Sec. 31-230. Benefit year, base period and alternative base period. Regulations.
Sec. 31-250. Administration. Duties and powers of administrator.
Sec. 31-225a. *(See end of section for amended version of subsection (c) and effective date.) Definitions; employers' experience accounts; noncharging provisions; benefit ratio; rates of contribution; assessments to pay interest due on federal loans and to reimburse advance fund; fund balance tax rate; notice to employers; multiple employers; employers' quarterly reports; inspection of records; electronic payments. (a) As used in this chapter, “qualified employer” means each employer subject to this chapter whose experience record has been chargeable with benefits for at least one full experience year, with the exception of employers subject to a flat entry rate of contributions as provided under subsection (d) of this section, employers subject to the maximum contribution rate under subsection (c) of section 31-273, and reimbursing employers; “contributing employer” means an employer who is assigned a percentage rate of contribution under the provisions of this section; “reimbursing employer” means an employer liable for payments in lieu of contributions as provided under section 31-225; “benefit charges” means the amount of benefit payments charged to an employer's experience account under this section; “computation date” means June thirtieth of the year preceding the tax year for which the contribution rates are computed; “tax year” means the calendar year immediately following the computation date; “experience year” means the twelve consecutive months ending on June thirtieth; and “experience period” means the three consecutive experience years ending on the computation date, except that if the employer's account has been chargeable with benefits for less than three years, the experience period shall consist of the greater of one or two consecutive experience years ending on the computation date.
(b) (1) The administrator shall maintain for each employer, except reimbursing employers, an experience account in accordance with the provisions of this section. (2) With respect to each benefit year commencing on or after July 1, 1978, regular and additional benefits paid to an individual shall be allocated and charged to the accounts of the employers who paid the individual wages in his or her base period in accordance with the following provisions: The initial determination establishing a claimant's weekly benefit rate and maximum total benefits for his or her benefit year shall include, with respect to such claimant and such benefit year, a determination of the maximum liability for such benefits of each employer who paid wages to the claimant in his or her base period. An employer's maximum total liability for such benefits with respect to a claimant's benefit year shall bear the same ratio to the maximum total benefits payable to the claimant as the total wages paid by the employer to the claimant within his or her base period bears to the total wages paid by all employers to the claimant within his or her base period. This ratio shall also be applied to each benefit payment. The amount thus determined, rounded to the nearest dollar with fractions of a dollar of exactly fifty cents rounded upward, shall be charged to the employer's account.
*(c) (1) (A) Any week for which the employer has compensated the claimant in the form of wages in lieu of notice, dismissal payments or any similar payment for loss of wages shall be considered a week of employment for the purpose of determining employer chargeability. (B) No benefits shall be charged to any employer who paid wages of five hundred dollars or less to the claimant in his or her base period. (C) No dependency allowance paid to a claimant shall be charged to any employer. (D) In the event of a natural disaster declared by the President of the United States, no benefits paid on the basis of total or partial unemployment which is the result of physical damage to a place of employment caused by severe weather conditions including, but not limited to, hurricanes, snow storms, ice storms or flooding, or fire except where caused by the employer, shall be charged to any employer. (E) If the administrator finds that (i) an individual's most recent separation from a base period employer occurred under conditions which would result in disqualification by reason of subdivision (2), (6) or (9) of subsection (a) of section 31-236, or (ii) an individual was discharged for violating an employer's drug testing policy, provided the policy has been adopted and applied consistent with sections 31-51t to 31-51aa, inclusive, section 14-261b and any applicable federal law, no benefits paid thereafter to such individual with respect to any week of unemployment which is based upon wages paid by such employer with respect to employment prior to such separation shall be charged to such employer's account, provided such employer shall have filed a notice with the administrator within the time allowed for appeal in section 31-241. (F) No base period employer's account shall be charged with respect to benefits paid to a claimant if such employer continues to employ such claimant at the time the employer's account would otherwise have been charged to the same extent that he or she employed him or her during the individual's base period, provided the employer shall notify the administrator within the time allowed for appeal in section 31-241. (G) If a claimant has failed to accept suitable employment under the provisions of subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 31-236 and the disqualification has been imposed, the account of the employer who makes an offer of employment to a claimant who was a former employee shall not be charged with any benefit payments made to such claimant after such initial offer of reemployment until such time as such claimant resumes employment with such employer, provided such employer shall make application therefor in a form acceptable to the administrator. The administrator shall notify such employer whether or not his or her application is granted. Any decision of the administrator denying suspension of charges as herein provided may be appealed within the time allowed for appeal in section 31-241. (H) Fifty per cent of benefits paid to a claimant under the federal-state extended duration unemployment benefits program established by the federal Employment Security Act shall be charged to the experience accounts of the claimant's base period employers in the same manner as the regular benefits paid for such benefit year. (I) No base period employer's account shall be charged with respect to benefits paid to a claimant who voluntarily left suitable work with such employer (i) to care for a seriously ill spouse, parent or child or (ii) due to the discontinuance of the transportation used by the claimant to get to and from work, as provided in subparagraphs (A)(ii) and (A)(iii) of subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of section 31-236. (J) No base period employer's account shall be charged with respect to benefits paid to a claimant who has been discharged or suspended because the claimant has been disqualified from performing the work for which he or she was hired due to the loss of such claimant's operator license as a result of a drug or alcohol test or testing program conducted in accordance with section 14-44k, 14-227a or 14-227b while the claimant was off duty.
(2) All benefits paid which are not charged to any employer shall be pooled.
(3) The noncharging provisions of this chapter, except subdivisions (1)(D) and (1)(F) of this subsection, shall not apply to reimbursing employers.
(d) The standard rate of contributions shall be five and four-tenths per cent. Each employer who has not been chargeable with benefits, for a sufficient period of time to have his or her rate computed under this section shall pay contributions at a rate that is the higher of (1) one per cent, or (2) the state's five-year benefit cost rate. For purposes of this subsection, the state's five-year benefit cost rate shall be computed annually on or before June thirtieth and shall be derived by dividing the total dollar amount of benefits paid to claimants under this chapter during the five consecutive calendar years immediately preceding the computation date by the five-year payroll during the same period. If the resulting quotient is not an exact multiple of one-tenth of one per cent, the five-year benefit cost rate shall be the next higher such multiple.
