Unemployment Flash Report

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1 Unemployment Flash Report October 6, 2014 UI TAX INFORMATION: Equifax Workforce Solutions BLOG!!! For the very latest information join us on our blog. FUTA CREDIT REDUCTION CHART: We have updated information related to this area on page 4. In addition to the credit reduction a state may incur for 2014 for not having repaid the outstanding Title XII loans, some states may become subject to the Benefit Cost Reduction (BCR) in addition to the normal FUTA credit reduction. The BCR is the result of a state having an outstanding Title XII loan for 5 or more years. The total credit reduction is the sum of the FUTA credit reduction rate and the BCR credit reduction. Credit reductions will not be finally determined until November 10, 2014 the date required by statute. AR,GA,MO,NJ and WI have repaid their federal loans as if this writing. RI has indicated they intend to repay its loans by the November 10th deadline. As long as no loan balance exists on the date, no credit reduction will occur for The rest of the states, except CT, have filed waivers which if approved by the USDOL will not impact the BCR additional reduction for 2014 (however, the normal credit reduction will apply). Nevada Bonds: The state of Nevada issued special revenue bonds for the repayment of Title XII loans. In order to repay the bonds, a special bond contribution payment will begin with the first quarter, 2014, with a due date of April 30, 2014 and will continue to be collected quarterly from employers until the bonds are fully repaid in late 2017 or early Bond contributions are separate from, and in addition to, regular quarterly Nevada unemployment insurance taxes. The collection of bond contribution will be administered using the same laws as those for regular UI contributions. The first Nevada Bond bills were mailed September 26, 2014, in a combined statement for Q1 and Q The Q1 and Q2 statement includes payments received for both quarter as well as penalties and interest charged for underpayments and late reporting and/or payments. The bills were mailed to the address of record on file for Nevada UI tax matters. Bills were not sent to accounts that have been paid in full for both quarters and therefore owe no money. If a TOTAL AMOUNT DUE is indicated, please pay that amount by check, separate from UI taxes, indicate Bond on the check memo line, and return in the envelope( blue markings) provided. If the bill indicates CREDIT, please deduct the CREDIT amount using Line 3a of future quarterly Bond Contributions Reports (beginning with Q3-2014), until the entire CREDIT is used. IF the billing statement indicates REPORT NOT RECEIVED, a Bond report needs to be filed immediately along with a payment including late penalties and interest as described on the Quarterly Bond Contribution Report. Here is a link to the Bond report: BR_5_14.pdf Interest will continue to accrue at 1% of unpaid Bond contributions for each month or part of month until paid. Also, interest at the rate of 0.1% of the taxable wages for the quarter will be charged for each month or part of month until the report is received. THE NEVADA BOND BILL NEEDS YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION. Equifax and EFX are registered trademarks of Equifax, Inc. Inform>Enrich>Empower is a trademark of Equifax, Inc Equifax Workforce Solutions, a/k/a TALX Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Equifax Inc., Atlanta, Georgia. All rights

2 Page 2 Kentucky: Taxable wage base. The taxable wage base for Kentucky in 2015 will be $9,900, up $300 from the 2014 taxable wage base amount of $9,600. Nevada: Taxable wage base. For 2015, the taxable wage base in Nevada will be $27,800, up $400 from the 2014 taxable wage base amount of $27,400. Tennessee: Effective July 1, 2014 through December 31, 2014, Premium Rate Table 6 is in effect. Employer rates range from 0.01% to 2.3% for positive-balance employers and from 5.0% to 10.0% for negative-balance employers. Vermont: Effective January 1, 2015 the Taxable wage base will increase from $16,000 to $16,400.

3 Page 3 Title XII Advance Activities Schedule As of: October 6, 2014 Outstanding State Advance Balance Interest for FY2015 Arizona 48,201, , California 8,086,866, ,165, Connecticut 432,627, , Delaware 10,628, , Indiana 864,514, , Kentucky 361,904, , New York 1,478,063, , North Carolina 634,855, , Ohio 1,379,841, , Rhode Island 16,604, , South Carolina 270,490, , Virgin Islands 76,948, , Totals 13,661,546, ,348, South Carolina may continue to have an outstanding debt but is likely to avoid the imposition of the FUTA tax reduction for 2014 through state action to qualify for a FUTA offset credit reduction avoidance. South Carolina is projected to pay off the remaining balance in mid-2015.

