HBA-LJP H.B. 1931 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1931
By: Elkins
Economic Development
4/29/2001
Committee Report (Amended)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Under current law, an individual is disqualified for unemployment benefits
if the individual failed without good cause to apply for available,
suitable work when directed to do so by the Texas Workforce Commission.
Current law does not specify any actions that the individual must complete
to fulfill the suitable work requirement.  House Bill 1931 requires an
individual to search for work and provides guidelines that the individual
must follow to document the search. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking
authority is expressly delegated to the Texas Workforce Commission in
SECTION 1 (Section 207.047, Labor Code) of this bill. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 1931 amends the Labor Code to provide that if an individual on
unemployment benefits failed without good cause to make at least five job
contacts in each week for which benefits are claimed, then the individual
is disqualified for unemployment benefits.  The bill authorizes the Texas
Workforce Commission (commission) to direct the individual to maintain, for
at least two years, records of the individual's search for employment,
including a list and documentation of each job contact made during each
week for which benefits are claimed.  The bill requires the commission to
specify, by rule, the form for the list of job contacts, define the type of
documents that serve as documentation of a job contact, and define the
nature of the job contacts that satisfy the job contact requirement. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.

EXPLANATION OF AMENDMENTS

Committee Amendment No. 1 removes the authorization of the Texas Workforce
Commission (commission) to direct an individual receiving unemployment
benefits to maintain a record of the individual's search for employment.
The amendment removes the requirement that the commission adopt rules to
specify forms for the list of job contacts, define the types of documents
that serve as documentation of the job contact, and define the nature of
the job contacts that satisfy the required job contacts to retain
unemployment benefits.  The amendment also decreases, from five to three,
the minimum number of job contacts in each week an individual must make for
the individual not to be disqualified from unemployment benefits.