(e) (1) As of each June thirtieth, the administrator shall determine the charged tax rate for each qualified employer. Said rate shall be obtained by calculating a benefit ratio for each qualified employer. The employer's benefit ratio shall be the quotient obtained by dividing the total amount chargeable to the employer's experience account during the experience period by the total of his or her taxable wages during such experience period which have been reported by the employer to the administrator on or before the following September thirtieth. The resulting quotient, expressed as a per cent, shall constitute the employer's charged tax rate. If the resulting quotient is not an exact multiple of one-tenth of one per cent, the charged rate shall be the next higher such multiple, except that if the resulting quotient is less than five-tenths of one per cent, the charged rate shall be five-tenths of one per cent and if the resulting quotient is greater than five and four-tenths per cent, the charged rate shall be five and four-tenths per cent. The employer's charged tax rate will be in accordance with the following table:
Employer's Charged Tax Rate Table |
|
Employer's Benefit Ratio |
Employer's Charged Tax Rate |
|
|
.005 or less |
.5% minimum subject |
.006 |
.6% to fund |
.007 |
.7% solvency |
.008 |
.8% adjustment |
.009 |
.9% |
.010 |
1.0% |
.011 |
1.1% |
.012 |
1.2% |
.013 |
1.3% |
.014 |
1.4% |
.015 |
1.5% |
.016 |
1.6% |
.017 |
1.7% |
.018 |
1.8% |
.019 |
1.9% |
.020 |
2.0% |
.021 |
2.1% |
.022 |
2.2% |
.023 |
2.3% |
.024 |
2.4% |
.025 |
2.5% |
.026 |
2.6% |
.027 |
2.7% |
.028 |
2.8% |
.029 |
2.9% |
.030 |
3.0% |
.031 |
3.1% |
.032 |
3.2% |
.033 |
3.3% |
.034 |
3.4% |
.035 |
3.5% |
.036 |
3.6% |
.037 |
3.7% |
.038 |
3.8% |
.039 |
3.9% |
.040 |
4.0% |
.041 |
4.1% |
.042 |
4.2% |
.043 |
4.3% |
.044 |
4.4% |
.045 |
4.5% |
.046 |
4.6% |
.047 |
4.7% |
.048 |
4.8% |
.049 |
4.9% |
.050 |
5.0% |
.051 |
5.1% |
.052 |
5.2% |
.053 |
5.3% |
.054 & higher |
5.4% maximum subject |
(2) (A) Each contributing employer subject to this chapter shall pay an assessment to the administrator at a rate established by the administrator sufficient to pay interest due on advances from the federal unemployment account under Title XII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S. Code Sections 1321 to 1324). The administrator shall establish the necessary procedures for payment of such assessments. The amounts received by the administrator based on such assessments shall be paid over to the State Treasurer and credited to the General Fund. Any amount remaining from such assessments, after all such federal interest charges have been paid, shall be transferred to the Employment Security Administration Fund or to the Unemployment Compensation Advance Fund established under section 31-264a, (i) to the extent that any federal interest charges have been paid from the Unemployment Compensation Advance Fund, (ii) to the extent that the administrator determines that reimbursement is appropriate, or (iii) otherwise to the extent that reimbursement of the advance fund is the appropriate accounting principle governing the use of the assessments. Sections 31-265 to 31-274, inclusive, shall apply to the collection of such assessments.
(B) On and after January 1, 1994, and conditioned upon the issuance of any revenue bonds pursuant to section 31-264b, each contributing employer shall also pay an assessment to the administrator at a rate established by the administrator sufficient to pay the interest due on advances from the Unemployment Compensation Advance Fund and reimbursements required for advances from the Unemployment Compensation Advance Fund, computed in accordance with subsection (h) of section 31-264a. The administrator shall establish the assessments as a percentage of the charged tax rate for each employer pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection. The administrator shall establish the necessary procedures for billing, payment and collection of the assessments. Sections 31-265 to 31-274, inclusive, shall apply to the collection of such assessments by the administrator. The payments received by the administrator based on the assessments, excluding interest and penalties on past due assessments, are hereby pledged and shall be paid over to the State Treasurer for credit to the Unemployment Compensation Advance Fund.
(f) (1) For each calendar year commencing with calendar year 1994 but prior to calendar year 2013, the administrator shall establish a fund balance tax rate sufficient to maintain a balance in the Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund equal to eight-tenths of one per cent of the total wages paid to workers covered under this chapter by contributing employers during the year ending the last preceding June thirtieth. If the fund balance tax rate established by the administrator results in a fund balance in excess of said per cent as of December thirtieth of any year, the administrator shall, in the year next following, establish a fund balance tax rate sufficient to eliminate the fund balance in excess of said per cent. For each calendar year commencing with calendar year 2013, the administrator shall establish a fund balance tax rate sufficient to maintain a balance in the Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund that results in an average high cost multiple equal to 0.5. Commencing with calendar year 2014 and ending with calendar year 2018, the administrator shall establish a fund balance tax rate sufficient to maintain a balance in the Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund that results in an average high cost multiple that is increased by 0.1 from the preceding calendar year. Commencing with calendar year 2019, the administrator shall establish a fund balance tax rate sufficient to maintain a balance in the Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund that results in an average high cost multiple equal to 1.0. If the fund balance tax rate established by the administrator results in a fund balance in excess of the amount prescribed in this subdivision as of December thirtieth of any year, the administrator shall, in the year next following, establish a fund balance rate sufficient to eliminate the fund balance in excess of said amount. The assessment levied by the administrator at any time (A) during a calendar year commencing on or after January 1, 1994, but prior to January 1, 1999, shall not exceed one and five-tenths per cent, (B) during a calendar year commencing on or after January 1, 1999, shall not exceed one and four-tenths per cent, and shall not be calculated to result in a fund balance in excess of eight-tenths of one per cent of such total wages, and (C) during a calendar year commencing on or after January 1, 2013, shall not exceed one and four-tenths per cent and shall not be calculated to result in a fund balance in excess of the amounts prescribed in this subdivision.
(2) The average high cost multiple shall be computed as follows: The result of the balance of the Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund on December thirtieth immediately preceding the new rate year divided by the total wages paid to workers covered under this chapter by contributing employers for the twelve months ending on the December thirtieth immediately preceding the new rate year shall be the numerator and the average of the three highest calendar benefit cost rates in (A) the last twenty years, or (B) a period including the last three recessions, whichever is longer, shall be the denominator. Benefit cost rates are computed as benefits paid including the state's share of extended benefits but excluding reimbursable benefits as a per cent of total wages in covered employment. The results rounded to the next lower one decimal place will be the average high cost multiple.
(g) Each qualified employer's contribution rate for each calendar year after 1973 shall be a percentage rate equal to the sum of his or her charged tax rate as of the June thirtieth preceding such calendar year and the fund balance tax rate as of December thirtieth preceding such calendar year.
(h) (1) With respect to each benefit year commencing on or after July 1, 1978, notice of determination of the claimant's benefit entitlement for such benefit year shall include notice of the allocation of benefit charges of the claimant's base period employers and each such employer shall be provided a copy of such notice of determination and shall be an interested party thereto. Such determination shall be final unless the claimant or any of such employers files an appeal from such decision in accordance with the provisions of section 31-241. (2) The administrator shall, not less frequently than once each calendar quarter, provide a statement of charges to each employer to whose experience record any charges have been made since the last previous such statement. Such statement shall show, with respect to each week for which benefits have been paid and charged, the name and Social Security account number of the claimant who was paid the benefit, the amount of the benefits charged for such week and the total amount charged in the quarter. (3) The statement of charges provided for in subdivision (2) of this subsection shall constitute notice to the employer that it has been determined that the benefits reported in such statement were properly payable under this chapter to the claimants for the weeks and in the amounts shown in such statements. If the employer contends that benefits have been improperly charged due to fraud or error, a written protest setting forth reasons therefor shall be filed with the administrator within sixty days of the date the quarterly statement was provided. An eligibility issue shall not be reopened on the basis of such quarterly statement if notification of such eligibility issue had previously been given to the employer under the provisions of section 31-241, and he or she failed to file a timely appeal therefrom or had the issue finally resolved against him or her. (4) The provisions of subdivisions (2) and (3) of this subsection shall not apply to combined wage claims paid under subsection (b) of section 31-255. For such combined wage claims paid under the unemployment law of other states, the administrator shall, each calendar quarter, provide a statement of charges to each employer whose experience record has been charged since the previous such statement. Such statement shall show the name and Social Security number of the claimant who was paid the benefits and the total amount of the benefits charged in the quarter.
(i) (1) At the written request of any employer which holds at least eighty per cent controlling interest in another employer or employers, the administrator may mingle the experience rating records of such dominant and controlled employers as if they constituted a single employer, subject to such regulations as the administrator may make and publish concerning the establishment, conduct and dissolution of such joint experience rating records. (2) The executors, administrators, successors or assigns of any former employer shall acquire the experience rating records of the predecessor employer with the following exception: The experience of a predecessor employer, who leased premises and equipment from a third party and who has not transferred any assets to the successor, shall not be transferred if there is no common controlling interest in the predecessor and successor entities. (3) The administrator is authorized to establish such regulations governing joint accounts as may be necessary to comply with the requirements of the federal Unemployment Tax Act.
(j) (1) Each employer subject to this chapter shall submit quarterly, on forms supplied by the administrator, a listing of wage information, including the name of each employee receiving wages in employment subject to this chapter, such employee's Social Security account number and the amount of wages paid to such employee during such calendar quarter.