4 Page 4 FUTA Credit Reduction The percentages listed do not include the standard 0.60%. You must add an additional 0.60% to the potential total credit reduction Potential 2014 Estimated 2014 Estimated BCR add-on Avoidance Application Application Received State Credit Reduction BCR add-on Credit Reduction Received Arkansas (3) 1.2% (2) 0.4% 1.6% California 1.2% (2) 1.5% 2.7% X Connecticut 1.2% (2) 0.5% 1.7% Delaware 0.9% (1) 0.9% Georgia (3) 1.2% (2) 0.6% 1.8% Indiana 1.5% (2) 1.2% 2.7% X Kentucky 1.2% (2) 1.0% 2.2% X Missouri (3) 1.2% (2) 0.4% 1.6% X New Jersey (3) 1.2% (2) 0.0% 1.2% New York 1.2% (2) 0.7% 1.9% X North Carolina 1.2% (2) 0.6% 1.8% X Ohio 1.2% (2) 1.4% 2.6% X Rhode Island 1.2% (2) 1.0% 2.2% X South Carolina 1.5% (2) 0.5% 2.0% X X Virgin Islands 1.2% (2) 1.5% 2.7% X Wisconsin (3) 1.2% (2) 0.2% 1.4% X (1) This state is also potentially subject to the 2.7 additional credit reduction formula. This add-on is applicable in states following their third or fourth consecutive January 1 with an outstanding Federal advance. A description is found in FUTA section 3302 (c)(2)(b) (2) This state is also potentially subject to the Benefit Cost Rate (BCR) additional credit reduction formula. This add-on is applicable in states following their fifth consecutive January 1 with an outstanding Federal advance. A description is found in FUTA section 3302 (c)(2)(c) (3) These states have currently paid off their Title XII loan as a result their FUTA credit will revert back to 0.60% unless they take out another loan prior to the November 10th deadline. Information provided by USDOL Website

5 Page 5 UI ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION: California-Employers in El Dorado and Siskiyou Counties directly affected by recent fires may request up to a 60-day extension of time from the California Employment Development Department (EDD) to file their state payroll reports and/or deposit state payroll taxes without penalty or interest. Written requests for extension must be received within 60 days from the original delinquent date of the payment or return to file/pay. Subscribers can find more information on the EDD website at In addition, on September 17th, 2014 Governor Brown signed legislation (AB 1556) to prevent a claimant who is otherwise eligible for and receiving unemployment benefits from being deemed ineligible for any week in which the claimant commenced a training course or education program. This provision becomes effective on 01/01/2015. Governor Brown also signed SB 1314, which changes the timeframe for filing various unemployment appeals. In summary, effective 07/01/2015, the deadline to request a reconsideration or appeal an EDD UI determination increases from 20 to 30 days after the determination mailing date, and the deadline to appeal an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) decision to the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board (CUIAB) increases from 20 to 30 days after mailing date of the decision. District of Columbia-The Department of Employment Services (DOES) just launched the first phase of its online system Employer Self Service Portal (ESSP). This new system allows employers to submit quarterly wage reports and make tax payments online, thereby eliminating the need to submit quarterly wage/tax reports via diskette, CD or magnetic media. Employers should have received a registration packet in the mail from the DOES containing a temporary password and username to access the ESSP. For additional information, please see page 8-9. For complete details, including ESSP training sessions for employers throughout the month of October, visit Georgia-The Department of Labor (GDOL) has updated the filing specifications for filing quarterly reports electronically. Effective January 1, 2015, GDOL wage record layout will be discontinued and replaced with the NASWA Y2K record format. The acceptable forms of electronic media are: CD-ROM, DVD, USB Flash Drive, and/or Internet. 3 ½ inch floppy diskettes will no longer be accepted. All electronic media submitted must include a completed paper transmittal form. All electronic media submitted must be labeled externally with a contact name, GDOL account number, address, and the reporting period. Tax reports submitted via electronic media are referred to as N Records. Tax Reports/N Records for multiple employers must be submitted as individual records in one file. Wage reports for multiple employers can be submitted as individual files or they can be merged and submitted together into a single file. For additional information go to

