HF 5100

as introduced - 93rd Legislature (2023 - 2024) Posted on 03/21/2024 02:31pm

A bill for an act
relating to labor; establishing the Worker Opportunity Act; appropriating money;
amending Minnesota Statutes 2023 Supplement, section 268.19, subdivision 1;
proposing coding for new law as Minnesota Statutes, chapter 268C.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2023 Supplement, section 268.19, subdivision 1, is amended
to read:

Subdivision 1.

Use of data.

(a) Except as provided by this section, data gathered from
any person under the administration of the Minnesota Unemployment Insurance Law are
private data on individuals or nonpublic data not on individuals as defined in section 13.02,
subdivisions 9 and 12, and may not be disclosed except according to a district court order
or section 13.05. A subpoena is not considered a district court order. These data may be
disseminated to and used by the following agencies without the consent of the subject of
the data:

(1) state and federal agencies specifically authorized access to the data by state or federal
law;

(2) any agency of any other state or any federal agency charged with the administration
of an unemployment insurance program;

(3) any agency responsible for the maintenance of a system of public employment offices
for the purpose of assisting individuals in obtaining employment;

(4) the public authority responsible for child support in Minnesota or any other state in
accordance with section 256.978;

(5) human rights agencies within Minnesota that have enforcement powers;

(6) the Department of Revenue to the extent necessary for its duties under Minnesota
laws;

(7) public and private agencies responsible for administering publicly financed assistance
programs for the purpose of monitoring the eligibility of the program's recipients;

(8) the Department of Labor and Industry and the Commerce Fraud Bureau in the
Department of Commerce for uses consistent with the administration of their duties under
Minnesota law;

(9) the Department of Human Services and the Office of Inspector General and its agents
within the Department of Human Services, including county fraud investigators, for
investigations related to recipient or provider fraud and employees of providers when the
provider is suspected of committing public assistance fraud;

(10) the Department of Human Services for the purpose of evaluating medical assistance
services and supporting program improvement;

(11) local and state welfare agencies for monitoring the eligibility of the data subject
for assistance programs, or for any employment or training program administered by those
agencies, whether alone, in combination with another welfare agency, or in conjunction
with the department or to monitor and evaluate the statewide Minnesota family investment
program and other cash assistance programs, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program,
and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Employment and Training program by
providing data on recipients and former recipients of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
Program (SNAP) benefits, cash assistance under chapter 256, 256D, 256J, or 256K, child
care assistance under chapter 119B, or medical programs under chapter 256B or 256L or
formerly codified under chapter 256D;

(12) local and state welfare agencies for the purpose of identifying employment, wages,
and other information to assist in the collection of an overpayment debt in an assistance
program;

(13) local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies for the purpose of ascertaining
the last known address and employment location of an individual who is the subject of a
criminal investigation;

(14) the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement has access to data on
specific individuals and specific employers provided the specific individual or specific
employer is the subject of an investigation by that agency;

(15) the Department of Health for the purposes of epidemiologic investigations;

(16) the Department of Corrections for the purposes of case planning and internal research
for preprobation, probation, and postprobation employment tracking of offenders sentenced
to probation and preconfinement and postconfinement employment tracking of committed
offenders;

(17) the state auditor to the extent necessary to conduct audits of job opportunity building
zones as required under section 469.3201;

(18) the Office of Higher Education for purposes of supporting program improvement,
system evaluation, and research initiatives including the Statewide Longitudinal Education
Data System; deleted text begin and
deleted text end

(19) the Family and Medical Benefits Division of the Department of Employment and
Economic Development to be used as necessary to administer chapter 268B deleted text begin . deleted text end new text begin ; and
new text end

new text begin (20) a private entity responsible for administering publicly financed worker opportunity
benefits under section 268C.01, for the purposes of confirming eligibility of individual
applicants.
new text end

(b) Data on individuals and employers that are collected, maintained, or used by the
department in an investigation under section 268.182 are confidential as to data on individuals
and protected nonpublic data not on individuals as defined in section 13.02, subdivisions 3
and 13, and must not be disclosed except under statute or district court order or to a party
named in a criminal proceeding, administrative or judicial, for preparation of a defense.

(c) Data gathered by the department in the administration of the Minnesota unemployment
insurance program must not be made the subject or the basis for any suit in any civil
proceedings, administrative or judicial, unless the action is initiated by the department.