(2) Commencing with the first calendar quarter of 2014, each employer subject to this chapter who reports wages for employees receiving wages in employment subject to this chapter, and each person or organization that, as an agent, reports wages for employees receiving wages in employment subject to this chapter on behalf of one or more employers subject to this chapter shall submit quarterly the information required by subdivision (1) of this subsection on magnetic tape, diskette, or other similar electronic means which the administrator may prescribe, in a format prescribed by the administrator, unless such employer or agent receives a waiver pursuant to subdivision (5) of this subsection.
(3) Any employer that fails to submit the information required by subdivision (1) of this subsection in a timely manner, as determined by the administrator, shall be liable to the administrator for a late filing fee of twenty-five dollars. Any employer that fails to submit the information required by subdivision (1) of this subsection under a proper state unemployment compensation registration number shall be liable to the administrator for a fee of twenty-five dollars. All fees collected by the administrator under this subdivision shall be deposited in the Employment Security Administration Fund.
(4) Commencing with the first calendar quarter of 2014, each employer subject to this chapter who makes contributions or payments in lieu of contributions for employees receiving wages in employment subject to this chapter, and each person or organization that, as an agent, makes contributions or payments in lieu of contributions for employees receiving wages in employment subject to this chapter on behalf of one or more employers subject to this chapter shall make such contributions or payments in lieu of contributions electronically.
(5) Any employer or any person or organization that, as an agent, submits information pursuant to subdivision (2) of this subsection or makes contributions or payments in lieu of contributions pursuant to subdivision (4) of this subsection may request in writing, not later than thirty days prior to the date a submission of information or a contribution or payment in lieu of contribution is due, that the administrator waive the requirement that such submission or contribution or payment in lieu of contribution be made electronically. The administrator shall grant such request if, on the basis of information provided by such employer or person or organization and on a form prescribed by the administrator, the administrator finds that there would be undue hardship for such employer or person or organization. The administrator shall promptly inform such employer or person or organization of the granting or rejection of the requested waiver. The decision of the administrator shall be final and not subject to further review or appeal. Such waiver shall be effective for twelve months from the date such waiver is granted.
(k) The employer may inspect his or her account records in the office of the Employment Security Division at any reasonable time.
(P.A. 73-536, S. 4, 12; P.A. 74-229, S. 2-8, 22; P.A. 75-525, S. 3, 13; P.A. 76-74; 76-79; 76-82; 76-88; 76-98; 76-161; 76-259, S. 1, 3; P.A. 77-426, S. 2, 19; P.A. 78-368, S. 4, 5, 11; P.A. 79-187, S. 1; 79-191; 79-631, S. 91, 111; P.A. 80-483, S. 154, 186; P.A. 81-12, S. 1; 81-472, S. 61, 62, 142, 143, 159; P.A. 82-29, S. 1; P.A. 83-547, S. 1, 12; 83-587, S. 49, 96; P.A. 84-312, S. 1, 3; P.A. 85-25; 85-258, S. 2; P.A. 87-76; 87-341, S. 1, 2; P.A. 89-58; P.A. 90-314, S. 1, 3; P.A. 93-243, S. 3, 15; 93-419, S. 1, 9; P.A. 04-60, S. 3; P.A. 05-288, S. 136; P.A. 07-217, S. 145; P.A. 08-60, S. 1; P.A. 09-6, S. 5; P.A. 12-46, S. 1; P.A. 13-66, S. 3; 13-141, S. 1; 13-288, S. 2; P.A. 15-158, S. 1; P.A. 16-169, S. 1.)
*Note: On and after January 1, 2022, subsection (c) of this section, as amended by section 26 of public act 19-25 and section 235 of public act 19-117, is to read as follows:
“(c) (1) (A) Any week for which the employer has compensated the claimant in the form of wages in lieu of notice, dismissal payments or any similar payment for loss of wages shall be considered a week of employment for the purpose of determining employer chargeability. (B) No benefits shall be charged to any employer who paid wages of five hundred dollars or less to the claimant in his or her base period. (C) No dependency allowance paid to a claimant shall be charged to any employer. (D) In the event of a natural disaster declared by the President of the United States, no benefits paid on the basis of total or partial unemployment which is the result of physical damage to a place of employment caused by severe weather conditions including, but not limited to, hurricanes, snow storms, ice storms or flooding, or fire except where caused by the employer, shall be charged to any employer. (E) If the administrator finds that (i) an individual's most recent separation from a base period employer occurred under conditions which would result in disqualification by reason of subdivision (2), (6) or (9) of subsection (a) of section 31-236, or (ii) an individual was discharged for violating an employer's drug testing policy, provided the policy has been adopted and applied consistent with sections 31-51t to 31-51aa, inclusive, section 14-261b and any applicable federal law, no benefits paid thereafter to such individual with respect to any week of unemployment which is based upon wages paid by such employer with respect to employment prior to such separation shall be charged to such employer's account, provided such employer shall have filed a notice with the administrator within the time allowed for appeal in section 31-241. (F) No base period employer's account shall be charged with respect to benefits paid to a claimant if such employer continues to employ such claimant at the time the employer's account would otherwise have been charged to the same extent that he or she employed him or her during the individual's base period, provided the employer shall notify the administrator within the time allowed for appeal in section 31-241. (G) If a claimant has failed to accept suitable employment under the provisions of subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 31-236 and the disqualification has been imposed, the account of the employer who makes an offer of employment to a claimant who was a former employee shall not be charged with any benefit payments made to such claimant after such initial offer of reemployment until such time as such claimant resumes employment with such employer, provided such employer shall make application therefor in a form acceptable to the administrator. The administrator shall notify such employer whether or not his or her application is granted. Any decision of the administrator denying suspension of charges as herein provided may be appealed within the time allowed for appeal in section 31-241. (H) Fifty per cent of benefits paid to a claimant under the federal-state extended duration unemployment benefits program established by the federal Employment Security Act shall be charged to the experience accounts of the claimant's base period employers in the same manner as the regular benefits paid for such benefit year. (I) No base period employer's account shall be charged with respect to benefits paid to a claimant who voluntarily left suitable work with such employer (i) to care for a seriously ill spouse, parent or child, or (ii) due to the discontinuance of the transportation used by the claimant to get to and from work, as provided in subparagraphs (A)(ii) and (A)(iii) of subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of section 31-236. (J) No base period employer's account shall be charged with respect to benefits paid to a claimant who has been discharged or suspended because the claimant has been disqualified from performing the work for which he or she was hired due to the loss of such claimant's operator license as a result of a drug or alcohol test or testing program conducted in accordance with section 14-44k, 14-227a or 14-227b while the claimant was off duty. (K) No base period employer's account shall be charged with respect to benefits paid to a claimant whose separation from employment is attributable to the return of an individual who was absent from work due to a bona fide leave taken pursuant to sections 31-49f to 31-49t, inclusive, or 31-51kk to 31-51qq, inclusive.
(2) All benefits paid which are not charged to any employer shall be pooled.
(3) The noncharging provisions of this chapter, except subparagraphs (D), (F) and (K) of subdivision (1) of this subsection, shall not apply to reimbursing employers.”
(P.A. 73-536, S. 4, 12; P.A. 74-229, S. 2-8, 22; P.A. 75-525, S. 3, 13; P.A. 76-74; 76-79; 76-82; 76-88; 76-98; 76-161; 76-259, S. 1, 3; P.A. 77-426, S. 2, 19; P.A. 78-368, S. 4, 5, 11; P.A. 79-187, S. 1; 79-191; 79-631, S. 91, 111; P.A. 80-483, S. 154, 186; P.A. 81-12, S. 1; 81-472, S. 61, 62, 142, 143, 159; P.A. 82-29, S. 1; P.A. 83-547, S. 1, 12; 83-587, S. 49, 96; P.A. 84-312, S. 1, 3; P.A. 85-25; 85-258, S. 2; P.A. 87-76; 87-341, S. 1, 2; P.A. 89-58; P.A. 90-314, S. 1, 3; P.A. 93-243, S. 3, 15; 93-419, S. 1, 9; P.A. 04-60, S. 3; P.A. 05-288, S. 136; P.A. 07-217, S. 145; P.A. 08-60, S. 1; P.A. 09-6, S. 5; P.A. 12-46, S. 1; P.A. 13-66, S. 3; 13-141, S. 1; 13-288, S. 2; P.A. 15-158, S. 1; P.A. 16-169, S. 1; P.A. 19-25, S. 26; 19-117, S. 235.)
