2014 -- H 7431

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LC003012

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2014

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO TEMPORARY DISABILITY INSURANCE - GENERAL PROVISIONS

     Introduced By: Representatives MacBeth, and Dickinson

     Date Introduced: February 12, 2014

     Referred To: House Finance

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 28-39-2 of the General Laws in Chapter 28-39 entitled "Temporary

Disability Insurance - General Provisions" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     28-39-2. Definitions. -- The following words and phrases, as used in chapters 39 -- 41 of

this title, have the following meanings unless the context clearly requires otherwise:

      (1) "Average weekly wage" means the amount determined by dividing the individual's

total wages earned for services performed in employment within his or her base period by the

number of that individual's credit weeks within the base period;

      (2) "Base period" with respect to an individual's benefit year when the benefit year

begins on or after October 7, 1990, means the first four (4) of the most recently completed five

(5) calendar quarters immediately preceding the first day of an individual's benefit year; provided,

that for any individual's benefit year when the benefit year begins on or after October 4, 1992,

and for any individual deemed monetarily ineligible for benefits under the "base period" as

defined in this subdivision, the department shall make a re-determination of entitlement based

upon an alternate base period which consists of the last four (4) completed calendar quarters

immediately preceding the first day of the claimant's benefit year. Notwithstanding anything

contained to the contrary in this subdivision, the base period shall not include any calendar

quarter previously used to establish a valid claim for benefits; provided, however, that the "base

period" with respect to members of the United States military service, the Rhode Island National

Guard, or a United States military reserve force, and who served in a United States declared

combat operation during their military service, who file a claim for benefits following their

release from their state or federal active military service and who are deemed to be monetarily

ineligible for benefits under this section, shall mean the first four (4) of the most recently

completed five (5) calendar quarters immediately preceding the first day the individual was called

into that state or federal active military service; provided, that for any individual deemed

monetarily ineligible for benefits under the "base period" as defined in this section, the

department shall make a re-determination of entitlement based upon an alternative base period

which consists of the last four (4) completed calendar quarters immediately preceding the first

day the claimant was called into that state or federal active military service. In addition, the

computation for the base period to be used for a member of the United States military service, the

Rhode Island National Guard, or a United States military reserve force, who served in a United

States declared combat operation during their military service, shall exclude the period of

deployment. Notwithstanding any provision of this section of the general or public laws to the

contrary, the base period shall not include any calendar quarter previously used to establish a

valid claim for benefits;

      (3) "Benefit" means the money payable, as provided in chapters 39 -- 41 of this title, to

an individual as compensation for his or her unemployment caused by sickness;

      (4) "Benefit credits" means the total amount of money payable to an individual as

benefits, as provided in section 28-41-7;

      (5) "Benefit rate" means the money payable to an individual as compensation, as

provided in chapters 39 -- 41 of this title, for his or her wage losses with respect to any week

during which his or her unemployment is caused by sickness;

      (6) "Benefit year" with respect to any individual who does not already have a benefit

year in effect, and who files a valid claim for benefits as of November 16, 1958 or any later date,

means fifty-two (52) consecutive calendar weeks, the first of which shall be the week containing

the day as of which he or she first files that valid claim in accordance with regulations adopted as

subsequently prescribed; provided, that for any benefit year beginning on or after October 7,

1990, the benefit year shall be fifty-three (53) consecutive calendar weeks if the subsequent filing

of a new valid claim immediately following the end of a previous benefit year would result in the

overlapping of any quarter of the base period of the prior new claim. In no event shall a new

benefit year begin prior to the Sunday next following the end of the old benefit year;

      (i) For benefit years that begin on or after July 1, 2012, an individual's benefit year will

begin on the Sunday of the calendar week in which an individual first became unemployed due to

sickness and for which the individual has filed a valid claim for benefits;

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      (7) "Board" means the board of review as created under chapter 19 of title 42;

      (8) "Calendar quarter" has the same definition as contained in chapter 42 of this title;

