WSR 14-04-074
PERMANENT RULES
EMPLOYMENT SECURITY DEPARTMENT
[Filed January 30, 2014, 1:09 p.m., effective March 2, 2014]
Effective Date of Rule: Thirty-one days after filing.
Purpose: A rule is amended to provide that the department, in common with other interested parties, may file a petition for review of a decision issued by the office of administrative hearings. An amended rule specifies how notice of eligibility changes will be provided to individuals who file a claim for unemployment benefits on the internet. Two rules are amended to clarify mailing procedures for the required notice to employer.
Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Repealing WAC 192-04-175; and amending WAC 192-04-060, 192-120-035, 192-130-050, and 192-130-065.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 50.12.010 and 50.12.040.
Adopted under notice filed as WSR 13-24-079 on December 2, 2013.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 0, Amended 4, Repealed 1.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 4, Repealed 1.
Date Adopted: January 24, 2014.
Nan Thomas
Deputy Commissioner
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 10-20-082, filed 9/29/10, effective 10/30/10)
WAC 192-04-060 Appeals—Petitions for hearing—Petitions for review—Time limitation.
(1) Appeals and petitions for hearing. Any interested party who is aggrieved by any decision of the department set forth in WAC 192-04-050 or for which the department has provided notice of appeal or petition for hearing rights may file a written appeal or petition for hearing by mailing it or sending it by fax to the address or fax number indicated on the determination notice or other appealable document.
The appeal or petition for hearing must be filed within thirty days of the date the decision is delivered or mailed, whichever is the earlier. The appeal and/or petition for hearing shall be filed in accordance with the provisions of RCW 50.32.025.
(2) Petitions for review. Any interested party ((other than the department)) who is aggrieved by a decision of the office of administrative hearings, other than an order approving a withdrawal of appeal, an order approving a withdrawal of a petition for hearing, a consent order, or an interim order, may file a written petition for review in accordance with the provisions of WAC 192-04-170. The petition for review must be filed within thirty days of the date of delivery or mailing of the decision of the office of administrative hearings, whichever is the earlier. The petition for review shall be filed in accordance with the provisions of RCW 50.32.025.
REPEALER
The following section of the Washington Administrative Code is repealed:
WAC 192-04-175
Advisement order.
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 99-08-073, filed 4/5/99, effective 5/6/99)
WAC 192-120-035 How will adequate notice be provided?
(1) ((A written notice will be mailed to your most recent address in our files; or
(2))) When you file your weekly claim for benefits by telephone, you will receive a verbal notice if there is a question about your eligibility for benefits. When you file your weekly claim for benefits by internet, a statement will be printed online that there is a question about your eligibility for benefits.
(2) If you do not ((reply)) contact the department by the last working day of the week in which your claim was filed, a written notice will be mailed to ((you)) your most recent address in our files. The date by which you must reply to this written notice will be no earlier than reasonable mailing time plus five working days, starting from the date your weekly claim for benefits was filed.
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 98-14-068, filed 6/30/98, effective 7/31/98)
WAC 192-130-050 Notice of filing of application—RCW 50.20.150.
(((1))) Whenever an individual files an initial application for unemployment benefits, or reopens a claim after subsequent employment, a notice will be mailed to the applicant's most recent employer as stated by the applicant. Any employer who receives such a notice and has information which might make the applicant ineligible for benefits shall report this information to the employment security department at the address indicated on the notice within ten days of the date the notice was mailed. If the employer does not reply within ten days, the department may allow benefits to the individual, if he or she is otherwise eligible.
(((2) If an employer reports information which it claims makes an individual ineligible for benefits, the department will issue a written decision regarding the individual's eligibility and mail a copy to the employer.))
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 10-11-046, filed 5/12/10, effective 6/12/10)
WAC 192-130-065 Mailing addresses for notice to employer.
The department will mail notices to employers required by RCW 50.20.150 and WAC 192-130-060 as follows:
(1) The department will mail the notice to the last employer of the claimant ((as follows)) in the following order:
(a) If the employer requests that the department mail correspondence related to unemployment benefits to a specific address, the department will mail the notice to the last employer directly to that address; or
(b) If the employer has notified the department that the employer is represented for unemployment insurance purposes by an employer representative or cost control firm, the department will mail the notice to the last employer directly to that firm; or
(((b))) (c) If an employer has provided the department with a mailing address for tax purposes, the department will mail the notice to the last employer directly to that address; or
(((c))) (d) If the employer has not provided the department with a mailing address, the department will mail the notice to the last employer to the address provided by the claimant.
(2) The department will mail the notice to any base year employer who has reported wages to the department to the employer's mailing address of record provided by the employer for tax purposes.
(3) The notice to any other employer from whom the claimant has a potentially disqualifying separation (without sufficient subsequent employment to purge a separation disqualification) will be mailed ((to the address provided by the claimant)) in the order specified in subsection (1) of this section.