History: P.A. 74-229 rephrased Subsec. (a)(4)(C) and authorized administrator to determine order of charging where claimant has more than one employer in a quarter and exempting employers who paid wages of $200 or less, added Subsec. (a)(5), set June thirtieth deadline for computation of five-year benefit cost rate in Subsec. (b) and clarified basis for computation and authorized rounding of quotients in Subsec. (b), rephrased Subsec. (d), replaced table and deleted provision re reduction of fund balance tax rate in Subsec. (d), deleted provision re employers review right in Subsec. (f)(3) and distinguished between dominant and controlled and predecessor and successor employers in Subsec. (g); P.A. 75-525 defined “computation date” and “tax year” in Subsec. (a), added provisions re initiating claims filed on or after July 1, 1975, but before June 30, 1978, revised employers liability from 25% of his limit for regular benefits or an amount equaling state's liability to 50% of benefits paid under extended duration unemployment benefits program, deleted former Subsec. (a)(5), added provisions in Subsec. (c) re calculation of employer's benefit ratio, revised table in Subsec. (d), made minor changes in Subsec. (f) for clarity and deleted Subsec. (i) which had defined “balance in the unemployment compensation fund”; P.A. 76-74 clarified Subsec. (g) deleting references to mingling of experience records of predecessor and successor employers and inserting provision re acquisition of predecessor's rating records by successor; P.A. 76-79 substituted “chargeable” for “charged” in Subsec. (c); P.A. 76-82 made language changes for consistency and added provisions re protests by employer in Subsec. (f); P.A. 76-88 changed basis for calculating employer's benefit ratio in Subsec. (c); P.A. 76-98 provided that weeks of compensation in lieu of notice, severance pay etc. shall be considered a week of employment in determining employer chargeability in Subsec. (a); P.A. 76-161 deleted provisions re initiating claims filed on or after July 1, 1978, in Subsec. (a); P.A. 76-259 clarified Subsec. (a)(4) and specified circumstances under which administrator is to determine manner of charging benefits; P.A. 77-426 deleted references to acquisition of former or predecessor employer's rates in Subsec. (g)(2); P.A. 78-368 added provisions in Subsec. (a) re benefit years commencing on or after July 1, 1978, in Subsec. (a) and deleted reference to notice of “order of liability” for benefit charges in Subsec. (f); P.A. 79-187 specified notification to employer under Sec. 31-241 in Subsec. (f); P.A. 79-191 added provision in Subsec. (a) protecting employers from charge of benefits resulting from natural disasters and deleted duplicate Subdiv. (5); P.A. 79-631 made technical correction; P.A. 80-483 substituted reference to natural disasters declared by U.S. President for reference to those declared by governor; P.A. 81-12 rearranged the section to increase its clarity and comprehensiveness, placing the definitions of terms in Subsec. (a) and adding definitions of contributing and reimbursing employers, to insert noncharging provisions of the chapter in Subsec. (c), and to simplify the language concerning determination of charged tax rates in Subsec. (e); P.A. 81-472 made technical changes; P.A. 82-29 added the word “would” preceding “result” in Subsec. (c)(1)(E); P.A. 83-547 added Subsec. (e)(2), providing a mechanism to assess employers for the interest due on loans from the federal unemployment account, effective June 9, 1983, and applicable to tax years commencing on or after January 1, 1983; P.A. 83-587 made a technical amendment to Subsec. (g); P.A. 84-312 amended Subsecs. (d) and (e) to increase the maximum employer's charged tax rate from 5% to 5.4%, amended Subsec. (f) to increase the minimum solvency tax rate from negative 0.4% to 0%, and the Revisors corrected the charged tax rate table in Subsec. (e) to read “5.1%, 5.2%, 5.3%” instead of “.1%, .2%, .3%”, to correct typographical error; P.A. 85-25 amended Subsec. (c) to provide that the noncharging provisions of Subdiv. (1)(F) of said subsection are applicable to reimbursing employers; P.A. 85-258 added Subsec. (c)(1)(I), providing that benefits paid to claimants who quit suitable work for certain compensable reasons shall not be charged against any employer's account; P.A. 87-76 amended Subsec. (e)(1) to establish an annual cutoff date of September thirtieth for employers' taxable wage reports which will be used to calculate the employers' benefit ratio; P.A. 87-341 amended Subsec. (e)(2) to provide that any excess of assessments made for payment of federal interest charges shall be transferred to the employment security administration fund; P.A. 89-58 added Subsec. (j)(2), providing for the submittal of certain information by electronic methods; P.A. 90-314 amended Subsec. (c) to increase the minimum wages an employer is required to pay a claimant in his base period in order to be charged for the claimant's benefits from $300 to $500; P.A. 93-243 amended Subsec. (c) to prohibit charging employers' experience accounts for benefits paid to employees discharged upon detection of drug abuse, amended Subsec. (e) to allow reimbursement of advance fund from excess funds generated by experience tax and to add Subpara. (B) imposing a new assessment on employers to reimburse and pay interest due on advances from advance fund, and amended Subsec. (f) to delete fund balance tax rate table and establish a new formula for calculating the fund balance tax rate, effective June 23, 1993; P.A. 93-419 amended Subsec. (f) to clarify that the administrator is required to establish a fund balance tax rate for each calendar year beginning with calendar year 1994, and made technical changes, effective July 1, 1993; P.A. 04-60 amended Subsec. (j) to make technical changes in Subdivs. (1) and (2), and add Subdiv. (3) imposing $25 filing fee on employers that file untimely quarterly reports and requiring deposit of all such fees into Employment Security Administration Fund, effective July 1, 2004; P.A. 05-288 made technical changes in Subsec. (c)(1), effective July 13, 2005; P.A. 07-217 made technical changes in Subsec. (d), effective July 12, 2007; P.A. 08-60 amended Subsec. (j) by adding Subdiv. (4) requiring employers with 250 or more employees to electronically file unemployment compensation contribution or payment in lieu of contributions; P.A. 09-6 made technical changes in Subsec. (j)(4), effective May 4, 2009; P.A. 12-46 amended Subsec. (f) to designate existing provisions as Subdiv. (1) and amend same by adding provisions re fund balance tax rate and high cost multiple applicable to calendar year 2013 and calendar years thereafter and adding provisions re excess fund balance, and to add Subdiv. (2) re calculation of average high cost multiple; P.A. 13-66 amended Subsec. (h) by adding Subdiv. (4) re combined wage claims; P.A. 13-141 amended Subsec. (j) by replacing “first calendar quarter of 1991” with “first calendar quarter of 2014”, deleting provision re 250 employee threshold for applicability and changing exemption for electronic submission from demonstrating a lack of technological capability to receiving a waiver from administrator pursuant to Subdiv. (5) in Subdiv. (2), by replacing “first calendar quarter of 2009” with “first calendar quarter of 2014” and deleting provision re 250 employee threshold for applicability in Subdiv. (4), and by adding Subdiv. (5) re procedure for petitioning administrator to waive electronic submission requirement, effective January 1, 2014; P.A. 13-288 amended Subsec. (j)(3) by adding provision re fee for employers that fail to submit information under a proper state unemployment compensation registration number; P.A. 15-158 amended Subsec. (c)(1) by adding Subpara. (J) re benefits paid to claimants who are discharged or suspended due to the loss of an operator's license as a result of a drug or alcohol test or testing program, and made technical changes; P.A. 16-169 amended Subsec. (h) by replacing references to mailing with references to providing and making technical changes; P.A. 19-25 amended Subsec. (c)(1) by adding Subpara. (K) re return of individual absent from work due to bona fide leave and amended Subsec. (c)(3) by making technical changes, effective July 1, 2019; P.A. 19-117 changed effective date of P.A. 19-25, S. 26, from July 1, 2019, to January 1, 2022, effective June 26, 2019.
