House Passes Unemployment Insurance Agency Reform Package

Liz Gullett

Nov 10, 2017

On Wednesday, the House passed a bipartisan package of legislation reforming the state’s Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA). The reforms were first introduced as a response to findings of a workgroup that found several issues within the UIA. The bill package will:

Address identity theft by creating a “watchdog” position to investigate fraud
Ensures claimants don’t get charged interest on overpayments due to agency failure
Gives people accused of fraud access to an advocacy program
Allows the reopening of a fraud case by the agency within three years with good cause
Improves the process for determining the validity of an unemployment claim
Clarifies the eligibility for hardship waivers and the agency’s process for ruling on applications for a waiver

The bills have been referred to the Senate Oversight Committee for consideration.

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