SENATE BILL REPORT

SB 6793

This analysis was prepared by non-partisan legislative staff for the use of legislative members in their deliberations. This analysis is not a part of the legislation nor does it constitute a statement of legislative intent.

Background: The total amount of unemployment insurance (UI) contributions or taxes paid by an employer includes an experience rated tax and a social tax. The experience rated tax is determined based on an employer's benefit ratio and falls into one of 40 rate classes. The social tax component covers social costs, or costs resulting from the payment of benefits to an individual that are not charged to a specific employer. The social tax is calculated using the flat social cost factor. The minimum flat social cost factor is 0.6 percent, which can be lowered based on the number of months of benefits in the UI trust fund. The flat social cost factor is then graduated for each employer based on the employer's rate class.

The maximum amount of regular UI benefits payable in an individual's benefit year is the lesser of 26 times the individual's weekly benefit amount or one-third of the individual's base year wages. An individual's weekly benefit amount is 3.85 percent of the average of the individual's wages in the two quarters of the base year in which wages were highest. The maximum amount payable weekly is 63 percent of the average weekly wage. The minimum amount payable weekly is 15 percent of the average weekly wage. An additional benefit of $45 per week was provided to individuals who filed claims before January 3, 2010.