PART 616—INTERSTATE ARRANGEMENT FOR COMBINING EMPLOYMENT AND WAGES Authority: 26 U.S.C. 3304(a)(9)(B); Secretary's Order No. 3-2007, Apr. 3, 2007 (72 FR 15907). Source: 36 FR 24992, Dec. 28, 1971, unless otherwise noted. § 616.1 Purpose of arrangement. This arrangement is approved by the Secretary under the provisions of section 3304(a)(9)(B) of the Federal Unemployment Tax Act to establish a system whereby an unemployed worker with covered employment or wages in more than one State may combine all such employment and wages in one State, in order to qualify for benefits or to receive more benefits. § 616.2 Consultation with the State agencies. As required by section 3304(a)(9)(B), this arrangement has been developed in consultation with the State unemployment compensation agencies. For purposes of such consultation in its formulation and any future amendment the Secretary recognizes, as agents of the State agencies, the duly designated representatives of the National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA). [36 FR 24992, Dec. 28, 1971, as amended at 71 FR 35514, June 21, 2006] § 616.3 Interstate cooperation. Each State agency will cooperate with every other State agency by implementing such rules, regulations, and procedures as may be prescribed for the operation of this arrangement. Each State agency shall identify the paying and the transferring State with respect to Combined-Wage Claims filed in its State. § 616.4 Rules, regulations, procedures, forms—resolution of disagreements. All State agencies shall operate in accordance with such rules, regulations, and procedures, and shall use such forms, as shall be prescribed by the Secretary in consultation with the State unemployment compensation agencies. All rules, regulations, and standards prescribed by the Secretary with respect to intrastate claims will apply to claims filed under this arrangement unless they are clearly inconsistent with the arrangement. The Secretary shall resolve any disagreement between State agencies concerning the operation of the arrangement, with the advice of the duly designated representatives of the State agencies. § 616.6 Definitions. These definitions apply for the purpose of this arrangement and the procedures issued to effectuate it. (a) State. (b) State agency. (c) Combined-Wage Claim. (d) Combined-Wage Claimant. (e) Paying State. (f) Transferring State. (g) Employment and wages. (h) Secretary. (i) Base period and benefit year. [36 FR 24992, Dec. 28, 1971, as amended at 39 FR 45215, Dec. 31, 1974; 43 FR 2625, Jan. 17, 1978; 71 FR 35514, June 21, 2006; 73 FR 63072, Oct. 23, 2008] § 616.7 Election to file a Combined-Wage Claim. (a) Any unemployed individual who has had employment covered under the unemployment compensation law of two or more States, whether or not the individual is monetarily qualified under one or more of them, may elect to file a Combined-Wage Claim. The individual may not so elect, however, if the individual has established a benefit year under any State or Federal unemployment compensation law and: (1) The benefit year has not ended, and (2) The individual still has unused benefit rights based on such benefit year. 1 1 (b) For the purposes of this arrangement, a claimant will not be considered to have unused benefit rights based on a benefit year which the claimant has established under a State or Federal unemployment compensation law if: (1) The claimant has exhausted his/her rights to all benefits based on such benefit year; or (2) The claimant's rights to such benefits have been postponed for an indefinite period or for the entire period in which benefits would otherwise be payable; or (3) Benefits are affected by the application of a seasonal restriction. (c) If an individual elects to file a Combined-Wage Claim, all employment and wages in all States in which the individual worked during the base period of the paying State must be included in such combining, except employment and wages which are not transferrable under the provisions of § 616.9(b). (d) A Combined-Wage Claimant may withdraw his/her Combined-Wage Claim within the period prescribed by the law of the paying State for filing an appeal, protest, or request for redetermination (as the case may be) from the monetary determination of the Combined-Wage Claim, provided the claimant either: (1) Repays in full any benefits paid to him thereunder, or (2) Authorizes the State(s) against which the claimant files a substitute claim(s) for benefits to withhold and forward to the paying State a sum sufficient to repay such benefits. (e) If the Combined-Wage Claimant files his/her claim in a State other than the paying State, the claimant shall do so pursuant to the Interstate Benefit Payment Plan. (f) If a State denies a Combined-Wage Claim, it must inform the claimant of the option to file in another State in which the claimant has wages and employment during that State's base period(s). [36 FR 24992, Dec. 28, 1971, as amended at 71 FR 35514, 35515, June 21, 2006; 73 FR 63072, Oct. 23, 2008] § 616.8 Responsibilities of the paying State. (a) Transfer of employment and wages—payment of benefits. (b) Notices of determination. (c) Redeterminations. (2) When a determination is