SF1130 Summary

• Expands "immediate family member" definition to include grandparents for unemployment insurance purposes, effective July 1, 2011.

• Modifies benefit account establishment requirements to use a single standard of $2,400 or 5.3% of state's average annual wage (whichever is higher) instead of separate primary and secondary base period requirements, effective October 28, 2012.

• Reduces staffing service employment threshold from 45% to 25% of applicant's wage credits to qualify as suitable employment.

• Changes requalification earnings requirement from "eight times weekly benefit amount" to "sufficient to meet one-half of benefit account requirements" and allows waiver of availability and earnings deductibility requirements for up to 500 dislocated workers enrolled in Project GATE entrepreneurship pilot program.

• Adds trade adjustment assistance recipients as eligible dislocated workers and updates student employment exemption language to focus on primary relationship rather than class attendance; expires smoking-related job loss provision August 1, 2012.