6 Page 6 Idaho-The Idaho Department of Labor recently launched a new unemployment system called ius. Part of this new system is the Employer Portal, which replaces ECORE (Employer Contact Online Reporting System). The Employer Portal is a Web-based application developed and supported by the Department. This secure, self-service, online tool allows Idaho employers to securely manage their account information related to unemployment taxes and benefits. The Employer Portal provides registered users the ability to access their account, perform tasks (filing wage reports, submitting new hire reports, paying taxes, etc.) and also communicate with the Idaho Department of Labor. The main site for the new portal is: Once there, you will also find tabs for Employer Portal FAQs and User Guide. PLEASE NOTE: Idaho s new ius system and the Employer Portal have some UI benefit claim functionality, known as SIDES E-Response. Be aware that as your authorized agent in UI matters, we already receive your claims via SIDES. Do not sign up for SIDES E-Response, or it will disrupt the established processes we have with the Idaho Department of Labor, which could result in missed claims. North Carolina In keeping with their UI Integrity laws, the North Carolina Division of Employment Security (DES) recently began issuing their first formal determinations to employers who have established a pattern of insufficient and/or untimely response and, therefore, becomes subject to prohibition of charge relief. The DES tracks compliance for each claim form, NCUI 500AB, from every employer during each charging cycle. The initial charging cycle began on October 21, 2013 and ended July 31, The new Determination of Pattern of Unsatisfactory Responses to the Request for Separation Information from Employer (NCUI 500AB) or Equivalent provides complete information about the UI Integrity laws and definitions, as well as the inadequate response details. (See page for an example.) The determination presently doesn t include an appeal or review process, but at our request the DES has agreed to informally review any such determination we might receive on behalf of a client that we find problematic, and to correct any errors. South Carolina In an effort to reduce improper unemployment benefit payments, the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce (DEW) has begun issuing a special letter when an employer has not responded to prior wage audit inquiries for a particular individual, form BPC-178B. The letter is entitled FINAL DEMAND FOR COMPLIANCE TAKE ACTION IMMEDIATELY and includes a copy of the outstanding wage audit. It also provides instructions on how to submit the outstanding wage audit via a number of response options , Fax, Online or U.S. Postal Mail. (See pages for an example.)

7 Page 7 The consequence for not responding to the Final Demand by completing and submitting the outstanding wage audit, Form BPC-178B is as follows: For each day you fail to respond to this notice beyond the 10 day time limit, you and your business will be subject to a civil penalty of $1,000. Furthermore, willful failure or refusal to provide this information could constitute a crime and may subject you to criminal prosecution. Although we haven t seen any penalties being assessed, enforcement of wage audit compliance is increasing, plus the following statutory/regulatory language gives the DEW the authority to issue this hefty fine: An employing unit or person who willfully violates a provision of Chapters 27 through 41 of this title or an order, rule, or regulation under this title, the violation of which is made unlawful or the observance of which is required under the terms of these chapters, is liable to a penalty of one thousand dollars, to be recovered by the department in an appropriate civil action in a court of competent jurisdiction, and also is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be punished by a fine of not less than twenty dollars but not more than one hundred dollars or imprisonment for not longer than thirty days, and each day the violation continues is considered a separate offense. We have reviewed procedures to ensure expeditious mailing of any final demand/wage audit notices received to clients for whom we are not contracted to process. Should you receive a request for wage information from your Equifax Workforce Solutions Representative, please respond immediately. Utah-The Utah Department of Workforce Services is offering workshops for employers to learn about their unemployment insurance (UI) online filing system. While some employers still file quarterly UI reports via U.S. postal mail, more and more employers are transitioning to online filing. A demo of the online filing system will be presented at the workshops. For dates and locations of the sessions, please see page 14 of this Flash Report. Vermont Beginning with Q UI Wage and Contribution Reports, all employers must file electronically. The Vermont Department of Labor will no longer mail this quarterly report (C-101); instead, notices with instructions for electronic filing and temporary passwords have been mailed to employers (See page 15 for an example.) Employers who fail to file electronically will be assessed a $100 penalty. UI Wage and Contribution Reports for Q are due on or before 10/31/2014. Wisconsin-The Department of Workforce Development (DWD) is offering an educational series of audio conferences called Friday Fundamentals. The sessions cover a variety of topics including Unemployment Insurance. For complete information on this educational series, including dates and fees, see pages of this Flash Report. Unemployment Claims Data In the week ending September 27, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 287,000, a decrease of 8,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 2,000 from 293,000 to 295,000. The 4-week moving average was 294,750, a decrease of 4,250 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 500 from 298,500 to 299,000.

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