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Sec. 31-230. Benefit year, base period and alternative base period. Regulations. (a) An individual's benefit year shall commence with the beginning of the week with respect to which the individual has filed a valid initiating claim and shall continue through the Saturday of the fifty-first week following the week in which it commenced, provided no benefit year shall end until after the end of the third complete calendar quarter, plus the remainder of any uncompleted calendar week that began in such quarter, following the calendar quarter in which it commenced, and provided further, the benefit year of an individual who has filed a combined wage claim, as described in subsection (b) of section 31-255, shall be the benefit year prescribed by the law of the paying state. In no event shall a benefit year be established before the termination of an existing benefit year previously established under the provisions of this chapter. Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, the base period of a benefit year shall be the first four of the five most recently completed calendar quarters prior to such benefit year, provided such quarters were not previously used to establish a prior valid benefit year and provided further, the base period with respect to a combined wage claim, as described in subsection (b) of section 31-255, shall be the base period of the paying state, except that for any individual who is eligible to receive or is receiving workers' compensation or who is properly absent from work under the terms of the employer's sick leave or disability leave policy, the base period shall be the first four of the five most recently worked quarters prior to such benefit year, provided such quarters were consecutive and not previously used to establish a prior valid benefit year and provided further, the last most recently worked calendar quarter is no more than twelve calendar quarters prior to the date such individual makes an initiating claim. As used in this section, an initiating claim shall be deemed valid if the individual is unemployed and meets the requirements of subdivisions (1) and (3) of subsection (a) of section 31-235. The base period of an individual's benefit year shall include wages paid by any nonprofit organization electing reimbursement in lieu of contributions, or by the state and by any town, city or other political or governmental subdivision of or in this state or of any municipality to such person with respect to whom such employer is subject to the provisions of this chapter. With respect to weeks of unemployment beginning on or after January 1, 1978, wages for insured work shall include wages paid for previously uncovered services. For purposes of this section, the term “previously uncovered services” means services that (1) were not employment, as defined in section 31-222, and were not services covered pursuant to section 31-223, at any time during the one-year period ending December 31, 1975; and (2) (A) are agricultural labor, as defined in subparagraph (H) of subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 31-222, or domestic service, as defined in subparagraph (J) of subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 31-222, or (B) are services performed by an employee of this state or a political subdivision of this state, as provided in subparagraph (C) of subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 31-222, or by an employee of a nonprofit educational institution that is not an institution of higher education, as provided in subparagraph (E)(iii) of subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 31-222, except to the extent that assistance under Title II of the Emergency Jobs and Unemployment Assistance Act of 1974 was paid on the basis of such services.
(b) The base period of a benefit year for any individual who is ineligible to receive benefits using the base period set forth in subsection (a) of this section shall be the four most recently completed calendar quarters prior to the individual's benefit year, provided such quarters were not previously used to establish a prior valid benefit year, except that for any such individual who is eligible to receive or is receiving workers' compensation or who is properly absent from work under the terms of an employer's sick leave or disability leave policy, the base period shall be the four most recently worked calendar quarters prior to such benefit year, provided such quarters were consecutive and not previously used to establish a prior valid benefit year and provided further, the last most recently worked calendar quarter is not more than twelve calendar quarters prior to the date such individual makes the initiating claim. If the wage information for an individual's most recently worked calendar quarter is unavailable to the administrator from regular quarterly reports of systematically accessible wage information, the administrator shall promptly contact the individual's employer to obtain such wage information.
(1949 Rev., S. 7503; 1949, 1953, S. 3068d; 1969, P.A. 700, S. 4; 1971, P.A. 835, S. 12; P.A. 73-78; P.A. 75-334; 75-525, S. 7, 13; P.A. 77-115; 77-426, S. 5, 19; P.A. 79-40; 79-376, S. 30; P.A. 83-421; May 9 Sp. Sess. 02-7, S. 69; P.A. 05-34, S. 1; P.A. 07-193, S. 1; P.A. 19-117, S. 149.)
History: 1969 act made minor wording changes for clarity; 1971 act added reference to “governmental” subdivisions and included wages paid by nonprofit organizations electing reimbursement in lieu of contributions; P.A. 73-78 clarified continuation of benefit year as “through the Saturday of the fifty-first week following the week in which it commenced” and prohibited establishment of new benefit year before termination of existing benefit year; P.A. 75-334 added exception re benefit year base period for those eligible to receive or receiving workmen's compensation; P.A. 75-525 required that benefit year and benefit period of claimant's filing combined claim be that prescribed by paying state; P.A. 77-115 required that last most recently worked quarter be no more than twelve, rather than four, quarters before claim made in provision re those receiving or eligible to receive workmen's compensation; P.A. 77-426 added provisions re weeks of unemployment beginning on and after January 1, 1978; P.A. 79-40 excluded use of quarters used previously to establish prior benefit year in establishing base period for subsequent benefit year; P.A. 79-376 substituted “workers'” for “workmen's” compensation; P.A. 83-421 provided that, for any individual who is properly on sick or disability leave from his employment, the base period will be the first four of the five most recently worked quarters prior to the benefit year; (Revisor's note: In 1991 the reference to “this subsection” was changed editorially by the Revisors to read “this section”); May 9 Sp. Sess. P.A. 02-7 designated existing provisions as Subsec. (a) and made technical changes therein, added new Subsec. (b) to establish a temporary, alternative method for calculating the base period of a benefit year for individuals ineligible to receive benefits using the original base period set forth in Subsec. (a), and added new Subsec. (c) to require the administrator to adopt regulations implementing the alternative base period authorized by Subsec. (b), effective August 15, 2002; P.A. 05-34 amended Subsec. (b) to extend period during which alternative base period may be calculated to December 31, 2007, and deleted former Subsec. (c) re adoption of regulations; P.A. 07-193 amended Subsec. (b) by eliminating sunset date and making alternative base period permanent; P.A. 19-117 added references to consecutive quarters in Subsecs. (a) and (b), effective June 26, 2019.
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Sec. 31-250. Administration. Duties and powers of administrator. (a) In administering this chapter, the administrator may adopt such regulations, employ such persons, make such expenditures, require such reports, make such investigations and take such other action as may be necessary or suitable, including, but not limited to, entering into a consortium with other states and entering into any contract or memorandum of understanding associated with such consortium. Such regulations shall be effective upon publication in the manner which the administrator prescribes. As provided in section 4-60, the administrator shall submit to the Governor a report covering the administration and operation of this chapter during the preceding fiscal year and shall make such recommendations for amendments to this chapter as he deems proper. The administrator shall comply with the provisions of Section 303(a)(6) and (7) of the federal Social Security Act, and of Section 303(c), added to the federal Social Security Act by Section 13(g) of the federal Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act. The administrator is authorized to receive the reimbursement of the federal share of extended benefits paid under the provisions of sections 31-232b to 31-232h, inclusive, and section 31-232k that are reimbursable under the provisions of federal law.
(b) In the administration of this chapter, the administrator shall cooperate with the United States Department of Labor to the fullest extent consistent with the provisions of this chapter, and shall take such action, through the adoption of appropriate rules, regulations, administrative methods and standards, as may be necessary to secure to this state and its citizens all advantages available under the provisions of the Social Security Act that relate to unemployment compensation, the federal Unemployment Tax Act, the Wagner-Peyser Act, and other appropriate federal law.
