Effective Date of Rule: April 5, 2009.

     Purpose: ESHB 1906 was passed by the 2009 legislature and takes effect immediately. Sections 4 and 5 make changes to the training benefits program established under chapter 50.22 RCW. Parts of section 4 apply to unemployment claims filed on or after April 5, 2009. This rule-making order modifies existing rules consistent with these changes pending the adoption of permanent rules.

     Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Repealing WAC 192-270-020, 192-270-025 and 192-270-030; and amending WAC 192-270-005, 192-270-035, and 192-270-050.

     Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 50.12.010, 50.12.040, 50.22.150, and section 4, chapter 3, Laws of 2009.

     Under RCW 34.05.350 the agency for good cause finds that immediate adoption, amendment, or repeal of a rule is necessary for the preservation of the public health, safety, or general welfare, and that observing the time requirements of notice and opportunity to comment upon adoption of a permanent rule would be contrary to the public interest.

     Reasons for this Finding: ESHB 1906 makes significant changes to the training benefits program established by chapter 50.22 RCW which apply to unemployment claims effective April 5, 2009, and later. These rules are necessary to implement these changes until permanent rules can be adopted.

     Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 3, Amended 0, Repealed 3.

     Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0;      Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Date Adopted: April 2, 2009.

Paul Trause

Deputy Commissioner

     (1) "Labor market" means the geographic area in which workers in your particular occupation or with your particular set of skills have customarily found work. For the purpose of determining whether you are a dislocated worker, "labor market" is based on your place of residence at the time you separated from employment. You will not be considered a dislocated worker if, following your separation from work, you move from a labor market area where your skills are in demand to an area where they are declining.

     (2) (("NAICS" means the North American industry classification system code.

     (3))) For claims with an effective date prior to April 5, 2009, "plurality of wages" means the largest proportion of wages earned within a particular occupation or skill set. These wages must be earned in:

     (a) Your base year, and

     (b) At least two of the four twelve-month periods preceding your base year.

     (((4) "SIC" means the standard industrial classification code.

     (5))) (3) "Skill set" means the work-related knowledge and abilities needed to produce a particular product or provide a particular service.

     (6) (4) "Training benefits" means the additional benefits paid under RCW 50.22.150 and chapter 3, laws of 2009, § 4 to eligible dislocated workers enrolled in and making satisfactory progress in a training program approved by the commissioner.

     (((7) "Wages" means remuneration earned in employment as defined in Title 50 RCW or the comparable laws of another state. This means that only wages in covered employment can be considered in determining whether you have sufficient tenure in an occupation or in work with a particular skill set.))

[Statutory Authority: RCW 50.12.010, 50.20.010, and 50.22.150(10). 01-11-085, § 192-270-005, filed 5/16/01, effective 6/16/01.]

     Reviser's note: The typographical error in the above section occurred in the copy filed by the agency and appears in the Register pursuant to the requirements of RCW 34.08.040.
AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 01-11-085, filed 5/16/01, effective 6/16/01)

WAC 192-270-035   Time frames.   Information about training benefits will be included in the claimant information booklet mailed to you at the time you file your application for unemployment benefits (see WAC 192-120-010). For purposes of this section, the claimant information booklet is considered your notification of the eligibility requirements for the training benefits program.

     (1) Submitting a training plan.

     (a) For claims with an effective date prior to April 5, 2009, you have 60 calendar days to submit a training plan to the department for approval, beginning on the date you are notified by the department about the eligibility requirements for training benefits. For new claims, the deadline will be 65 calendar days from the date your application for benefits is filed, which represents 60 days plus five days for the booklet to reach you by mail.

     (b) For claims with an effective date on or after April 5, 2009, you have 90 calendar days to submit a training plan to the department for approval, beginning on the date you are notified by the department about the eligibility requirements for training benefits. For new claims, the deadline will be 95 calendar days from the date your application for benefits is filed, which represents 90 days plus five days for the booklet to reach you by mail.

     (2) Enrollment in training.

     (a) For claims with an effective date prior to April 5, 2009, you must be enrolled in training within 90 calendar days, beginning on the date you are notified by the department about the eligibility requirements for training benefits. For new claims, the deadline will be 95 calendar days from the date your application for benefits is filed, which represents 90 days plus five days for the booklet to reach you by mail.

     (b) For claims with an effective date on or after April 5, 2009, you must be enrolled in training with 120 calendar days, beginning on the date you were notified about the eligibility requirements for training benefits. For new claims, the deadline will be 125 calendar days from the date your application for benefits is filed, which represents 120 days plus five days for the booklet to reach you by mail.

     (3) For claims with an effective date on or after April 5, 2009, these timeframes may be waived for good cause. For purposes of this section, "good cause" includes but is not limited to situations where:

     (a) You were employer attached, including being on standby or partially unemployed, when you filed your claim for unemployment benefits but your attachment to your employer subsequently ended;

     (b) You acted or failed to act on authoritative advice directly from department or partner staff upon which a reasonable person would normally rely;

     (c) You were incapacitated due to illness or injury or other factors of similar gravity; or

     (d) Other factors which would effectively prevent a reasonably prudent person, as defined in WAC 192-100-010, facing similar circumstances, from meeting the timelines established under this section.

     (4) If you return to work, and subsequently become unemployed, the time frames described in subsections (1) and (2) begin with the date you file your additional claim for benefits.

[Statutory Authority: RCW 50.12.010, 50.20.010, and 50.22.150(10). 01-11-085, § 192-270-035, filed 5/16/01, effective 6/16/01.]

     (a) Whether you have a current benefit year as required by RCW 50.22.010(9);

     (b) Whether suitable employment is available in the labor market in which you currently reside (if you were originally determined to be a dislocated worker, but moved from the area where your skills were declining to an area where your skills are in demand, you are not eligible for training benefits);

     (c) Your plan for completion of the training including, but not limited to, what financial resources you intend to use to fund the complete training plan when training benefits run out;

     (d) Whether you have the qualifications and aptitudes to successfully complete the training;

     (e) Whether the training relates to a high demand occupation((, meaning)).

     (i) For claims with an effective date prior to April 5, 2009, "high demand" means that the number of job openings in the labor market for the occupation or with that skill set exceeds the supply of qualified workers.

     (ii) For claims with an effective date on or after April 5, 2009, "high demand" means an occupation with a substantial number of current or projected employment opportunities;

     (f) Whether the training is likely to enhance your marketable skills and earning power, based on an assessment of what your employment prospects would be if training were not approved; and

     (g) ((Effective July 1, 2001,)) Whether the educational institution meets the performance criteria established by the workforce training and education coordinating board.

     (2) Academic training may be approved if it meets the criteria of subsection (1) and it meets specific requirements for certification, licensing, or specific skills necessary for the occupation.

     (3) The department may approve educational training that has been identified as necessary by the training facility as a prerequisite to a vocational training program that meets the criteria of subsection (1).

     (4) In the case of individuals with physical or sensory disabilities, or in other unusual circumstances, a written decision of the commissioner may waive any of the requirements of this section on an individual basis.

[Statutory Authority: RCW 50.12.010, 50.20.010, and 50.22.150(10). 01-11-085, § 192-270-050, filed 5/16/01, effective 6/16/01.]

     The following sections of the Washington Administrative Code are repealed:

WAC 192-270-020	Employment in the aerospace industry.
WAC 192-270-025	Employment in the forest products industry.
WAC 192-270-030	Employment in the fishing industry.

© Washington State Code Reviser's Office