SB171 Summary

• Requires each person receiving unemployment compensation to participate in a community service program administered by the Alabama Department of Labor, effective July 1, 2015, except where exempted by federal law.

• Establishes a minimum of 16 hours of regulated community service per week, with the department issuing a monthly list of eligible nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations; volunteer service at public or private schools qualifies, but service at churches where the recipient is a member does not.

• Imposes escalating penalties for noncompliance: 30 days ineligibility for first violation, 60 days for second violation, and one year for third and subsequent violations.

• Applies a one-year ineligibility period for recipients of federal, state, or local public benefits who refuse to submit to the mandatory community service program.

• Implementation requires the Alabama Department of Labor to obtain all necessary federal waivers from the United States Department of Health and Human Services before enforcement may begin.