unemployment had been the result of a 
strike in the establishment, premises, or enterprise at which the 
employee was last employed, then under paragraph (d) of this section, 
no benefits would be payable for the period June 14 to June 27, and 
benefits would then be payable for days of unemployment in excess of 
four in each of the ensuing registration periods.]
    (2) Example 2. Same facts as in example 1, but the employee is 
unemployed again beginning August 18. Since August 18 is more than 15 
days after July 25, the end of his last registration period, the 
employee begins a new period of continuing unemployment. The employee's 
first registration period in the new period of continuing unemployment 
covers August 18 to August 31. The employee is paid benefits for days 
of unemployment in excess of seven in that registration period because 
that period is the employee's first registration period in a new period 
of continuing unemployment commencing in the benefit year beginning 
July 1, and he or she did not previously have a waiting period in any 
registration period earlier in that benefit year. The employee's next 
registration period covers September 1 to September 14, and the 
employee returned to work on September 12. In that registration period, 
the employee has 11 days of unemployment and is therefore paid benefits 
for days of unemployment in excess of four.
    (3) Example 3. Same facts as in examples 1 and 2, but the employee 
then has a new period of continuing unemployment beginning November 1 
in the same benefit year. November 1 to November 14 is the employee's 
first registration period in that period of continuing unemployment. 
The employee is paid benefits for days of unemployment in excess of 
four in that registration period and for days of unemployment in excess 
of four in any subsequent registration period in the same benefit year 
because earlier in the benefit year the employee had a registration 
period, August 18 to August 31, in which he or she satisfied the 
waiting period.
    (g) Remuneration exceeds base year compensation. (1) No benefits 
are payable to any otherwise eligible employee for any day of 
unemployment in a registration period where the total amount of 
remuneration, as defined in part 322 of this chapter, payable to the 
employee during a registration period exceeds the amount of the base 
year monthly compensation base. For this purpose an employee is 
considered to have received the amount he would have earned except for 
the fact that he declined suitable work available to him or her during 
the registration period.
    (2) Days of unemployment which are not compensable by virtue of 
paragraph (g)(1) of this section shall nevertheless be counted as days 
of unemployment for purposes of determining whether the general waiting 
period, as described in paragraph (c) of this section, has been 
satisfied.
* * * * *

PART 330--DETERMINATION OF DAILY BENEFIT RATES

    3. The authority citation for part 330 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 45 U.S.C. 362(l).

    4. Section 330.1 is revised to read as follows:

[[Page 67813]]

Sec. 330.1  Introduction.

    The Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act provides for the payment of 
benefits, at a specified daily benefit rate, to any qualified employee 
for his or her days of unemployment or days of sickness, subject to a 
maximum amount per day. The ``daily benefit rate'' for an employee is 
the amount of benefits that he or she may receive for each compensable 
day of unemployment or sickness in any registration period in a period 
of continuing unemployment or sickness.
    5. Paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) of Sec. 330.2 are revised to read 
as follows:


Sec. 330.2  Computation of daily benefit rate.

* * * * *
    (b) Maximum daily benefit rate. The maximum daily benefit rate is 
the product of the monthly compensation base, as computed under part 
302 of this chapter, for the base year immediately preceding the 
beginning of the benefit year, multiplied by five percent. If the 
maximum daily benefit rate so computed is not a multiple of $1.00, the 
Board will round it down to the nearest multiple of $1.00.
    (c) When increase effective. Whenever the annual application of the 
formula in paragraph (b) of this section triggers an increase in the 
maximum daily benefit rate, such increase will apply to days of 
unemployment or days of sickness in registration periods beginning 
after June 30 of the calendar year immediately following the base year 
referred to in paragraph (b) of this section.
    (d) Notice. Whenever the annual application of the formula in 
paragraph (b) of this section triggers an increase in the maximum daily 
benefit rate, or if the annual application of the formula does not 
trigger an increase, the Board will publish a notice in the Federal 
Register explaining how it computed the maximum daily benefit rate for 
the year. The Board will also notify each employer of the maximum 
amount of the daily benefit rate. The Board will make the computation 
as soon as it has computed the amount of the monthly compensation base 
under part 302 of this chapter and will publish notice as soon as 
possible thereafter, but in no event later than June 1 of each year. 
Information as to the current amount of the maximum daily benefit rate 
will also be available in any Board district or regional office.
* * * * *

