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AN ACT relating to unemployment insurance and declaring an emergency. 1
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky: 2
Section 1. KRS 341.030 is amended to read as follows: 3
(1) As used in this chapter, unless the context clearly requires otherwise, and except as 4
provided in subsections (2) to (7) of this section, "wages" means all remuneration 5
for services, including commissions, bonuses, and, except for services performed in 6
agriculture and domestic employment, the cash value of all remuneration in any 7
medium other than cash. The reasonable cash value of remuneration in any medium 8
other than cash shall be estimated and determined in accordance with rules 9
prescribed by the commission. 10
(2) (a) Amounts paid to traveling salesmen or other workers as allowance or 11
reimbursement for traveling or other expenses, incurred on the business of the 12
employing unit, constitute wages only to the extent of the excess of the 13
amounts over the expenses actually incurred and accounted for by the worker 14
to his employer; provided, however, that the cash value of meals and lodging 15
when furnished to the worker for the convenience of the employer shall not 16
constitute wages. 17
(b) Amounts paid to volunteer firefighters as allowance or reimbursement for 18
expenses incurred while responding to emergencies, or for the use of a 19
volunteer firefighter's personal vehicle or other equipment in responding to 20
emergencies, shall not be considered wages. 21
(3) For purposes of this chapter, the term "wages" includes tips which are: 22
(a) Received while performing services which constitute employment; 23
(b) Included in a written statement furnished to the employer pursuant to Section 24
6053(a) of the Internal Revenue Code; and 25
(c) Shall be treated as having been paid by the employing unit. 26
(4) "Wages" does not include the amount of any payment made to, or on behalf of, a 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 23 RS BR 34
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worker under a plan or system established by an employing unit that makes 1
provision for its workers generally or for a class of its workers, including any 2
amount paid by an employing unit for insurance or annuities, or into a fund, to 3
provide for any such payment, on account of: 4
(a) Retirement; 5
(b) Sickness or accident disability but, in the case of payments made to an 6
employee or any of his dependents, this subsection shall exclude from the 7
term "wages" only payments which are received under a workers' 8
compensation law; 9
(c) Medical and hospitalization expenses in connection with accident or sickness 10
disability; or 11
(d) Death, if the worker has not: 12
1. The option to receive, instead of provision for the death benefit, any part 13
of the payment, or if the death benefit is insured, any part of the 14
premiums or contributions to premiums paid by his employing unit; and 15
2. The right, under the provisions of the plan or system or policy of 16
insurance providing for the death benefit, to assign the benefit, or to 17
receive a cash consideration in lieu of it either upon his withdrawal from 18
the plan or system providing for the benefit or upon termination of the 19
plan or system or policy of insurance or of his employment with his 20
employing unit. 21
(5) "Wages" does not include any payment on account of sickness or accident 22
disability, or medical or hospitalization expenses in connection with sickness or 23
accident disability, made by an employer to, or on behalf of, an employee after the 24
expiration of six (6) calendar months following the last calendar month in which the 25
employee worked for the employer. 26
(6) "Wages" does not include the amount of any payment made by an employing unit 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 23 RS BR 34
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without deduction from the remuneration of the worker of the tax imposed under 1
Section 3101 of the Internal Revenue Code or any payment required from an 2
employer under a state unemployment compensation law with respect to 3
remuneration paid to an employee for domestic service in a private home of the 4
employer or for agricultural labor. 5
(7) (a) "Wages" does not, for the purposes of KRS 341.260 to 341.310, include that 6
part of remuneration which, after wages equal to eight thousand dollars 7
($8,000) have been paid in a calendar year to a worker by a subject employer 8
or his predecessor with respect to covered employment during any calendar 9
year, is paid to the worker by the subject employer during the calendar year 10
unless that part of the wages is subject to a tax under a federal law, imposing a 11
tax against which credit may be taken for contributions required to be paid 12
into a state unemployment fund. On January 1, 2012, the amount of eight 13
thousand dollars ($8,000) in this subsection shall increase to nine thousand 14
dollars ($9,000), which shall increase by an additional three hundred dollars 15
($300) on January 1 of each subsequent year, unless limited by paragraph (b) 16
or (c) of this subsection, not to exceed twelve thousand dollars ($12,000). For 17
the purpose of this subsection, the term "covered employment" shall include 18
service constituting covered employment under any unemployment 19
compensation law of another state. 20
(b) If the trust fund balance on September 30 of a calendar year equals or exceeds 21
two hundred million dollars ($200,000,000), the taxable wage base amount in 22
effect at that time shall not increase on January 1 of the next calendar year or 23
on January 1 of subsequent calendar years, except as provided in paragraphs 24
(c) and (e) of this subsection. 25
(c) If the trust fund balance on September 30 of a calendar year equals or exceeds 26
two hundred million dollars ($200,000,000), but is twenty million dollars 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 23 RS BR 34
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($20,000,000) or less lower than the trust fund balance amount that would 1
trigger in a lower schedule of contribution rates under KRS 341.270, the 2
taxable wage base shall increase by three hundred dollars ($300) on January 1 3
of the next calendar year and that taxable wage base amount shall be the 4
taxable wage base amount in effect for subsequent calendar years, subject to 5
the limitations in paragraph (d) of this subsection. 6
(d) The total number of years that the increase in the taxable wage base shall be 7
prohibited or limited under paragraph (b) or (c) of this subsection shall not 8
exceed the total number of years that contributing employers paid additional 9
federal unemployment taxes because of a reduction in the credit against the 10
federal unemployment tax established in 26 U.S.C. sec. 3302 beginning in 11
2011. 12
(e) If the taxable wage base on January 1 of the calendar year immediately 13
following the last year the increase in the taxable wage base was prohibited or 14
limited under this subsection is less than twelve thousand dollars ($12,000), 15
the taxable wage base amount shall be increased by three hundred dollars 16
($300), and by an additional three hundred dollars ($300) on January 1 of 17
each subsequent calendar year until the taxable wage base amount reaches 18
twelve thousand dollars ($12,000). 19
(f) Notwithstanding paragraphs (b) and (c) of this subsection, if the trust fund 20
balance is less than two hundred million dollars ($200,000,000) on September 21
30 of a calendar year, the suspension of the taxable wage base increase shall 22
not occur. 23
(g) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection, any increase in the 24
maximum weekly benefit rate which otherwise would have occurred except 25
for the suspension of the taxable wage base increase shall be implemented in 26
accordance with the provisions of this chapter. 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 23 RS BR 34
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(h) The provisions of this subsection shall apply unless the United States 1
Department of Labor notifies the secretary that implementation of this 2
subsection would result in decertification of Kentucky's unemployment 3
insurance program, impact any cap application, affect the receipt of 4
emergency unemployment compensation funds, create an ineligibility for 5
receipt of federal funds, or result in other penalties or sanctions under the 6
Social Security Act or Federal Unemployment Tax Act, 26 U.S.C. secs. 3301 7
et seq. 8
(i) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, for the calendar years 9
2021 and 2022, the taxable wage base increase shall be suspended and the 10
taxable wage base in effect for the calendar year 2020 shall be utilized. 11
Section 2. Section 1 of this Act shall be retroactive to March 6, 2020. 12
Section 3. Whereas Kentucky's volunteer firefighters and volunteer fire 13
departments are of the utmost importance to our local communities as Kentucky 14
continues to recover from the economic impact of COVID-19, an emergency is declared 15
to exist, and this Act takes effect upon its passage and approval by the Governor or upon 16
its otherwise becoming a law. 17