Sec. 2.

new text begin [268C.01] WORKER OPPORTUNITY ACT.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Citation. new text end

new text begin This section may be cited as the "Worker Opportunity Act."
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Worker opportunity benefits authorized; contract. new text end

new text begin (a) This section authorizes
the payment of worker opportunity benefits, which must be administered by a third-party
benefits administrator, to provide income assistance to unemployed workers who are
ineligible for state or federal unemployment insurance benefits due to reasons related to
authorization to work.
new text end

new text begin (b) As soon as practicable after final enactment, the commissioner of employment and
economic development must contract with a third-party organization to serve as the benefits
administrator under this section. The solicitation process in chapter 16C applies to contracts
required by this section.
new text end

new text begin (c) The benefits administrator must pay and administer worker opportunity benefits on
a first-come, first-served basis from the money appropriated to the commissioner of
employment and economic development for the purposes of this section.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Eligible workers. new text end

new text begin An individual is eligible to receive worker opportunity
benefits under this section for any week, regardless of immigration status, if the individual:
new text end

new text begin (1) has filed a request for worker opportunity benefits for the week under subdivision
4, and has met and verified all eligibility requirements in accordance with that subdivision;
new text end

new text begin (2) is unemployed through no fault of their own. For the purposes of this section,
"unemployed" has the meaning given in section 268.035, subdivision 26; and
new text end

new text begin (3) has not been found ineligible based on an outstanding overpayment due to
misrepresentation. For the purposes of this section, "misrepresentation" means making a
false statement or representation without a good-faith belief as to the correctness of the
statement or representation in order to obtain or attempt to obtain worker opportunity
benefits.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Application; verification of eligibility. new text end

new text begin (a) An individual must apply for worker
opportunity benefits in the form and manner specified by the benefits administrator. The
benefits administrator must review, determine, and verify an individual applicant's eligibility
as provided in this subdivision. At minimum, the benefits administrator, in coordination
with the Department of Employment and Economic Development, must establish a process:
new text end

new text begin (1) by which individuals may apply for benefits and verify their eligibility under this
section;
new text end

new text begin (2) for notifying individuals of the acceptance or denial of their application in a timely
manner;
new text end

new text begin (3) for individuals to request a review of the denial;
new text end

new text begin (4) for providing outreach and education assistance regarding worker opportunity benefits
under this section; and
new text end

new text begin (5) for helping to identify and prevent overpayment due to misrepresentation.
new text end

new text begin (b) To verify eligibility for benefits, an individual applicant must:
new text end

new text begin (1) self-attest to meeting eligibility requirements;
new text end

new text begin (2) establish their identity by providing a Minnesota identification card or driver's license
issued under chapter 171; and
new text end

new text begin (3) provide documentation to verify their employment in Minnesota, establish residency
in Minnesota for at least six months, and demonstrate wages of at least $14,400 from
employment in Minnesota for the four most recent completed calendar quarters.
Documentation may include any one or a combination of the following:
new text end

new text begin (i) an individual pay stub, a Form W-2, or a Form 1099 documenting the individual's
employment and wage withholding; or
new text end

new text begin (ii) a federal or state tax return for the taxable year immediately preceding the date of
application for benefits, with proof of filing using a Social Security number or valid federal
individual taxpayer identification number.
new text end

new text begin (c) To the extent possible, the benefits administrator must confirm an individual's identity,
employment, wage earnings, and residency eligibility.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 5. new text end

new text begin Weekly benefit amount. new text end

new text begin (a) To the extent available, the benefits administrator
must pay worker opportunity benefits to an individual who has met the eligibility and
verification requirements under subdivisions 3 and 4 on a first-come, first-served basis.
new text end

new text begin (b) To the extent available, an individual found eligible for worker opportunity benefits
may receive a payment of $300 for each qualifying week of unemployment.
new text end

new text begin (c) The maximum amount of worker opportunity benefits paid to an individual under
this section may not exceed 13 weeks.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 6. new text end

new text begin Data privacy and protection. new text end

new text begin (a) Worker opportunity benefits under this
section are administered and paid by a third-party benefits administrator under a contract
with the Department of Employment and Economic Development. This contract is subject
to section 13.05, subdivision 11.
new text end

new text begin (b) Data collected from any individual under this section are classified as private data
on individuals, as defined by section 13.02, subdivision 12. This data may be used,
considered, or disclosed only for the purposes of administering worker opportunity benefits
under this section.
new text end

new text begin (c) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the commissioner and the third-party benefits
administrator administering this section must not share or disseminate data classified by
paragraph (b) except as necessary for the purposes of administering worker opportunity
benefits. An entity authorized by this paragraph to receive data must not use the data for
civil immigration enforcement purposes or further disclose the data to a state or federal
government entity that primarily enforces immigration law or to any employee or agent of
any such government entity.
new text end

new text begin (d) The commissioner and the third-party benefits administrator administering this section
must oppose discovery of data classified by paragraph (b) pursuant to section 13.03,
subdivision 6, and, if necessary, seek a protective order preventing any further dissemination
of the data.
new text end

new text begin (e) Violation of this subdivision by the commissioner, the third-party benefits
administrator administering this section, a government entity, or an employee or agent
thereof constitutes a violation of the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act and may
be subject to penalties and remedies applicable under chapter 13.
new text end

new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective July 1, 2027.
new text end

Sec. 3. new text begin APPROPRIATION.
new text end

new text begin $10,000,000 in fiscal year 2025 is appropriated from the general fund to the commissioner
of employment and economic development for the purpose of administering and
implementing the Worker Opportunity Act and contracting with a third-party benefits
administrator to pay and administer worker opportunity benefits as provided under Minnesota
Statutes, section 268C.01. This is a onetime appropriation and is available until June 30,
2030. Any unencumbered balance after June 30, 2030, cancels back to the general fund.
new text end