PART 335--SICKNESS BENEFITS

    6. The authority citation for part 335 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 45 U.S.C 362(i) and 362(l).

    7. Section 335.6 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 335.6  Payment of sickness benefits.

    (a) General rule. Except as provided in this section, benefits are 
payable to any qualified employee for each day of sickness after the 
fourth consecutive day of sickness in a period of continuing sickness, 
as defined in Sec. 335.1(c), but excluding four days of sickness in any 
registration period in such period of continuing sickness.
    (b) Waiting period. Benefits are payable to any qualified employee 
for each day of sickness in excess of seven during his or her first 
registration period in a period of continuing sickness if such period 
of continuing sickness is his or her initial period of continuing 
sickness beginning in the benefit year. For this purpose, the first 
registration period in a period of continuing sickness is the 
registration period that first begins with four consecutive days of 
sickness and includes more than four days of sickness. For the purpose 
of computing benefits under this section, a period of continuing 
sickness ends on the last day of a benefit year in which the employee 
exhausts rights to sickness benefits as provided for under part 336 of 
this chapter.
    (c) Computation of compensable days. (1) Example 1. An employee has 
an initial period of continuing sickness from June 14 through July 25, 
and all days in that period are days of sickness. The employee's first 
registration period covers June 14 to June 27, and his or her 
subsequent registration period covers June 28 to July 11, and July 12 
to July 25. In the one-week waiting period the employee is paid 
benefits for days of sickness in excess of seven. In each of the two 
ensuing registration periods the employee is paid benefits for days of 
sickness in excess of four.
    (2) Example 2. Same facts as in Example 1, but the employee later 
has a new period of continuing sickness based upon a different illness 
or impairment beginning September 17. The employee's first registration 
period in his or her new period of continuing sickness covers September 
17 to September 30. The employee is paid benefits for days of sickness 
in excess of seven in that 14-day period because that period is his or 
her first registration period in a new period of continuing sickness 
commencing in the benefit year beginning July 1, and he or she did not 
previously have a waiting period in any registration period earlier in 
the benefit year.
    (3) Example 3. Same facts as in examples 1 and 2, but the employee 
then has a new period of continuing sickness beginning January 1 in the 
same benefit year. January 1 to January 14 is the employee's first 
registration period in that period of continuing sickness. The employee 
is paid benefits for days of sickness in excess of four in that 
registration period because earlier in the benefit year he or she had a 
registration period, September 17 to September 30, in which he or she 
satisfied the initial seven-day waiting period.
    (d) Amount payable. The gross amount of sickness benefits for any 
registration period in a period of continuing sickness shall be 
computed by multiplying the number of compensable days of sickness in 
such registration period by the employee's daily benefit rate, as 
computed under part 330 of this chapter.

PART 336--DURATION OF NORMAL AND EXTENDED BENEFITS

    8. The authority citation for part 336 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 45 U.S.C. 362(l).

    9. Section 336.13 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 336.13  Years of service requirement.

    (a) Eligibility. For the purposes of this part, an employee is not 
eligible for extended unemployment or sickness benefits if he or she 
does not have at least 10 years of railroad service. An employee who 
has 120 service months, as defined in part 210 of this chapter, whether 
or not consecutive, is considered to have 10 years of railroad service.
    (b) Initial determination. The Board will determine whether an 
employee has 10 years of railroad service on the basis of reports filed 
by employers pursuant to part 209 of this chapter. The number of years 
of service shown in the Board's records will be accepted as correct for 
the purposes of this part, unless the employee claims credit for more 
service than that shown in the Board's records and such additional 
service is verified, subject to part 211 of this chapter.
    (c) Effective date. An employee acquires ten years of railroad 
service as of the first day with respect to which creditable 
compensation is attributable in his 120th month of service.
    10. In Sec. 336.14, paragraphs (a), (c), and (d) are revised to 
read as follows:


Sec. 336.14  Extended benefit period.

    (a) Defined. An extended benefit period consists of seven 
consecutive 14-day registration periods.
* * * * *

[[Page 67814]]

    (c) Ending date. An employee's extended benefit period ends on the 
97th day after it began. If an employee attains age 65 during an 
extended sickness benefit period, such extended benefit period will 
terminate on the day next preceding the date on which the employee 
attains age 65, except that it may continue for the purpose of paying 
benefits for his or her days of unemployment, if any, during such 
extended period. If an extended sickness benefit period terminates 
because the employee has attained age 65, and if at that point the 
employee has rights to normal sickness benefits, the employee will be 
paid normal sickness benefits if he or she is otherwise entitled to 
payment thereof.
    (d) Maximum number of compensable days. Extended benefits may be 
paid for a maximum of 65 days of unemployment (or 65 days of sickness, 
as the case may be) within an employee's extended benefit period.

    Dated: November 23, 1999.

    By Authority of the Board.
Beatrice Ezerski,
Secretary to the Board.
[FR Doc. 99-31323 Filed 12-2-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7905-01-P