To provide for additional temporary extended unemployment compensation for certain displaced workers.

April 2, 2003

Mr. ENGLISH (for himself, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. NEY, Mr. HOYER, Ms. DUNN, Ms. HART, Mr. LIPINSKI, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. MENENDEZ, and Mr. WEINER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means

To provide for additional temporary extended unemployment compensation for certain displaced 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 `Air Transportation Employees Assistance Act'.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

For purposes of this Act--

(1) the term `eligible individual' means an individual whose eligibility for temporary extended unemployment compensation is or would be based on the exhaustion of regular compensation, entitlement to which was based in whole or in part on qualifying employment performed during such individual's base period;

(2) the term `qualifying employment', with respect to an eligible individual, means employment--

(A) with an air carrier, at a facility at an airport that involves the provision of transportation to or from an airport, or with an upstream producer or supplier for an air carrier; and

(B) as determined by the Secretary, separation from which was due, in whole or in part, to--

(i) reductions in service by an air carrier as a result of a terrorist action or security measure;

(ii) a closure of an airport in the United States as a result of a terrorist action or security measure; or

(iii) a military conflict with Iraq that has been authorized by Congress;

(3) the term `air carrier' means an air carrier that holds a certificate issued under chapter 411 of title 49, United States Code;

(4) the term `upstream producer' means a firm that performs additional, value-added, production processes, including firms that perform final assembly, finishing, or packaging of articles, for another firm;

(5) the term `supplier' means a firm that produces component parts for, or articles and contract services considered to be a part of the production process or services for, another firm;

(6) the term `Secretary' means the Secretary of Labor; and

(7) the term `terrorist action or security measure' means a terrorist attack on the United States on September 11, 2001, or a security measure taken in response to such attack.

SEC. 3. ADDITIONAL TEMPORARY EXTENDED UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS FOR ELIGIBLE EMPLOYEES.

In the case of an eligible employee, the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 21), as amended by Public Law 108-1 (117 Stat. 3), shall be applied as if it had been amended in accordance with section 4.

SEC. 4. MODIFICATIONS.

(a) IN GENERAL- For purposes of section 3, the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-147; 116 Stat. 21), as amended by Public Law 108-1 (117 Stat. 3), shall be treated as if it had been amended as provided in this section.

(b) PROGRAM EXTENSION- Deem section 208 of the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002, as amended by Public Law 108-1 (117 Stat. 3), to be amended to read as follows:

`SEC. 208. APPLICABILITY.

`(a) IN GENERAL- Subject to subsection (b), an agreement entered into under this Act shall apply to weeks of unemployment--

`(1) beginning after the date on which such agreement is entered into; and

`(2) ending before December 29, 2003.

`(b) TRANSITION FOR AMOUNT REMAINING IN ACCOUNT-

`(1) IN GENERAL- Subject to paragraph (2), in the case of an individual who has amounts remaining in an account established under section 203 as of December 28, 2003, temporary extended unemployment compensation shall continue to be payable to such individual from such amounts for any week beginning after such date for which the individual meets the eligibility requirements of this Act, including such compensation payable by reason of amounts deposited in such account after such date pursuant to the application of subsection (c) of such section.

`(2) LIMITATION- No compensation shall be payable by reason of paragraph (1) for any week beginning after December 26, 2004.'.

(c) ADDITIONAL WEEKS OF BENEFITS- Deem section 203 of the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002, as amended by Public Law 108-1 (117 Stat. 3), to be amended--

(1) in subsection (b)(1)--

(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking `50' and inserting `150'; and

(B) by striking `13' and inserting `39'; and

(2) in subsection (c)(1), by inserting ` 1/3 of' after `equal to'.

(d) EFFECTIVE DATE OF MODIFICATIONS DESCRIBED IN SUBSECTION (c)-

(1) IN GENERAL- The amendments described in subsection (c)--

(A) shall be deemed to have taken effect as if included in the enactment of the Temporary

Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002; but

(B) shall be treated as applying only with respect to weeks of unemployment beginning on or after the date of enactment this Act, subject to paragraph (2).

(2) SPECIAL RULES- In the case of an eligible individual for whom a temporary extended unemployment account was established before the date of enactment of this Act, the Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002 (as amended by this Act) shall be applied subject to the following:

(A) Any amounts deposited in the individual's temporary extended unemployment compensation account by reason of section 203(c) of such Act (commonly known as `TEUC-X amounts') before the date of enactment of this Act shall be treated as amounts deposited by reason of section 203(b) of such Act (commonly known as `TEUC amounts'), as deemed to have been amended by subsection (c)(1).

(B) For purposes of determining whether the individual is eligible for any TEUC-X amounts under such Act, as deemed to be amended by this section--

(i) any determination made under section 203(c) of such Act before the application of the amendment described in subsection (c)(2) shall be disregarded; and

(ii) any such determination shall instead be made by applying section 203(c) of such Act, as deemed to be amended by subsection (c)(2)--

(I) as of the time that all amounts established in such account in accordance with section 203(b) of such Act (as deemed to be amended under this section, and including any amounts described in subparagraph (A)) are in fact exhausted, except that

(II) if such individual's account was both augmented by and exhausted of all TEUC-X amounts before the date of enactment of this Act, such determination shall be made as if exhaustion (as described in section 203(c)(1) of such Act) had not occurred until such date of enactment.

END