(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 4b-23 to the contrary, the administrator shall have the authority to carry out all activities necessary to lease premises required for employment security operations, provided (1) said administrator has complied with all applicable federal requirements, (2) only federal funds are used for such leasing activities, and (3) the proposed terms of the lease have been submitted to the Commissioner of Administrative Services and approved by the State Properties Review Board, which board shall, not more than sixty days after receipt of such lease from said commissioner, issue its approval or disapproval based solely upon whether the proposed location and rent are reasonable when compared to available space and prevailing rents in the same geographic area.
(1949 Rev., S. 7522; September, 1957, P.A. 11, S. 13; October, 1970, P.A. 1, S. 13; 1971, P.A. 835, S. 27; P.A. 76-116, S. 1; P.A. 77-614, S. 73, 610; P.A. 81-17, S. 8, 9; P.A. 87-496, S. 99, 110; P.A. 11-51, S. 44; P.A. 19-117, S. 151.)
History: 1970 act authorized administrator to receive the reimbursement of the federal share of extended benefits; 1971 act added Subsec. (b) re cooperation with U.S. Department of Labor and actions to secure advantage available under federal law; P.A. 76-116 added Subsec. (c) re administrator's leasing powers; P.A. 77-614 replaced public works commissioner with commissioner of administrative services; P.A. 81-17 added reference to benefits under Sec. 31-232k in Subsec. (a); P.A. 87-496 substituted “public works” for “administrative services” commissioner in Subsec. (c); pursuant to P.A. 11-51, “Commissioner of Public Works” was changed editorially by the Revisors to “Commissioner of Administrative Services” in Subsec. (c), effective July 1, 2011; P.A. 19-117 amended Subsec. (a) by adding provision re entering into a consortium with other states, effective June 26, 2019.
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Sec. 31-273. Overpayments; recovery and penalties. Timeliness of appeals. False or misleading declarations, statements or representations. Additional violations and penalties. (a)(1) Any person who, through error, has received any sum as benefits under this chapter while any condition for the receipt of benefits imposed by this chapter was not fulfilled in his or her case, or has received a greater amount of benefits than was due him or her under this chapter, shall be charged with an overpayment of a sum equal to the amount so overpaid to him or her, provided such error has been discovered and brought to such person's attention within one year of the date of receipt of such benefits. A person whose receipt of such a sum was not due to fraud, wilful misrepresentation or wilful nondisclosure by himself or herself or another shall be entitled to a determination of eligibility by an examiner designated by the administrator that shall be based upon evidence or testimony presented in a manner prescribed by the administrator, including in writing, by telephone or by other electronic means. The examiner may prescribe a hearing by telephone or in person at his or her discretion, provided if an in person hearing is requested, the request may not be unreasonably denied by the examiner. Notice of the time and place of such hearing, and the reasons for such hearing, shall be given to the person not less than five days prior to the date appointed for such hearing. Such examiner shall determine whether: (A) Such person shall repay such sum to the administrator for the Unemployment Compensation Fund, (B) such sum shall be recouped by offset from such person's unemployment benefits, or (C) repayment or recoupment of such sum would defeat the purpose of the benefits or be against equity and good conscience and should be waived. In any case where the examiner determines that such sum shall be recouped by offset from a person's unemployment benefits, the deduction from benefits shall not exceed fifty per cent of the person's weekly benefit amount. Where such offset is insufficient to recoup the full amount of the overpayment, the claimant shall repay the remaining amount in accordance with a repayment schedule as determined by the examiner. If the claimant fails to repay according to the schedule, the administrator may recover such overpayment through a wage execution against the claimant's earnings upon his or her return to work in accordance with the provisions of section 52-361a, and the administrator may request the Commissioner of Administrative Services to seek reimbursement for such amount pursuant to section 12-742. Any person with respect to whom a determination of overpayment has been made, according to the provisions of this subsection, shall be given notice of such determination and the provisions for repayment or recoupment of the amount overpaid. No repayment shall be required and no deduction from benefits shall be made until the determination of overpayment has become final.
(2) The determination of overpayment shall be final unless the claimant, within twenty-one days after notice of such determination was provided to the claimant at his or her last-known address, files an appeal from such determination to a referee, except that any such appeal that is filed after such twenty-one-day period may be considered to be timely filed if the filing party shows good cause, as defined in regulations adopted pursuant to section 31-249h, for the late filing. If the last day for filing an appeal falls on any day when the offices of the Employment Security Division are not open for business, such last day shall be extended to the next business day. If any such appeal is filed by mail, the appeal shall be considered timely filed if the appeal was received within such twenty-one-day period or bears a legible United States postal service postmark that indicates that within such twenty-one-day period the appeal was placed in the possession of postal authorities for delivery to the appropriate office, except posting dates attributable to private postage meters shall not be considered in determining the timeliness of appeals filed by mail. If any such appeal is filed electronically, such appeal shall be considered timely filed if it was received within such twenty-one-day period.
(3) The appeal shall be heard in the same manner provided in section 31-242 for an appeal from the decision of an examiner on a claim for benefits. Any party aggrieved by the decision of the referee, including the administrator, may appeal to the Employment Security Board of Review in the manner provided in section 31-249. Decisions of the board may be appealed to the Superior Court in the manner provided in section 31-249b. The administrator is authorized, eight years after the payment of any benefits described in this subsection, to cancel any claim for such repayment or recoupment which in his or her opinion is uncollectible. Effective January 1, 1996, and annually thereafter, the administrator shall report to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to finance, revenue and bonding and the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to labor and public employees, the aggregate number and value of all such claims deemed uncollectible and therefore cancelled during the previous calendar year. Any determination of overpayment made under this section which becomes final may be enforced by a wage execution in the same manner as a judgment of the Superior Court when the claimant fails to pay according to his or her repayment schedule. The court may issue a wage execution upon any final determination of overpayment in the same manner as in cases of judgments rendered in the Superior Court, and upon the filing of an application to the court for an execution, the administrator shall send to the clerk of the court a certified copy of such determination.
(b) (1) Any person who, by reason of fraud, wilful misrepresentation or wilful nondisclosure by such person or by another of a material fact, has received any sum as benefits under this chapter while any condition for the receipt of benefits imposed by this chapter was not fulfilled in such person's case, or has received a greater amount of benefits than was due such person under this chapter, shall be charged with an overpayment and shall be liable to repay to the administrator for the Unemployment Compensation Fund a sum equal to the amount so overpaid to such person. If such person does not make repayment in full of the sum overpaid, the administrator shall recoup such sum by offset from such person's unemployment benefits. The deduction from benefits shall be one hundred per cent of the person's weekly benefit entitlement until the full amount of the overpayment has been recouped. Where such offset is insufficient to recoup the full amount of the overpayment, the claimant shall repay the remaining amount plus, for any determination of an overpayment made on or after July 1, 2005, interest at the rate of one per cent of the amount so overpaid per month, in accordance with a repayment schedule as determined by the examiner. If the claimant fails to repay according to the schedule, the administrator may recover such overpayment plus interest through a wage execution against the claimant's earnings upon the claimant's return to work in accordance with the provisions of section 52-361a. In addition, the administrator may request the Commissioner of Administrative Services to seek reimbursement for such amount pursuant to section 12-742. If the administrator's actions are insufficient to recover such overpayment, the administrator may submit the outstanding balance to the Internal Revenue Service for the purpose of offsetting the claimant's federal tax refund pursuant to 26 USC 6402(f), 31 USC 3720A or other applicable federal laws. The administrator is authorized, eight years after the payment of any benefits described in this subsection, to cancel any claim for such repayment or recoupment which in the administrator's opinion is uncollectible. Effective January 1, 1996, and annually thereafter, the administrator shall report to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to finance, revenue and bonding and the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to labor and public employees, the aggregate number and value of all such claims deemed uncollectible and therefore cancelled during the previous calendar year.
