NY State Senate Bill 2021-S7431

Senate Bill S7431

2021-2022 Legislative Session

Relates to employer contributions to the unemployment insurance fund and establishes the unemployment insurance solvency reserve fund

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Labor Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 05, 2022	referred to labor
Oct 12, 2021	referred to rules

co-Sponsors

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2021-S7431 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A8627
Current Committee:: Senate Labor
Law Section:: Labor Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §581-a, Lab L; add §92-kk, St Fin L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:: S4551, A4657

2021-S7431 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Provides for the rate of employer contributions to the unemployment insurance fund in the 2022 fiscal year; establishes the unemployment insurance solvency reserve fund.

2021-S7431 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S7431

SPONSOR: MARTUCCI
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the labor law and the state finance law, in relation to
employer contributions to the unemployment insurance fund and establish-
ing the unemployment insurance solvency reserve fund

 
PURPOSE:

This bill aims to provide predictability and surety to small businesses
in terms of their expected contributions to the unemployment insurance
fund and also to establish a reserve fund to bolster unemployment when
needed and ensure its solvency.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1. Establishes the employer contribution rate for the unemploy-
ment insurance fund in statue beginning in 2022 and describes the formu-
lary

Section 1 Establishes an unemployment insurance solvency reserve fund
and identifies monies that may now be available or may be available in
the future for deposit in such fund.

Section 3. This act shall take effect immediately

 
JUSTIFICATION:

New York's unemployment system paid out more than $100 billion to quali-
fied New Yorkers during 2020 and 2021 in response to closures related to
the global pandemic. 4.7 million New Yorkers received benefits for all
or some portion of that period. Unfortunately, in the rush to help
struggling citizens our unemployment funds payments exceeded its assets.
As a result, we now owe the Federal Government $9 billion. The Comp-
troller has said that in order to make up the deficit, unemployment
insurance payments for businesses could rise by as much as 9%. Such an
increase would be devastating to employers who are still struggling to
recover from the forced closures and costly COVID regulation imposed by
the Executive during the last two years.  Small Businesses did not
create this deficit and they should not be asked to sacrifice any more
money, simply because the state is unable to track its own expenditures
and balance its own books. This legislation would establish in law a
fixed contribution from employers to the unemployment insurance fund.
Further, it would create a solvency fund in State Finance law, that
could draw on other state revenues, settlement dollars or unencumbered
Federal funds. The state this year has collected $5.9 billion more in
tax revenue than originally projected. That would be an excellent place
to start. The bottom line is that we cannot place any more burdens on
small employers. Instead, we have to make their rates more predictable
and put our own fiscal house in order. This bill would assist on both
counts.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediate

2021-S7431 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7431
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             October 12, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. MARTUCCI -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the labor law and the state finance law, in relation  to
   employer  contributions  to the unemployment insurance fund and estab-
   lishing the unemployment insurance solvency reserve fund

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Section 581-a of the labor law is amended by adding a new
 subdivision 3-a to read as follows:
   3-A. NOTWITHSTANDING THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION FIVE HUNDRED EIGHTY-ONE
 OF THIS TITLE TO THE CONTRARY AND NOTWITHSTANDING THE ACTUAL SIZE OF THE
 FUND INDEX, THE RATE OF CONTRIBUTION FOR A QUALIFIED EMPLOYER IN THE TWO
 THOUSAND TWENTY-TWO FISCAL YEAR SHALL BE THE  PERCENTAGE  SHOWN  IN  THE
 COLUMN  HEADED BY THE SIZE OF THE FUND INDEX AT FIVE PERCENT OR MORE AND
 ON THE SAME LINE WITH HIS OR HER NEGATIVE OR POSITIVE EMPLOYER'S ACCOUNT
 PERCENTAGE PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION FIVE  HUNDRED  EIGHTY-
 ONE  OF THIS TITLE, UNLESS USING THE ACTUAL SIZE OF THE FUND INDEX WOULD
 RESULT IN A LOWER RATE OF CONTRIBUTION FOR AN EMPLOYER,  IN  WHICH  CASE
 SUCH EMPLOYER SHALL BE LIABLE FOR SUCH LOWER RATE OF CONTRIBUTION.
   § 2. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 92-kk to
 read as follows:
   §  92-KK.  UNEMPLOYMENT  INSURANCE SOLVENCY RESERVE FUND.  1. THERE IS
 HEREBY ESTABLISHED IN THE STATE TREASURY A  FUND  TO  BE  KNOWN  AS  THE
 "UNEMPLOYMENT  INSURANCE SOLVENCY RESERVE FUND". SUCH FUND SHALL CONSIST
 OF MONEYS DEPOSITED THERE AND MONEYS SHALL BE WITHDRAWN FROM  SUCH  FUND
 ONLY FOR THE PURPOSES AS PROVIDED THEREIN.
   2.  SUCH  FUND  MAY  CONSIST  OF  BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO, DISCRETIONARY
 FEDERAL FUNDS DESIGNATED AS RECOVERY FUNDS DURING A PERIOD  OF  ECONOMIC
 DOWNTURN  AND NON-RECURRING STATE FUNDS DERIVED FROM SETTLEMENT PROCEEDS
 AND OTHER SOURCES.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD13361-01-1

 S. 7431                             2
 
   3. SUCH FUND MAY ALSO CONSIST OF AMOUNTS APPROPRIATED  OR  TRANSFERRED
 PURSUANT TO STATUTE.
   4.  THE AMOUNTS AVAILABLE IN SUCH RESERVE MAY BE USED IF THE FOLLOWING
 CONDITIONS ARE MET:
   (A) THE UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE FUND HAS BORROWED MONEY FROM THE FEDER-
 AL GOVERNMENT FOR THE PURPOSE OF PAYING BENEFITS TO CLAIMANTS;
   (B)  THE  FEDERAL  GOVERNMENT  HAS  IMPOSED  AN  INTEREST   ASSESSMENT
 SURCHARGE  ON THE STATE OF NEW YORK FOR LOANS TO THE UNEMPLOYMENT INSUR-
 ANCE FUND; AND
   (C) THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS RECOVERING THE PRINCIPAL ON MONEY LOANED
 TO THE UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE FUND FOR THE PAYMENT OF BENEFIT TO  CLAIM-
 ANTS.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S7431

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Sponsored By

Mike Martucci

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Labor Committee

co-Sponsors

George M. Borrello

Patrick M. Gallivan

Pamela Helming

Andrew J. Lanza

2021-S7431 (ACTIVE) - Details

2021-S7431 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2021-S7431 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2021-S7431 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

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