The Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry proposes the following amendment (LC-3726.WAB0044S):

Amend the bill, as and if amended, SECTION 2, by striking Section 41-30-140(A) and inserting:

(A) All state and local government agencies, nonprofit groups, and quasi-governmental groups that are appropriated state funds or are authorized to expend federal funds related to workforce development shall: 

  (1) provide information requested by OSWD prior to the Comptroller General approving release of such funds to ensure proper reporting on any activities that may be workforce development related; and

  (2) prepare a report detailing:

   (a) anticipated plans for funds that will be allocated to workforce development related projects;

   (b) the actual amount of funds used on workforce development related projects from the previous fiscal year;

   (c) the projects for which funds were used; and

   (d) whether a balance of such funds exists and, if a balance exists, the amount of the balance.

Amend the bill further, SECTION 3, by striking Section 41-31-160 and inserting:

 Section 41-31-160.The department shall not require contribution and wage reports more frequently than quarterly. Effective with the quarter ending March 31,  20032024, every employer with two hundred fiftyten or more employees and every individual or organization that, as an agent, reports wages on a total of two hundred fiftyten or more employees on behalf of one or more subject employers, and effective with the quarter ending March 31, 2005, every employer with one hundred or more employees and every individual or organization that, as an agent, reports wages on a total of one hundred or more employees on behalf of one or more subject employers, shall file that portion of the "Employer Quarterly Contribution and Wage Reports" containing the employee's social security number, name, Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code, total number of hours worked, and total wages on magnetic tapes, diskettes, or electronically, in a format approved by the department. The department may waive the requirement to file using magnetic mediaelectronically if hardship is shown. In determining whether a hardship has been shown, the department shall take into account, among other relevant factors, the ability of the taxpayeremployer to comply with the filing requirement at a reasonable cost.

Amend the bill further, SECTION 4, by striking Section 41-35-615 and inserting:

Section 41-35-615. All notices given to an employer concerning a request for determination of insured status, a request for initiation of a claim series in a benefit year, a notice of unemployment, a certification for waiting-week credit, a claim for benefits, and any reconsideration of a determination must be made by United States mail or electronic mail. The employer may designate with the department its preferred method of notice. If an employer does not make a designation, then notices must be made by United States mail. The employer may not be required to respond to the notice until ten calendar days, or the next business day if the tenth day falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or state holiday, after the postmark on notices sent via United States mail or ten calendar days after the date a notice is sent via electronic mail. Effective March 1, 2024, every employer with ten or more employees and every individual or organization that, as an agent, reports information to the department on ten or more employees on behalf of one or more subject employers, shall file responses to department requests for information regarding an individual's claim for benefits (e.g., job separations, wage audits, etc.) electronically, in a format approved by the department. The department may waive the requirement to file electronically if a hardship is shown. In determining whether a hardship is shown, the department shall take into account, among other relevant factors, the ability of the employer to comply with the filing requirement at a reasonable cost.