(2) (A) For any determination of an overpayment made prior to October 1, 2013, any person who has made a claim for benefits under this chapter and has knowingly made a false statement or representation or has knowingly failed to disclose a material fact in order to obtain benefits or to increase the amount of benefits to which such person may be entitled under this chapter shall forfeit benefits for not less than one or more than thirty-nine compensable weeks following determination of such offense or offenses, during which weeks such person would otherwise have been eligible to receive benefits. For the purposes of section 31-231b, such person shall be deemed to have received benefits for such forfeited weeks. This penalty shall be in addition to any other applicable penalty under this section and in addition to the liability to repay any moneys so received by such person and shall not be confined to a single benefit year. The provisions of this subparagraph shall not be applicable to claims deemed payable as of October 1, 2019. (B) For any determination of an overpayment made on or after October 1, 2013, any person who has made a claim for benefits under this chapter and has knowingly made a false statement or representation or has knowingly failed to disclose a material fact in order to obtain benefits or to increase the amount of benefits to which such person may be entitled under this chapter shall be subject to a penalty of fifty per cent of the amount of overpayment for the first offense and a penalty of one hundred per cent of the amount of overpayment for any subsequent offense. This penalty shall be in addition to the liability to repay the full amount of overpayment and shall not be confined to a single benefit year. Thirty-five per cent of any such penalty shall be paid into the Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund and sixty-five per cent of such penalty shall be paid into the Employment Security Administration Fund. The penalty amounts computed in this subparagraph shall be rounded to the nearest dollar with fractions of a dollar of exactly fifty cents rounded upward.
(3) Any person charged with the fraudulent receipt of benefits or the making of a fraudulent claim, as provided in this subsection, shall be entitled to a determination of eligibility by the administrator that shall be based upon evidence or testimony presented in a manner prescribed by the administrator including in writing, by telephone or by other electronic means. The administrator may prescribe a hearing by telephone or in person at his or her discretion, provided if an in person hearing is requested, the request may not be unreasonably denied by the administrator. Notice of the time and place of such hearing, and the reasons for such hearing, shall be given to the person not less than five days prior to the date appointed for such hearing. The administrator shall determine, on the basis of facts found by the administrator, whether or not a fraudulent act subject to the penalties of this subsection has been committed and, upon such finding, shall fix the penalty for any such offense according to the provisions of this subsection. Any person determined by the administrator to have committed fraud under the provisions of this section shall be liable for repayment to the administrator of the Unemployment Compensation Fund for any benefits determined by the administrator to have been collected fraudulently, as well as any other penalties assessed by the administrator in accordance with the provisions of this subsection. Until such liabilities have been met to the satisfaction of the administrator, such person shall forfeit any right to receive benefits under the provisions of this chapter. Notification of such decision and penalty shall be provided to such person and shall be final unless such person files an appeal not later than twenty-one days after the date such notification was provided to such person, except that (A) any such appeal that is filed after such twenty-one-day period may be considered to be timely filed if the filing party shows good cause, as defined in regulations adopted pursuant to section 31-249h, for the late filing, (B) if the last day for filing an appeal falls on any day when the offices of the Employment Security Division are not open for business, such last day shall be extended to the next business day, (C) if any such appeal is filed by mail, the appeal shall be considered timely filed if the appeal was received within such twenty-one-day period or bears a legible United States postal service postmark that indicates that within such twenty-one-day period the appeal was placed in the possession of postal authorities for delivery to the appropriate office, except posting dates attributable to private postage meters shall not be considered in determining the timeliness of appeals filed by mail, and (D) if any such appeal is filed electronically, such appeal shall be considered timely filed if it was received within such twenty-one-day period. Such appeal shall be heard by a referee in the same manner provided in section 31-242 for an appeal from the decision of an examiner on a claim for benefits. The manner in which such appeals shall be heard and appeals taken therefrom to the board of review and then to the Superior Court, either by the administrator or the claimant, shall be in accordance with the provisions set forth in section 31-249 or 31-249b, as the case may be. Any determination of overpayment made under this subsection which becomes final on or after October 1, 1995, may be enforced in the same manner as a judgment of the Superior Court when the claimant fails to pay according to the claimant's repayment schedule. The court may issue execution upon any final determination of overpayment in the same manner as in cases of judgments rendered in the Superior Court; and upon the filing of an application to the court for an execution, the administrator shall send to the clerk of the court a certified copy of such determination.
(c) Any person, firm or corporation who knowingly employs a person and pays such employee without declaring such payment in the payroll records shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor.
(d) If, after investigation, the administrator determines that there is probable cause to believe that the person, firm or corporation has wilfully failed to declare payment of wages in the payroll record, the administrator shall provide an opportunity for a hearing on the matter. If a hearing is requested, it shall be conducted by the administrator, or a deputy or representative designated by the administrator. Notice of the time and place of such hearing, and the reasons therefor, shall be given to the person, firm, or corporation not less than five days prior to the date appointed for such hearing. If the administrator determines, on the basis of the facts found by him or her, that such nondeclaration occurred and was wilful, the administrator shall fix the payments and penalties in accordance with the provisions of subsection (e) of this section. Such person, firm or corporation may appeal to the superior court for the judicial district of Hartford or for the judicial district in which the employer's principal place of business is located. Such court shall give notice of a time and place of hearing to the administrator. At such hearing the court may confirm or correct the administrator's determination. If the administrator's determination is confirmed, the cost of such proceedings, as in civil actions, shall be assessed against such person, firm or corporation. No costs shall be assessed against the state on such appeal.
(e) If the administrator determines that any person, firm or corporation has wilfully failed to declare the payment of wages on payroll records, the administrator may impose a penalty of ten per cent of the total contributions past due to the administrator, as determined pursuant to section 31-270. Such penalty shall be in addition to any other applicable penalty and interest under section 31-266. In addition, the administrator may require the person, firm or corporation to make contributions at the maximum rate provided in section 31-225a for a period of one year following the determination by the administrator concerning the wilful nondeclaration. If the person, firm or corporation is paying or should have been paying, the maximum rate at the time of the determination, the administrator may require that such maximum rate continue for a period of three years following the determination.
(f) Any person who knowingly makes a false statement or representation or fails to disclose a material fact in order to obtain, increase, prevent or decrease any benefit, contribution or other payment under this chapter, or under any similar law of another state or of the United States in regard to which this state acted as agent pursuant to an agreement authorized by section 31-225, whether to be made to or by himself or herself or any other person, and who receives any such benefit, pays any such contribution or alters any such payment to his or her advantage by such fraudulent means (1) shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor if such benefit, contribution or payment amounts to five hundred dollars or less or (2) shall be guilty of a class D felony if such benefit, contribution or payment amounts to more than five hundred dollars. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 54-193, no person shall be prosecuted for a violation of the provisions of this subsection committed on or after October 1, 1977, except within five years next after such violation has been committed.
(g) Any person, firm or corporation who knowingly fails to pay contributions or other payments due under this chapter shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 54-193, no person shall be prosecuted for a violation of the provisions of this subsection committed on or after October 1, 1987, except within five years after such violation has been committed.
(h) Any person who knowingly violates any provision of this chapter for which no other penalty is provided by law shall be fined not more than two hundred dollars or imprisoned not more than six months or both.
(i) Any person who wilfully violates any regulation made by the administrator or the board under the authority of this chapter, for which no penalty is specifically provided, shall be fined not more than two hundred dollars.
(j) All interest payments collected by the administrator under subsection (b) of this section shall be deposited in the Employment Security Administration Fund.
(k) For any determination of an overpayment made on or after October 1, 2013, if the administrator determines that an overpayment was caused by an employer's failure to timely or adequately respond to the administrator's request for information relating to a claim in a manner prescribed by the administrator, such employer shall not be relieved of its proportionate share of charges for each week determined to be overpaid.
