Unemployment Insurance Benefits (UIB)

[EAS 82-612, 82-614]

Eligibility for Mandatory AU Member

CalWORKs must be denied or discontinued for the entire AU if a mandatorily included person who was referred to EDD to complete the UIB process:

Fails to apply for UIB, or
Fails to accept UIB.

Note: Work registration exemption status does not affect this requirement. A person exempt from work registration who is apparently eligible for UIB must still apply for and accept any UIB to which he/she is eligible.

Mandatory AU Member with Work Registration Requirement

The entire AU is also ineligible if:

The individual fails to meet the current conditions of eligibility for UIB (Refer to Conditions of UIB Eligibility) and
There is a mandatory work registration requirement for that person.

Note: The decision that a client is not meeting the current conditions of UIB eligibility is generally made by the UIB field office or CWES Worker. It is not the EW’s responsibility to monitor the activities of the client to ensure that UI requirements are met.

Optional AU Member

If an optional person fails to apply for or accept UIB, only that person is ineligible for CalWORKs. There is no requirement that an optional AU member meet the current conditions of eligibility for UIB.

Applicants

The requirement to apply for UIB is a condition of CalWORKs eligibility and must be completed before aid can be established. If a mandatory AU member fails to meet the requirements as listed above, the application for the entire AU must be denied.

Recipients

The EW must discontinue the AU on the last day of the month in which a person who was required to comply with the UIB requirements failed to do so. An adequate and timely 10-day Notice of Action is required.

Rescission

If an individual fails to meet the CalWORKs UIB requirements and then re-establishes eligibility for UIB in the same month that he/she was disqualified, the EW must rescind the CalWORKs discontinuance and reestablish CalWORKs eligibility, if all other factors are clear.

Apparent UIB Eligibility

All persons are considered apparently eligible for UIB and must file for UIB except individuals who:

Have not worked in employment covered by the Unemployment Insurance Compensation Law in the past 19 months.
Have exhausted UIB or SDI benefits.
Were previously denied or discontinued from UIB and have not worked since then.
Are receiving or who have a claim which is being processed for UIB/SDI.
Are ill or injured.
Are on strike.
Are fully employed (eight hours/day, 40 hours/week).

Note: The client's statement is acceptable evidence of the above conditions. Other procedures provide verification of the client’s statement (e.g., UI/DI Match on IEVS, UIB Abstract, work exemption verification, SAR 7's, etc.).

UIB Referral Not Required

The following apparently eligible persons are not referred to EDD for a new application for UIB:

Persons who report they are currently receiving the maximum UIB benefit.
Persons who provide a current UIB computer printout verifying a pending application for benefits, current receipt of benefits or current disqualification from benefits.
Persons who provide a current “Claimant's Handbook” verifying a pending application.

Reminder: Undocumented persons cannot legally collect UIB. Therefore, do not refer those persons for UIB. Should an undocumented person apply for and receive UIB, follow existing procedures to budget the UI income.

Conditions of UIB Eligibility

An applicant or recipient is considered to meet the conditions of UIB eligibility when the unemployed individual:

Has registered for work and continues to report as required.
Was able to work and available for work.
Has been unemployed for a waiting period of one week.
Conducted a search for suitable work.

Cooperation with EDD

All mandatory work registrants must cooperate in meeting and maintaining all conditions of UIB eligibility. The client is not penalized in CalWORKs for a disqualifying act which occurs before the application for aid or the application for UIB. This requirement applies to mandatory CWES, CIU, and EDD/JS registrants.

If EDD denies or discontinues UIB due to the client's participation with CWES, the client is considered to have “good cause” for not meeting UIB requirements.
In most cases the client will be eligible for UIB while participating with CWES.
Sometimes the client is denied UIB because the EDD worker does not understand the nature of the CWES program. The CWES Worker may communicate with EDD to clear up such misunderstandings. In most instances, the CWES program allows the client to be available for a job placement.

Good Cause Determination

The client may request a determination of good cause for failure to maintain UIB eligibility.

The EW must use the following reasons as guidelines for establishing good cause:

Illness or incapacity.
Court required appearance or incarceration.
Emergency family crisis or sudden change of immediate family circumstances.
Lack of accessible transportation.
Inclement weather which prevents cooperation.
Loss or unavailability of adequate child care.
Lack of necessary social services.
Assignment or referral does not meet appropriate work and training criteria.
Refusal to accept major medical services even if the refusal keeps the person from participating in a work program.

Good cause may be granted for reasons other than these listed on the previous page and above, if the reason is compelling in the judgment of the EW and the EW Supervisor. Supervisory approval is required in these instances.

Verification is not required except in exceptional circumstances, such as the client providing conflicting information.

The EW must document the good cause decision on the Journal Detail page.

Penalty Period

There is no specific penalty period. The AU or person remains ineligible until UIB eligibility is reestablished at EDD. If the person reestablished UIB eligibility within the same month, aid continues uninterrupted.

Referral and Verification Requirements

The client must disclose all persons with a wage history so that the EW can enter in the Data Collection subsystem of CalSAWS. The EW must refer all apparently eligible persons to EDD to apply for UIB:

At time of application, and/or
When changes in circumstances occur that could make them potentially eligible, e.g., they have new earnings which might qualify them for UIB.

The client must provide verification of application for UIB or denial of UIB benefits within 30 days from the date he/she is notified of the requirement.

Note: The EW must tickler the case for the 30 day period.

The EW must anticipate UIB based on the information supplied by the client as well as other available information until actual verification is received.

Treatment of UIB Income

UIB is nonexempt unearned income. However, lump sum payments received for a retroactive period should be treated as property in the month received and the subsequent months.

Net income from UIB is the gross amount received less the required expense deductions related to the receipt of the income. “Required expenses” related to receipt of the income include:

Required Income Tax Payments/Withholdings (Required or Voluntary)
Mandatory Medi-Care deduction
Attorney fees deductions that are required to receive the income
UIB withheld to adjust a previous UIB overpayment.

Note: Deductions for required income tax payments on the income are not considered as part of the net income regardless of whether the individual has the “option” to have the taxes deducted directly from the income.

Deductions resulting from other personal debts and garnishments must be included in the net income amount, as these are not considered required expenses related to the receipt of the income.

Court ordered child support is NOT an allowable deduction from the UIB award amount.

UIB Intercept

Various government agencies can request to have UIB benefits intercepted before the client receives the UIB in order to satisfy outstanding debts such as court ordered child support, traffic tickets, CalWORKs overpayments, etc.

If the UIB is intercepted for an allowable deduction, the intercepted amount is deducted from the total benefit and the remainder counted as income to the case.

Example Example The client is eligible for a monthly benefit of $150 biweekly; however, $25 is intercepted from each biweekly check to collect for a previous UIB overpayment. Only the $125 which the client actually receives is counted as income to the CalWORKs case.

If the intercept is for a nonallowable reason, the full amount of the benefit is counted as income to the CalWORKs.

Example Example The client is eligible for a biweekly benefit of $200; however, $30 is intercepted from each biweekly payment for a CalWORKs overpayment. The full amount of the benefit or $200 is counted as income to CalWORKs.