20250AB__135099INT INTRODUCED 2025-02-21 AB INT Introduced by Assembly Member Hart LEAD_AUTHOR ASSEMBLY Hart

An act to amend

Section of the Unemployment Insurance Code, relating to unemployment benefits. unemployment benefits Employment Development Department: policies and practices. Existing law requires the Employment Development Department to administer a program for the payment of unemployment compensation to the eligible unemployed. Existing law requires the department to periodically review policies and practices used to determine eligibility and benefits that result in delayed eligibility unemployment determinations or benefit payments and that fail to identify or prevent fraud.

Existing law required the department to provide specified committees of the Legislature with a plan for assessing the effectiveness of its fraud prevention and detection tools by May 1, 2022, and to provide a report to those committees with an update on its progress on performing this assessment by July 1, 2022. Existing law requires the department to annually analyze and assess the effectiveness of its fraud prevention and detection tools and to submit this analysis and assessment to those committees, as specified.

This bill would revise those annual requirements to, instead, require the department to analyze and assess the effectiveness of its fraud prevention and detection tools and to submit this analysis and assessment to those committees, biennially commencing on January 1, 2027. MAJORITY NO YES NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section of the Unemployment Insurance Code is amended to read: 340. (a)

(1) The department shall provide a plan for assessing the effectiveness of its fraud prevention and detection tools by May 1, 2022, to the Senate Committee on Labor, Public Employment and Retirement, the Assembly Committee on Insurance, the Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review, the Assembly Committee on Budget, and the Joint Legislative Audit Committee.

(2) The department shall provide a report with an update on its progress on performing the assessment that the plan identified pursuant to paragraph (1) by July 1, 2022, to the Senate Committee on Labor, Public Employment and Retirement, the Assembly Committee on Insurance, the Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review, the Assembly Committee on Budget, and the Joint Legislative Audit Committee. (b)

(1) On or before January 1, 2023, and annually until January 1, 2026, the department shall analyze and assess the effectiveness of its fraud prevention and detection tools and shall submit this analysis and assessment to the Senate Committee on Labor, Public Employment and Retirement, the Assembly Committee on Insurance, the Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review, the Assembly Committee on Budget, and the Joint Legislative Audit Committee. Details on fraud methods and tools may be generalized, excluded, or redacted to protect the fraud deterrence practices of the department.

(2) Commencing on January 1, 2027, and biennially thereafter, the department shall analyze and assess the effectiveness of its fraud prevention and detection tools and shall submit this analysis and assessment to the legislative committees specified in paragraph (1) and pursuant to paragraph (1). (

c) The plan, assessments, and reports required by this

section shall be provided consistent with the requirements of

Section of the Government Code.