(1949 Rev., S. 7543; 1949, S. 3089d; 1953, S. 3090d, 3091d; 1967, P.A. 790, S. 20, 21; P.A. 74-229, S. 21, 22; 74-339, S. 32, 33, 36; P.A. 77-227; 77-426, S. 14, 19; P.A. 78-287; 78-331, S. 14, 41, 58; P.A. 79-42; 79-67, S. 1, 2; 79-187, S. 4; P.A. 81-318, S. 3, 4, 8; P.A. 82-132; P.A. 87-364, S. 7, 8; P.A. 88-230, S. 1, 12; P.A. 90-98, S. 1, 2; P.A. 93-142, S. 4, 7, 8; P.A. 95-220, S. 4-6; 95-323, S. 1, 2, 8; P.A. 04-60, S. 1, 2; P.A. 05-288, S. 139; P.A. 11-36, S. 1, 2; P.A. 13-66, S. 1; P.A. 16-169, S. 16; P.A. 19-117, S. 150.)
History: 1967 act amended Subsecs. (b) and (e) to exclude Sundays and holidays from period allowed for appeal and to specify that if last day falls on day when employment security division offices are closed an extension is allowed and substituted Sec. 31-231b for Sec. 31-232 in Subsec. (e); P.A. 74-229 made person who receives benefits but who “by virtue of a retroactive monetary or nonmonetary determination” is disqualified from receiving benefits liable for repayment under Subsec. (b) and increased time for filing appeal from 7 to 14 days but deleted exclusion for Sundays and holidays; P.A. 74-339 replaced references to unemployment commission and commissioners with references to the board and substituted reference to Sec. 31-249b for reference to Sec. 31-249 in Subsec. (e); P.A. 77-227 imposed penalty on those who receive benefits, etc. as a result of fraudulent means in Subsec. (a) and changed penalty from $200 maximum fine and/or 6 months' maximum imprisonment to penalty for Class A misdemeanor, inserted new Subsec. (c) re employers' violations and relettered former Subsecs. (c) to (e) accordingly; P.A. 77-426 imposed five-year limitation on prosecution actions in Subsec. (a), added references to penalty in Subsec. (e), revised appeal procedure so that referee hears case first rather than the board and restored reference to Sec. 31-249; P.A. 78-287 made penalty applicable to those who pay fraudulent contributions or alter payments to their advantage and added provision making violator in cases involving fraudulent benefit, etc. of more than $500 subject to penalty for a Class D felony; P.A. 78-331 made technical changes; P.A. 79-42 rephrased violations in Subsec. (a) for clarity; P.A. 79-67 added Subsec. (c)(2) re contributions at maximum rate and amended Subsec. (f) to change maximum period of forfeited benefits from 20 to 39 compensable weeks or “more than six years beyond the expiration of the benefit year during which the offense occurred” rather than “beyond 21 months after the termination of the calendar quarter during which the offense was discovered”; P.A. 79-187 amended Subsec. (b) to include provisions re persons whose receipt of funds in error was not due to fraud, etc. and re partial repayment or waiver of repayment, made examiner rather than administrator responsible for determination, modified appeal procedure so that appeals are made first to board of review and then to superior court and replaced references to commissioners with references to referees; P.A. 81-318 amended Subsec. (b) to increase the time limit for appeal from 14 to 21 days after notice mailed and amended Subsec. (f) to increase the time limit for appeal from fourteen to 21 days after mailing of notice of decision and penalty; P.A. 82-132 rearranged the section's provisions to make them more comprehensible, and provided in Subsec. (b) that 100% of the benefit entitlement shall be deducted from benefits paid to a person found to have improperly received benefits, by fraud, wilful misrepresentation or wilful nondisclosure, until the amount overpaid has been recouped; P.A. 87-364 inserted new Subsec. (e) providing that knowingly failing to pay contributions due under the chapter constitutes a class A misdemeanor, and that any prosecution of the crime must take place within five years after the violation and relettered former Subsecs. (e) and (f) accordingly; P.A. 88-230 replaced “judicial district of Hartford-New Britain” with “judicial district of Hartford”, effective September 1, 1991; P.A. 90-98 changed the effective date of P.A. 88-230 from September 1, 1991, to September 1, 1993; P.A. 93-142 changed the effective date of P.A. 88-230 from September 1, 1993, to September 1, 1996, effective June 14, 1993; P.A. 95-220 changed the effective date of P.A. 88-230 from September 1, 1996, to September 1, 1998, effective July 1, 1995; P.A. 95-323 amended Subsec. (b) to allow an appeal to be heard directly by a referee in the same manner as an appeal of a decision of an examiner and deleted the requirement that the administrator present all documents, including the finding of facts for a referee's decision, effective July 10, 1995, and further amended Subsecs. (a) and (b) to specify methods available for recoupment of overpayments and procedures for enforcement of wage executions and to require annual report of uncollectible claims to General Assembly, changing time lapse for consideration of claim as uncollectible from six to eight years and deleting a six-year limit re penalties in Subsec. (b), further amended Subsec. (b) to specify that perpetrators may not receive benefits until repayment of overpayment and penalties has been made in full, amended Subsec. (c) to eliminate the contribution schedule re employers' violations, inserted new provisions in Subsec. (d) re hearing and penalty provisions for employers who wilfully fail to declare payment of wages in the payroll record, inserted new Subsec. (e) re additional penalties imposed for violations of wilful nondeclaration and relettered former Subsecs. (d) to (g), inclusive, as Subsecs. (f) to (i), inclusive, effective October 1, 1995, and applicable to any separation of employment occurring on or after that date; P.A. 04-60 amended Subsec. (b) to make technical changes, to establish interest penalty for overpayments determined on or after July 1, 2005, in Subdiv. (1), to reduce minimum number of weeks of benefit forfeiture from two to one in Subdiv. (2), and to revise notification and appeal procedures in Subdiv. (3), and added Subsec. (j) requiring deposit of all interest penalty payments collected pursuant to Subsec. (b) into Employment Security Administration Fund, effective July 1, 2004; P.A. 05-288 made a technical change in Subsec. (b)(2), effective July 13, 2005; P.A. 11-36 amended Subsec. (a) by designating existing provisions as Subdivs. (1) to (3) and adding provisions re good cause exception for late filing of appeal of determination of overpayment in Subdiv. (2), and amended Subsec. (b)(3) to add provisions re good cause exception for late filing of appeal of determination of fraudulent receipt of benefits or making a fraudulent claim; P.A. 13-66 amended Subsec. (a)(1) by adding provision allowing administrator to request Commissioner of Administrative Services to seek reimbursement, amended Subsec. (b)(1) by adding provision authorizing administrator to petition the Internal Revenue Service to offset claimant's federal tax refund, amended Subsec. (b)(2) by designating existing provisions as Subpara. (A) and making same applicable to overpayments made prior to October 1, 2013, adding Subpara. (B) re overpayments made on or after October 1, 2013, and penalty re persons knowingly making false representations to obtain or increase benefits, and added Subsec. (k) re employer's liability when overpayment is due to employer's failure to respond to administrator's request for information; P.A. 16-169 amended Subsec. (a) by replacing provision re hearing before examiner with provisions re determination of eligibility by examiner, presentation of evidence or testimony and hearing prescribed by examiner in Subdiv. (1) and replacing “mailed” with “provided” re notice of determination and adding provision re appeal filed electronically in Subdiv. (2), amended Subsec. (b) by replacing “26 USC 6402(d)” with “26 USC 6402(f)” in Subdiv. (1) and replacing provision re hearing before administrator, deputy or representative with provisions re determination of eligibility by administrator, presentation of evidence or testimony and hearing prescribed by administrator, replacing “mailed” with “provided” re notification of decision and penalty and adding Subpara. (D) re appeal filed electronically in Subdiv. (3), and made technical and conforming changes; P.A. 19-117 amended Subsec. (b)(2)(A) by adding provision re Subpara. not applicable to claims payable as of October 1, 2019, effective June 26, 2019.
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