made, as provided in paragraph (a) of this section, which suspends the use of wages earned in employment with an educational institution during a prescribed period between successive academic years or terms or other periods as prescribed in the law of the paying State in accordance with section 3304(a)(6)(A)(i)-(iv) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, the paying State shall furnish each transferring State involved in the combined-Wage Claim an adjusted determination used to recompute each State's proportionate share of any charges that may accumulate for benefits paid during the period of suspended use of school wages. Wages which are suspended shall be retained by the paying State for possible future reinstatement to the Combined-Wage Claim and shall not be returned to the transferring State. (d) Appeals. (2) Where the claimant files his/her Combined-Wage Claim in a State other than the paying State, or under the circumstances described in paragraph (d)(3) of this section, any protest, request for redetermination or appeal shall be in accordance with the Interstate Benefit Payment Plan. (3) To the extent that any protest, request for redetermination or appeal involves a dispute as to the coverage of the employing unit or services in a transferring State, or otherwise involves the amount of employment and wages subject to transfer, the protest, request for redetermination or appeal shall be decided by the transferring State in accordance with its law. (e) Recovery of prior overpayments. (f) Statement of benefit charges. (2) Except as provided in paragraphs (c)(2), (f)(3), and (f)(5) of this section, each such charge shall bear the same ratio to the total benefits paid to the Combined-Wage Claimant by the paying State as the claimant's wages transferred by the transferring State bear to the total wages used in such determination. Each such ratio shall be computed as a percentage, to three or more decimal places. (3) Charges to the transferring State shall not include the costs of any benefits paid which are funded or reimbursed from the Federal Unemployment Benefits and Allowances account in the U.S. Department of Labor appropriation, including: (i) Benefits paid pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 8501-8525; and (ii) Benefits which are reimbursable under part B of title II of the Emergency Jobs and Unemployment Assistance Act of 1974 (Pub. L. 93-567). (4) Except as provided in paragraphs (f)(3) and (f)(5) of this section, all transferring States will be charged by the paying State for Extended Benefits in the same manner as for regular benefits. (5) The United States shall be charged directly by the paying State, in the same manner as is provided in paragraphs (f)(1) and (f)(2) of this section, in regard to Federal civilian service and wages and Federal military service and wages assigned or transferred to the paying State and included in Combined-Wage Claims in accordance with this part and parts 609 and 614 of this chapter. (26 U.S.C. 3304(a)(9)(B); Secretary's Order No. 4-75, (40 FR 18515)) [36 FR 24992, Dec. 28, 1971, as amended at 43 FR 2625, Jan. 17, 1978; 45 FR 47109, July 11, 1980; 71 FR 35515, June 21, 2006; 73 FR 63072, Oct. 23, 2008] § 616.9 Responsibilities of transferring States. (a) Transfer of employment and wages. (b) Employment and wages not transferable. (1) Any employment and wages which have been transferred to any other paying State and not returned unused, or which have been used in the transferring State as the basis of a monetary determination which established a benefit year. (2) Any employment and wages which have been canceled or are otherwise unavailable to the claimant as a result of a determination by the transferring State made prior to its receipt of the request for transfer, if such determination has become final or is in the process of appeal but is still pending. If the appeal is finally decided in favor of the Combined-Wage Claimant, any employment and wages involved in the appeal shall forthwith be transferred to the paying State and any necessary redetermination shall be made by such paying State. (c) Reimbursement of paying State. (26 U.S.C. 3304(a)(9)(B); Secretary's Order No. 4-75, (40 FR 18515)) [36 FR 24992, Dec. 28, 1971, as amended at 45 FR 47109, July 11, 1980] § 616.10 Reuse of employment and wages. Employment and wages which have been used under this arrangement for a determination of benefits which establishes a benefit year shall not thereafter be used by any State as the basis for another monetary determination of benefits. § 616.11 Amendment of arrangement. Periodically the Secretary shall review the operation of this arrangement, and shall propose such amendments to the arrangement as the Secretary believes are necessary or appropriate. Any State unemployment compensation agency or NASWA may propose amendments to the arrangement. Any proposal shall constitute an amendment to the arrangement upon approval by the Secretary in consultation with the State unemployment compensation agencies. Any such amendment shall specify when the change shall take effect, and to which claims it shall apply. [36 FR 24992, Dec. 28, 1971, as amended at 71 FR 35515, June 21, 2006]