Connecticut HB 5280: AN ACT CONCERNING ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGES TO ELECTIONS.

Bill Text

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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 5280
February Session, 2026

AN ACT CONCERNING A NONCHARGE FOR EMPLOYEES PAID
BENEFITS THROUGH THE SHARED WORK PROGRAM DURING
PERIODS OF HIGH UNEMPLOYMENT.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. Subsection (c) of section 31-225a of the 2026 supplement to 1
the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 2
thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 3
(c) (1) (A) Any week for which the employer has compensated the 4
claimant in the form of wages in lieu of notice, dismissal payments or 5
any similar payment for loss of wages shall be considered a week of 6
employment for the purpose of determining employer chargeability. 7
(B) No benefits shall be charged to any employer who paid wages of 8
five hundred dollars or less to the claimant in his or her base period. 9
(C) No dependency allowance paid to a claimant shall be charged to 10
any employer. 11
(D) In the event of a natural disaster declared by the President of the 12
United States, no benefits paid on the basis of total or partial 13
unemployment that is the result of physical damage to a place of 14
employment caused by severe weather conditions including, but not 15
limited to, hurricanes, snow storms, ice storms or flooding, or fire except 16
where caused by the employer, shall be charged to any employer. 17

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(E) If the administrator finds that (i) an individual's most recent 18
separation from a base period employer occurred under conditions that 19
would result in disqualification by reason of subdivision (2), (6) or (9) of 20
subsection (a) of section 31-236, or (ii) an individual was discharged for 21
violating an employer's drug testing policy, provided the policy has 22
been adopted and applied consistent with sections 31-51t to 31-51aa, 23
inclusive, section 14-261b and any applicable federal law, no benefits 24
paid thereafter to such individual with respect to any week of 25
unemployment that is based upon wages paid by such employer with 26
respect to employment prior to such separation shall be charged to such 27
employer's account, provided such employer shall have filed a notice 28
with the administrator within the time allowed for appeal in section 31-29
241. 30
(F) No base period employer's account shall be charged with respect 31
to benefits paid to a claimant if such employer continues to employ such 32
claimant at the time the employer's account would otherwise have been 33
charged to the same extent that he or she employed him or her during 34
the individual's base period, provided the employer shall notify the 35
administrator within the time allowed for appeal in section 31-241. 36
(G) If a claimant has failed to accept suitable employment under the 37
provisions of subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 31-236 and the 38
disqualification has been imposed, the account of the employer who 39
makes an offer of employment to a claimant who was a former 40
employee shall not be charged with any benefit payments made to such 41
claimant after such initial offer of reemployment until such time as such 42
claimant resumes employment with such employer, provided such 43
employer shall make application therefor in a form acceptable to the 44
administrator. The administrator shall notify such employer whether or 45
not his or her application is granted. Any decision of the administrator 46
denying suspension of charges as herein provided may be appealed 47
within the time allowed for appeal in section 31-241. 48
(H) Fifty per cent of benefits paid to a claimant under the federal-state 49
extended duration unemployment benefits program established by the 50

Substitute Bill No. 5280

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federal Employment Security Act shall be charged to the experience 51
accounts of the claimant's base period employers in the same manner as 52
the regular benefits paid for such benefit year. 53
(I) No base period employer's account shall be charged with respect 54
to benefits paid to a claimant who voluntarily left suitable work with 55
such employer (i) to care for a seriously ill spouse, parent or child, or (ii) 56
due to the discontinuance of the transportation used by the claimant to 57
get to and from work, as provided in subparagraphs (A)(ii) and (A)(iii) 58
of subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of section 31-236. 59
(J) No base period employer's account shall be charged with respect 60
to benefits paid to a claimant who has been discharged or suspended 61
because the claimant has been disqualified from performing the work 62
for which he or she was hired due to the loss of such claimant's operator 63
license as a result of a drug or alcohol test or testing program conducted 64
in accordance with section 14-44k, 14-227a or 14-227b while the claimant 65
was off duty. 66
(K) No base period employer's account shall be charged with respect 67
to benefits paid to a claimant whos