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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to participation in reemployment services as a condition |
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of eligibility for unemployment benefits. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 207.021(a), Labor Code, is amended to |
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read as follows: |
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(a) Except as provided by Chapter 215, an unemployed |
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individual is eligible to receive benefits for a benefit period if |
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the individual: |
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(1) has registered for work at an employment office |
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and has continued to report to the employment office as required by |
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rules adopted by the commission; |
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(2) has made a claim for benefits under Section |
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208.001; |
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(3) is able to work; |
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(4) is available for work; |
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(5) is actively seeking work in accordance with rules |
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adopted by the commission; |
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(6) for the individual's base period, has benefit wage |
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credits: |
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(A) in at least two calendar quarters; and |
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(B) in an amount not less than 37 times the |
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individual's benefit amount; |
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(7) after the beginning date of the individual's most |
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recent prior benefit year, if applicable, earned wages in an amount |
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equal to not less than six times the individual's benefit amount; |
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(8) has been totally or partially unemployed for a |
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waiting period of at least seven consecutive days; and |
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(9) participates in reemployment services, such as a |
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job search assistance service, if: |
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(A) the individual has been determined, |
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according to a profiling system established by the commission, to |
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be likely to exhaust eligibility for regular benefits and to need |
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those services to obtain new employment, unless: |
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(i) the commission has determined that |
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[(A)] the individual has completed participation in such a service; |
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or |
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(ii) [(B)] there is reasonable cause, as |
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determined by the commission, for the individual's failure to |
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participate in those services; or |
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(B) unless there is reasonable cause, as |
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determined by the commission, for the individual's failure to |
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participate in those services and regardless of the results of the |
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individual's assessment conducted under a profiling system |
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described by Paragraph (A), the commission has determined that the |
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individual's participation is in furtherance of the following |
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goals: |
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(i) reducing the duration of unemployment |
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compensation through improved employment outcomes; |
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(ii) strengthening the integrity of the |
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unemployment compensation program; |
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(iii) promoting alignment with the vision |
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of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. Section |
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3101 et seq.); |
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(iv) establishing the commission's |
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reemployment services and eligibility assessment program as an |
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entry point to other workforce system partner programs; and |
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(v) demonstrating the effectiveness of |
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reemployment services. |
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SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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to a claim for unemployment compensation benefits filed with the |
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Texas Workforce Commission on or after the effective date of this |
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Act. A claim filed before the effective date of this Act is |
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governed by the law in effect on the date the claim was filed, and |
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the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |
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