Chapter 120
2013 -- H 5689 SUBSTITUTE A
Enacted 06/24/13
A N A C T
RELATING TO
LABOR AND LABOR RELATIONS - EMPLOYMENT SECURITY - FRAUD AND ABUSE
Introduced By: Representatives Jacquard, Nunes, and Mattiello
Date Introduced: February 27, 2013
It is enacted by the
General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Sections 28-42-62.1 and 28-42-68 of the General
Laws in Chapter 28-42
entitled "Employment Security - General Provisions"
are hereby amended to read as follows:
28-42-62.1.
Fraud and abuse. -- (a) (1) It
shall be unlawful to do any of the following:
(A) Make or cause to be
made any knowingly false or fraudulent material statement or
material representation for the purpose of obtaining or
denying any benefits;
(B) Present or cause to
be presented any knowingly false or fraudulent written or oral
material statement in support of, or in opposition to, any
claim for benefits or petition regarding
the continuation, termination or modification of
benefits;
(C) Knowingly assist, aid
and abet, solicit, or conspire with any person who engages in
an unlawful act under this section;
(D) Willfully
misrepresent or fail to disclose any material fact in order to avoid or reduce
any contribution or other payment required of an employing
unit under chapters 42 -- 44 of this
title;
(E) Willfully fail to
report or provide false or misleading information regarding
ownership changes as required by regulations promulgated by the
department.
(F) Willfully make or
require any deduction from wages to pay all or any portion of the
contributions required from employers, or try to induce any
individual to waive any right under
chapters 42-44 of this title.
(2) For purposes of
this section, "statement" includes, but is not limited to, any
endorsement of a benefit check, application for registration,
oral or written statement or report,
proof of unemployment, or other documentation offered as
proof of, or the absence of,
entitlement to benefits or the amount of benefits.
(3) If it is determined
that any person concealed or knowingly failed to disclose that
which is required by law to be revealed, knowingly gave or
used perjured testimony or false
evidence, knowingly made a false statement of fact,
participated in the creation or presentation of
evidence which he knows to be false, or otherwise engaged in
conduct in violation of this section,
that person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and subject
in criminal proceedings to a fine and/or
penalty not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or
double the value of the fraud, whichever
is greater, or by imprisonment up to one year in state
prison, or both.
(4) Beginning October
1, 2013, whenever the director establishes that an erroneous
payment was made to an individual due to fraud committed by
the individual, that individual will
be assessed a penalty equal to fifteen percent (15%) of
the amount of the erroneous payment. All
penalties assessed and collected under this subsection shall be
immediately deposited into the
employment security fund.
(b) The director, in
consultation with the attorney general, shall establish a form to give
notice that the endorsement of a benefit check sent pursuant
to chapter 44 of this title is the
endorser's affirmation that he or she is qualified to receive
benefits under the employment
security act. The notice shall be sent to all individuals who
are presently receiving benefits and
given to those who file claims for benefits in the future.
28-42-68.
Recovery of erroneously paid benefits. -- (a) Any individual who, by reason
of a mistake or misrepresentation made by himself,
herself, or another, has received any sum as
benefits under chapters 42 -- 44 of this title, in any week in
which any condition for the receipt of
the benefits imposed by those chapters was not fulfilled
by him or her, or with respect to any
week in which he or she was disqualified from receiving
those benefits, shall in the discretion of
the director be liable to have that sum deducted from any
future benefits payable to him or her
under those chapters, or shall be liable to repay to the
director for the employment security fund a
sum equal to the amount so received, plus, if the
benefits were received as a result of
misrepresentation or fraud by the recipient, interest on the benefits
at the rate set forth in section
28-43-15. That sum shall be
collectible in the manner provided in section 28-43-18 for the
collection of past due contributions. All interest received
pursuant to this subsection shall be
credited to the unemployment security interest fund created by
section 28-42-75.
(b) The department,
by agreement with another state or the
42 USC 503(g), may recover
any overpayment of benefits paid to any individual under the laws
of this state or of another state or under an
unemployment benefit program of the
Any overpayments subject to this subsection may be
deducted from any future benefits payable to
the individual under the laws of this state or of another
state or under an unemployment program
of the
(c) Beginning October
1, 2013, whenever the director establishes that an erroneous
payment was made to an individual due to fraud committed by
the individual, that individual will
be assessed a penalty equal to fifteen percent (15%) of
the amount of the erroneous payment. All
penalties assessed and collected under this subsection shall be
immediately deposited into the
employment security fund.
(b)(d)
There shall be no recovery of payments from any person who, in the judgment of
the director, is without fault on his or her part and
where, in the judgment of the director, that
recovery would defeat the purpose of chapters 42 -- 44 of this
title.
SECTION 2. Section 28-44-40 of the General Laws in Chapter
28-44 entitled
"Employment Security -
Benefits" is hereby amended to read as follows:
28-44-40.
Payment of benefits pending appeal. -- (a)
If an appeal is filed by an
employer, benefits shall be paid to an eligible claimant until
that employer's appeal is finally
determined. If the employer's appeal is finally sustained, no
further benefits shall be paid to the
claimant during any remaining portion of the disqualification
period. Any benefits paid or
payable to that claimant shall not be recoverable in any
manner.
(b) If, beginning on
or after October 1, 2013, the director establishes that an erroneous
payment was made to an individual due to fraud committed by
the individual for overpayments
and those overpayments are eligible to be recovered, that
individual shall also be liable to pay
penalties required under subsection 28-42-68(c) for those
erroneous payments.
SECTION 3. This act shall take effect on October 1, 2013.
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LC01693/SUB A/2
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