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II
116TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
S. 3523
To provide for the temporary funding of the expansion of eligibility of unem-
ployment compensation to respond to the COVID–19 public health emer-
gency, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
MARCH 18, 2020
Mr. COTTON introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred
to the Committee on Finance
A BILL
To provide for the temporary funding of the expansion of
eligibility of unemployment compensation to respond to
the COVID–19 public health emergency, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Coronavirus Unem-
4
ployment Insurance Expansion Act’’.
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•S 3523 IS
SEC. 2. TEMPORARY FUNDING OF THE EXPANSION OF ELI-
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GIBILITY OF UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSA-
2
TION.
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(a) FEDERAL-STATE
AGREEMENTS.—Any State
4
which desires to do so may enter into and participate in
5
an agreement under this section with the Secretary of
6
Labor (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’). Any
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State which is a party to an agreement under this title
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may, upon providing 30 days’ written notice to the Sec-
9
retary, terminate such agreement.
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(b) PROVISIONS OF AGREEMENT.—Any agreement
11
under subsection (a) shall provide that the State agency
12
of the State will make payments of regular compensation
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in cases where—
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(1) an individual’s employer temporarily ceases
15
operations due to the COVID–19 emergency;
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(2) an individual is quarantined with the expec-
17
tation of returning to work and is not receiving pay
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due to the COVID–19 emergency; and
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(3) an individual must stop receiving pay in
20
order to care for family members or dependents due
21
to the COVID–19 emergency.
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(c) PAYMENTS TO STATES.—
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(1) FULL
REIMBURSEMENT.—There shall be
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paid to each State which has entered into an agree-
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•S 3523 IS
ment under this section an amount equal to 100 per-
1
cent of—
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(A) the total amount of regular compensa-
3
tion paid to individuals by the State by reason
4
of such agreement; and
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(B) any additional administrative expenses
6
incurred by the State by reason of such agree-
7
ment (as determined by the Secretary).
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(2) TERMS OF PAYMENTS.—Sums payable to
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any State by reason of such State’s having an agree-
10
ment under this section shall be payable, either in
11
advance or by way of reimbursement (as determined
12
by the Secretary), in such amounts as the Secretary
13
estimates the State will be entitled to receive under
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this section for each calendar month, reduced or in-
15
creased, as the case may be, by any amount by
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which the Secretary finds that his estimates for any
17
prior calendar month were greater or less than the
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amounts which should have been paid to the State.
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Such estimates may be made on the basis of such
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statistical, sampling, or other method as may be
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agreed upon by the Secretary and the State agency
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of the State involved.
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(d) FUNDING.—
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(1) COMPENSATION.—
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•S 3523 IS
(A) IN GENERAL.—Funds in the Federal
1
unemployment account (as established by sec-
2
tion 905(g)) of the Unemployment Trust Fund
3
(as established by section 904(a)) shall be used
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to make payments under subsection (c)(1)(A).
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(B)
TRANSFER
OF
FUNDS.—Notwith-
6
standing any other provision of law, the Sec-
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retary of the Treasury shall transfer from the
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general fund of the Treasury (from funds not
9
otherwise appropriated) to the Federal unem-
10
ployment account such sums as the Secretary of
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Labor estimates to be necessary to make pay-
12
ments described in subparagraph (A). There
13
are appropriated from the general fund of the
14
Treasury, without fiscal year limitation, the
15
sums referred to in the preceding sentence and
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such sums shall not be required to be repaid.
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(2) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—
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(A) IN GENERAL.—Funds in the employ-
19
ment security administration account (as estab-
20
lished by section 901(a) of the Social Security
21
Act (42 U.S.C. 1105(a))) of the Unemployment
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Trust Fund (as established by section 904(a) of
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such Act (42 U.S.C. 1104(a))) shall be used to
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•S 3523 IS
make payments to States and Indian Tribes
1
pursuant to subsection (c)(1)(B).
2
(B)
TRANSFER
OF
FUNDS.—Notwith-
3
standing any other provision of law, the Sec-
4
retary of the Treasury shall transfer from the
5
general fund of the Treasury (from funds not
6
otherwise appropriated) to the employment se-
7
curity administration account such sums as the
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Secretary of Labor estimates to be necessary to
9
make payments described in subparagraph (A).
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There are appropriated from the general fund
11
of the Treasury, without fiscal year limitation,
12
the sums referred to in the preceding sentence
13
and such sums shall not be required to be re-
14
paid.
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(3)
CERTIFICATIONS.—The
Secretary
shall
16
from time to time certify to the Secretary of the
17
Treasury for payment to each State the sums pay-
18
able to such State under this section.
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(e) APPLICABILITY.—An agreement entered into
20
under this section shall apply to weeks of unemployment—
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(1) beginning after the date on which such
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agreement is entered into; and
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(2) ending on or before the earlier of—
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•S 3523 IS
(A) the date of the termination of the na-
1
tional emergency declared by the President
2
under the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C.
3
1601 et seq.) with respect to the Coronavirus
4
Disease 2019 (COVID–19); or
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(B) December 31, 2020.
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(f) FRAUD AND OVERPAYMENTS.—The provisions of
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section 4005 of the Supplemental Appropriations Act,
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2008 (Public Law 110–252; 122 Stat. 2356) shall apply
9
with respect to compensation paid under an agreement
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under this section to the same extent and in the same
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manner as in the case of emergency unemployment com-
12
pensation under title IV of such Act.
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(g) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the
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terms ‘‘regular compensation’’, ‘‘State’’, ‘‘State agency’’,
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‘‘State law’’, and ‘‘week’’ have the respective meanings
16
given such terms under section 205 of the Federal-State
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Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970 (26
18
U.S.C. 3304 note).
19
SEC. 3. EMERGENCY FLEXIBILITY FOR UNEMPLOYMENT
20
LAWS.
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Notwithstanding any other law, if a State modifies
22
its unemployment compensation law and policies (includ-
23
ing with respect to work search, waiting week, good cause,
24
and employer experience rating) on an emergency tem-
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•S 3523 IS
porary basis as needed to respond to the spread of
1
COVID–19, such modifications shall be disregarded for
2
the purposes of applying section 303 of the Social Security
3
Act and section 3304 of the Internal Revenue Code of
4
1986 to such State law.
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Æ
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