Public Act 094-0237
 		





SB2066 Enrolled
LRB094 11386 BDD 42268 b






    AN ACT concerning employment.

 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:


 
    Section 5. The Unemployment Insurance Act is amended  by 
changing Section 1300 as follows:
 



    (820 ILCS 405/1300)  (from Ch. 48, par. 540)



    Sec. 1300. Waiver or transfer of benefit rights - Partial 
exemption. 

    (A) Except as otherwise provided herein any agreement by an 
individual
to waive, release or commute his rights under this 
Act shall be void.

    (B) Benefits due under this Act shall not be assigned, 
pledged, encumbered,
released or commuted and shall be exempt 
from all claims of creditors and
from levy, execution and 
attachment or other remedy for recovery or
collection of a 
debt.  However, nothing in this Section shall prohibit a

specified or agreed upon deduction from benefits by an 
individual, or a
court or administrative order for withholding 
of income, for payment of
past due child support from being 
enforced and collected by the Department
of Public Aid on 
behalf of persons receiving a grant of financial aid under

Article IV of the Illinois Public Aid Code, persons for whom an 
application
has been made and approved for child support 
enforcement services under
Section 10-1 of such
Code, or 
persons similarly situated and receiving like services
in other 
states.   It is provided that:


        (1) The aforementioned deduction of benefits and order 
    for withholding
of income apply only if appropriate 
    arrangements have been made for
reimbursement to the 
    Director by the Department of Public Aid for any

    administrative costs incurred by the Director under this 
    Section.


        (2) The Director shall deduct and withhold from 
    benefits payable under
this Act, or under any arrangement 
    for the payment of benefits entered into
by the Director 
    pursuant to the powers granted under Section 2700 of this

    Act, the amount specified or agreed upon.  In the case of a 
    court
or administrative order for withholding of income, 
    the Director shall
withhold the amount of the order.


        (3) Any amount deducted and withheld by the Director 
    shall be paid to
the Department of Public Aid or the State 
    Disbursement Unit established
under Section 10-26 of the 
    Illinois Public Aid Code, as directed by the
Department of 
    Public Aid, on behalf of the individual.


        (4) Any amount deducted and withheld under subsection 
    (3) shall for all
purposes be treated as if it were paid to 
    the individual as benefits and
paid by such individual to 
    the Department of Public Aid or the State
Disbursement Unit 
    in satisfaction of the individual's child support

    obligations.


        (5) For the purpose of this Section, child support is 
    defined
as those obligations which are being enforced 
    pursuant to a plan described
in Title IV, Part D, Section 
    454 of the Social Security Act and approved
by the 
    Secretary of Health and Human Services.


        (6) The deduction of benefits and order for withholding 
    of income for
child support shall be governed by Titles III 
    and IV of the Social Security
Act and all regulations duly 
    promulgated thereunder.

    (C) Nothing in this Section prohibits an individual from 
voluntarily
electing to have federal income tax deducted and 
withheld from his or her
unemployment insurance benefit 
payments.


        (1) The Director shall, at the time that an individual 
    files his or her
claim for benefits that establishes his or 
    her benefit year, inform the
individual that:


            (a) unemployment insurance is subject to federal, 
        State, and local
income
taxes;


            (b) requirements exist pertaining to estimated tax 
        payments;


            (c) the individual may elect to have federal income 
        tax deducted and
withheld from his or her payments of 
        unemployment insurance in the amount
specified in the 
        federal Internal Revenue Code; and


            (d) the individual is permitted to change a 
        previously elected
withholding status.


        (2) Amounts deducted and withheld from unemployment 
    insurance shall remain
in the unemployment fund until 
    transferred to the federal taxing authority as a
payment of 
    income tax.


        (3) The Director shall follow all procedures specified 
    by the United
States Department of Labor and the federal 
    Internal Revenue Service pertaining
to the deducting and 
    withholding of income tax.


        (4) Amounts shall be deducted and withheld in 
    accordance with the
priorities established in rules 
    promulgated by the Director.

    (D) Nothing in this Section prohibits an individual from 
voluntarily
electing to have State of Illinois income tax 
deducted and withheld from his or
her unemployment insurance 
benefit payments if such deduction and withholding
is provided 
for pursuant to rules promulgated by the Director.


        (1) The
If pursuant to rules promulgated by the 
    Director, an individual
may voluntarily elect to have State 
    of Illinois income tax deducted and
withheld from his or 
    her unemployment insurance benefit payments, the Director

    shall, at the time that an individual files his or her 
    claim for benefits that
establishes his or her benefit 
    year, in addition to providing the notice
required under 
    subsection C, inform the individual that:


            (a) the individual may elect to have State of 
        Illinois income tax
deducted and withheld from his or 
        her payments of unemployment insurance in the
amount 
        specified pursuant to rules promulgated by the 
        Director; and


            (b) the individual is permitted to change a 
        previously elected
withholding status.


        (2) Amounts deducted and withheld from unemployment 
    insurance shall remain
in the unemployment fund until 
    transferred to the Department of Revenue as a
payment of 
    State of Illinois income tax.


        (3) Amounts shall be deducted and withheld in 
    accordance with the
priorities established in rules 
    promulgated by the Director.

    (E) Nothing in this Section prohibits the deduction and 
withholding of an
uncollected overissuance of food stamp 
coupons from unemployment insurance
benefits pursuant to this 
subsection (E).


        (1) At the time that an individual files a claim for 
    benefits that
establishes his or her benefit year, that 
    individual must disclose whether or
not he or she owes an 
    uncollected overissuance (as defined in Section 13(c)(1)

    of the federal Food Stamp Act of 1977) of food stamp 
    coupons.  The Director
shall notify the State food stamp 
    agency enforcing such obligation of any
individual who 
    discloses that he or she owes an uncollected overissuance 
    of
food stamp coupons and who meets the monetary 
    eligibility requirements of
subsection E of
Section 500.


        (2) The Director shall deduct and withhold from any 
    unemployment insurance
benefits payable to an individual 
    who owes an uncollected overissuance of food
stamp coupons:


            (a) the amount specified by the individual to the 
        Director to be
deducted and withheld under this 
        subsection (E);


            (b) the amount (if any) determined pursuant to an 
        agreement submitted
to the State food stamp agency 
        under Section 13(c)(3)(A) of the federal Food
Stamp Act 
        of 1977; or


            (c) any amount otherwise required to be deducted 
        and withheld from
unemployment insurance benefits 
        pursuant to Section 13(c)(3)(B) of the federal
Food 
        Stamp Act of 1977.


        (3) Any amount deducted and withheld pursuant to this 
    subsection (E) shall
be paid by the Director to the State 
    food stamp agency.


        (4) Any amount deducted and withheld pursuant to this 
    subsection (E) shall
for all purposes be treated as if it 
    were paid to the individual as
unemployment insurance 
    benefits and paid by the individual to the State food
stamp 
    agency as repayment of the individual's uncollected 
    overissuance of food
stamp coupons.


        (5) For purposes of this subsection (E), "unemployment 
    insurance benefits"
means any compensation payable under 
    this Act including amounts payable by the
Director pursuant 
    to an agreement under any federal law providing for

    compensation, assistance, or allowances with respect to 
    unemployment.


        (6) This subsection (E) applies only if arrangements 
    have been made for
reimbursement by the State food stamp 
    agency for the administrative costs
incurred by the 
    Director under this subsection (E) which are attributable 
    to
the repayment of uncollected overissuances of food stamp 
    coupons to the State
food stamp agency.

(Source: P.A. 91-212, eff. 7-20-99; 91-712, eff. 7-1-00; 
92-590, eff.
7-1-02.)