Bill Text: VA HB410 | 2022 | Regular Session | Prefiled
Bill Title: Unemployment insurance; Virginia Employment Commission to develop and maintain a Resiliency Plan.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-02-15 - Left in Commerce and Energy [HB410 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2022-HB410-Prefiled.html
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §60.2-111 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§60.2-111. Duties and powers of Commission; reporting requirements.
A. It shall be the duty of the Commission to administer this title. It shall have power and authority to adopt, amend, or rescind such rules and regulations, to employ such persons, make such expenditures, require such reports, make such investigations, and take such other action, including the appointment of advisory groups, as it deems necessary or suitable to that end. Such rules and regulations shall be subject to the provisions of Chapter 40 (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.) of Title 2.2, except as to the subject matter of subdivisions 2 and 3 of §60.2-515, which shall become effective in the manner prescribed by §2.2-4103. The Commission shall determine its own organization and methods of procedure in accordance with provisions of this title, and shall have an official seal which shall be judicially noticed.
B. The Commission shall prepare an annual balance sheet of the
moneys in the fund and in the Unemployment Trust Fund to the credit of the
Commonwealth in which there shall be provided, if possible, a reserve against
the liability in future years to pay benefits in excess of the then current then-current taxes. That
reserve shall be set up by the Commission in accordance with accepted actuarial
principles on the basis of statistics of employment, business activity, and
other relevant factors for the longest possible period. Whenever the Commission
believes that a change in tax or benefit rates is necessary to protect the
solvency of the Fund, it shall promptly so inform the Governor and the General
Assembly and make recommendations with respect thereto.
C. The Commission, as part of its biennial strategic plan submitted to the Department of Planning and Budget, shall develop and maintain a comprehensive unemployment insurance Resiliency Plan that describes specific actions the Commission will take, depending on the level of increase in unemployment insurance (UI) claims, to address staffing, communications, and other relevant aspects of operations to ensure continued efficient and effective administration of the UI program. The Resiliency Plan shall propose actions consistent with the following objectives to effectively prepare for periods of high unemployment.
1. Develop specific strategies or steps the Commission will take to modify staffing levels in response to incidents that increase UI program demand. These strategies or steps shall (i) include a staffing plan for varying levels of UI workload volume, (ii) cover several scenarios that may affect UI assistance services, (iii) explain how existing staff would be reallocated to high-priority functions in response to high demand, and (iv) describe how the Commission's hiring process will be streamlined to fill key vacant positions such as adjudication and appeals staff.
2. Develop specific strategies or steps the Commission will take to modify policies, procedures, or processes in response to high demands on its services.
3. Outline a strategy for clearly communicating key UI program changes to customers. This strategy shall indicate which staff will be responsible for different types of communications and include several communications goals, such as clearly conveying UI program and policy changes.
4. Outline a strategy for clearly communicating important UI information to Commission staff, the public, and the General Assembly.
5. Identify other tactical actions to be taken to ensure the continuity of UI claims processing and customer service.
