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Unemployment Compensation Compromise Reached In Final Hours of Lame Duck Session
After 3:30 a.m. last night, the 131st General Assembly wrapped up its two-year session. As you know by now, the focus of most of OCA’s attention over the last few weeks was trying to push debate of Ohio’s Unemployment Compensation solvency issue to next year by killing the multiple bills the legislature had introduced that would’ve been harmful to our members’ ability to maintain our workforce.
Thanks to your participation, over 1000 letters in total were sent to legislators and the Governor, asking them to oppose the bills and wait until next year to come up with a more-balanced solution. We are happy to say that the legislature heard the concern voiced in your letters and also listened to an intensive lobbying effort by OCA, AGC of Ohio, the Operating Engineers, Affiliated Construction Trades, and other construction employers and construction trades whose roles as part of a powerful business and labor coalition was hard to beat.
A compromise was reached this week and was inserted late yesterday into Senate Bill 235, this session’s lame duck “Christmas tree” bill (a bill that is moving in the final hours of a lame duck session, which gets heavily amended in a last-ditch effort by lobbyists and legislators to get their issues addressed before the session ends), which passed the House and Senate easily yesterday.
The compromise we were able to force with the major employer groups pushing the bill, previously known as the “Big Five” was this:
Raise the taxable wage base that employers pay taxes on from $9000 to $9500 for two years
Freeze employee benefits at the current 26 weeks and the current amounts for two years
Delete additional penalties for employers should the state have to borrow from the federal government again
Agree that business and labor will start meeting, with third-party actuaries providing the needed numbers, in order to negotiate a more balanced long-term solvency plan by April 1st. The parameters of any deal reached at that point is anticipated to supersede the items listed above.
Please note that at this point, Governor Kasich has not stated whether he will sign or veto the bill. There are several things that were added to the bill in the final hours yesterday – not related to our issue – that may give him pause. He does not have line-item veto authority with this bill because it does not contain an appropriation. If the Governor would veto the bill, we would maintain the status quo with current law, which would actually still be acceptable to us because our main goal was to kill the earlier harmful bills in an effort to have an opportunity to negotiate a more-balanced solution, which we did. Whatever happens with the bill, we can be sure there will be negotiations between business and labor on the issue in the near future. A fair shot at a more balanced approach is what we wanted and what we believe we are getting.
Winter Conference – Sessions Start at 9:00 a.m
Just a reminder that registration and continental breakfast will be available from 8:00 to 9:00 am on Monday, December 12 at the Hyatt Regency Columbus. Sessions will begin promptly at 9:00 am. We look forward to seeing you at our highest attended event of the year!
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