[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2731 Introduced in House (IH)]
112th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2731
To amend title III of the Social Security Act to provide for
demonstration projects designed to expedite the reemployment of
unemployed workers.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
August 1, 2011
Mr. Berg introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Ways and Means
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title III of the Social Security Act to provide for
demonstration projects designed to expedite the reemployment of
unemployed workers.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Helping Innovation of Re-Employment
Services in States Act'' or the ``HIRES Act''.
SEC. 2. STATE FLEXIBILITY TO PROMOTE THE REEMPLOYMENT OF UNEMPLOYED
WORKERS.
(a) In General.--Title III of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
501 and following) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``demonstration projects
``Sec. 305. (a) The Secretary of Labor may enter into agreements,
with States submitting an application described in subsection (b), for
the purpose of allowing such States to conduct demonstration projects
to test and evaluate measures designed--
``(1) to expedite the reemployment of individuals who
establish initial eligibility for unemployment compensation
under the State law of such State; or
``(2) to improve the effectiveness of a State in carrying
out its State law with respect to reemployment.
``(b) The Governor of any State desiring to conduct a demonstration
project under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary
of Labor. Any such application shall, at a minimum, include--
``(1) a general description of the proposed demonstration
project, including the authority (under the laws of the State)
for the measures to be tested, as well as the period of time
during which such demonstration project would be conducted;
``(2) if a waiver under subsection (c) is requested, the
specific aspects of the project to which the waiver would apply
and the reasons why such waiver is needed;
``(3) a description of the goals and the expected
programmatic outcomes of the demonstration project, including
how the project would contribute to the objective described in
subsection (a)(1), subsection (a)(2), or both;
``(4) assurances (accompanied by supporting analysis) that
the demonstration project would not result in any increased net
costs to the State's account in the Unemployment Trust Fund;
``(5) a description of the manner in which the State--
``(A) will conduct an impact evaluation, using a
control or comparison group or other valid methodology,
of the demonstration project; and
``(B) will determine the extent to which the goals
and outcomes described in paragraph (3) were achieved;
and
``(6) assurances that the State will provide any reports
relating to the demonstration project, after its approval, as
the Secretary of Labor may require.
``(c) The Secretary of Labor may waive any of the requirements of
section 3304(a)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 or of paragraph
(1) or (5) of section 303(a), to the extent and for the period the
Secretary of Labor considers necessary to enable the State to carry out
a demonstration project under this section.
``(d) A demonstration project under this section--
``(1) may be commenced any time after the date of the
enactment of this section; and
``(2) may not be approved for a period of time greater than
3 years, subject to extension upon request of the Governor of
the State involved for such additional period as the Secretary
of Labor may agree to, except that in no event may a
demonstration project under this section be conducted after the
end of the 5-year period beginning on the date of the enactment
of this section.
``(e) The Secretary of Labor shall, in the case of any State for
which an application is submitted under subsection (b)--
``(1) notify the State as to whether such application has
been approved or denied within 30 days after receipt of a
complete application; and
``(2) provide public notice of the decision within 10 days
after providing notification to the State in accordance with
paragraph (1).
Public notice under paragraph (2) may be provided through the Internet
or other appropriate means. Any application under this section that has
not been denied within such 30 days shall be deemed approved.
``(f) The Secretary of Labor may terminate a demonstration project
under this section if the Secretary makes a final determination that
the State has violated the substantive terms or conditions of the
project.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section shall apply
to weeks beginning after September 30, 2011.
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