      (9) "Credit week" means any week within an individual's base period in which that

individual earns wages amounting to at least twenty (20) times the minimum hourly wage as

defined in chapter 12 of this title, for performing services in employment for one or more

employers subject to chapters 39 -- 41 of this title;

      (10) "Director" means the director of the department of labor and training;

      (11) "Employee" means any person who is or has been employed by an employer subject

to chapters 39 -- 41 of this title and in employment subject to those chapters;

      (12) "Employer" means any employing unit that is an employer under chapters 42 -- 44

of this title;

      (13) "Employing unit" has the same definition as contained in chapter 42 of this title and

includes any governmental entity that elects to become subject to the provisions of chapters 39 --

41 of this title, in accordance with the provisions of sections 28-39-3.1 and 28-39-3.2;

      (14) "Employment" has the same definition as contained in chapter 42 of this title;

      (15) "Employment office" has the same definition as contained in chapter 42 of this title;

      (16) "Fund" means the Rhode Island temporary disability insurance fund established by

this chapter;

      (17) "Partial unemployment due to sickness" For weeks beginning on or after January 1,

2006 an individual shall be deemed partially unemployed due to sickness in any week of less than

full-time work if he or she fails to earn in wages for services for that week an amount equal to the

weekly benefit rate for total unemployment due to sickness to which he or she would be entitled

if totally unemployed due to sickness and eligible.

      (i) For the purposes of this subdivision and subdivision (22) of this section, "Wages"

includes only that part of remuneration for any work, which is in excess of one-fifth (1/5) of the

weekly benefit rate for total unemployment, rounded to the next lower multiple of one dollar

($1.00), to which the individual would be entitled if totally unemployed and eligible in any one

week, and "services" includes only that part of any work for which remuneration in excess of

one-fifth (1/5) of the weekly benefit rate for total unemployment, rounded to the next lower

multiple of one dollar ($1.00), to which the individual would be entitled if totally unemployed

and eligible in any one week is payable; provided, that nothing contained in this paragraph shall

permit any individual to whom remuneration is payable for any work performed in any week in

an amount equal to, or greater than, his or her weekly benefit rate to receive benefits under this

subdivision for that week.

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      (18) "Reserve fund" means the temporary disability insurance reserve fund established

by section 28-39-7;

      (19) "Services" means all endeavors undertaken by an individual that are paid for by

another or with respect to which the individual performing the services expects to receive wages

or profits;

      (20) "Sickness". An individual shall be deemed to be sick in any week in which, because

of his or her physical or mental condition, including pregnancy, he or she is unemployed and

unable to perform his or her regular or customary work or services;

      (21) (i) "Taxes" means the money payments required by chapters 39 -- 41 of this title, to

be made to the temporary disability insurance fund or to the temporary disability insurance

reserve fund.

      (ii) Wherever and whenever in chapters 39 -- 41 of this title, the words "contribution"

and/or "contributions" appear, those words shall be construed to mean the "taxes," as defined in

this subdivision, which are the money payments required by those chapters to be made to the

temporary disability insurance fund or to the temporary disability insurance reserve fund;

      (22) "Wages" has the same definition as contained in chapter 42 of this title; provided,

that no individual shall be denied benefits under chapters 39 -- 41 of this title because his or her

employer continues to pay to that individual his or her regular wages, or parts of them, while he

or she is unemployed due to sickness and unable to perform his or her regular or customary work

or services. The amount of any payments, whether or not under a plan or system, made to or on

behalf of an employee by his or her employer after the expiration of six (6) calendar months

following the last calendar month in which the employee performed actual bona fide personal

services for his or her employer, shall not be deemed to be wages either for the purpose of paying

contributions thereon under chapter 40 of this title, or for the purpose of being used as a basis for

paying benefits under chapter 41 of this title; and

      (23) "Week" has the same definition as contained in chapter 42 of this title.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO TEMPORARY DISABILITY INSURANCE - GENERAL PROVISIONS

***

     This act would exclude the period of military deployment in the computation of the base

period used in the determination of benefit amount.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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