Bill C-377

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First Reading

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	1st Session, 36th Parliament, 46-47 Elizabeth II, 1997-98
	The House of Commons of Canada
	BILL C-377
	An Act to amend the Employment Insurance Act, 1997
1996, c. 23	Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:
	*1. The last line of the Table following subsection 7(2) of the Employment Insurance Act* is replaced by the following:**
	more than 13% but not more than 14% 420
	more than 14% but not more than15% 385
	more than 15% 350
	2. The last two lines of the Table following subsection 7.1(1) of the Act are replaced by the following:
	more than 13% but not more than 14% /le plus de 13 % mais au plus 14 % 525 630 735 840
	more than 14% but not more than 15% /le plus de 14 % mais au plus 15 % 481 578 674 770
	more than 15% / plus de 15 % 438 525 613 700
	3. Section 4 of the Act is replaced by the following:
	*ep
Maximum for each year	4. For the purposes of subsection 82(2) and sections 95 and 145, the maximum yearly insurable earnings is the amount obtained by multiplying the weekly insurable earnings by 52.
	4. The definition of ``major attachment claimant'' in section 6 of the Act is replaced by the following:
``major attachment claimant'' « prestataire de la première catégorie »	``major attachment claimant'' means a claim ant who qualifies to receive benefit and has had at least,
	(a) in the case of a claimant who requests special benefits, 300 hours of insurable employment during the claimant's qualifying period; or
	(b) in any other case , 700 hours of insurable employment during the claimant's qualifying period.
	5. (1) The portion of subsection 7(2) of the Act before the table is replaced by the following:
Qualification requirement	(2) An insured person qualifies if the person
	(a) has had an interruption of earnings from employment; and
	(b) has had during the person's qualifying period at least
	(i) 300 hours of insurable employment, in the case of a person who requests special benefits; or
	(ii) the number of hours of insurable employment set out in the following table in relation to the regional rate of unemployment rate that applies to the person, in any other case.
	(2) Subsection 7(3) to (5) of the Act are repealed.
	6. (1) The portion of subsection 7.1(1) of the Act before the table is replaced by the following:
Increase in required hours	7.1 (1) The number of hours that an insured person requires under section 7 to qualify for benefits is increased to the number provided in the following table if the insured person accumulates one or more violations in the 260 weeks before making the initial claim for benefit.
	(2) Subsections 7.1(2) and (3) of the Act are replaced by the following:
Limitation	(3) A violation may not be taken into account under subsection (1) in more than two initial claims for benefits if the insured person qualified for benefits with the increased number of hours in each of those claims.
	7. Paragraph 10(8)(c) of the Act is replaced by the following:
	(c) 50 weeks of benefit has been paid to the claimant in the claimant's benefit period; or
	8. (1) Subsections 14(1.1) and (2) of the Act are replaced by the following:
Maximum weekly insurable earnings	(1.1) The maximum weekly insurable earnings has the same meaning as in sections 45 to 47 of the Unemployment Insurance Act, R.S. 1985, c. U-1, as those sections read on June 29, 1996.
Regulations	(1.2) The Governor in Council may make regulations for the application of section 46 referred to in subsection (1.1).
Weekly insurable earnings	(2) A claimant's weekly insurable earnings are the claimant's average insurable earnings for the number of weeks in which the claimant had the highest insurable earnings in the rate calculation period determined in accordance with the following table by reference to the applicable regional rate of unemployment.
	TABLE
	Regional Rate of Unemployment Weeks
	not more than 6% 20
	more than 6% but not more than 7% 19
	more than 7% but not more than 8% 18
	more than 8% but not more than 9% 17
	more than 9% but not more than 10% 16
	more than 10% but not more than 11% 15
	more than 11% but not more than 12% 14
	more than 12% but not more than 13% 13
	more than 13% but not more than 14% 12
	more than 14% but not more than15% 11
	more than 15% 10
	(2) The portion of subsection 14(4) of the Act immediately before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:
Rate calculation period	(4) The rate calculation period is the period of not more than 52 consecutive weeks in the claimant's qualifying period ending with the later of
	(3) Subsection 14(4.1) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Length of rate calculation period	(4.1) The rate calculation is 52 weeks, unless the claimant's qualifying period begins on a Sunday that is less than 52 weeks before the Sunday of the week in which the rate calculation period ends under subsection (4), in which case it is the number of weeks between those Sundays.
	9. Section 15 of the Act is repealed.
	10. Section 17 of the Act is repealed.
	11. Subsection 19(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Earnings in periods of unemploy- ment	(2) Subject to subsections (3) and (4), if the claimant has earnings during any other week of unemployment, there shall be deducted from benefits payable in that week the amount, if any, of the earnings that exceeds 25% of the maximum rate of weekly benefit.
	12. Subsection 21(1) of the Act is repealed.
	13. Subsection 28(6) of the Act is repleaded be the following:
Presumption	(6) For the purposes of this Part, benefits are deemed to be paid for the weeks of disqualification.
	14. Subsection 38(3) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Determi- nations under subsection 145(2) or (3)	(3) For greater certainty, the repayment of benefits overpaid as a result of an act or omission mentioned in subsection (1) does not affect the determination, for the purposes of subsection 145(2) or (3), of the number of weeks of regular benefits paid to a claimant.
	15. Section 66 of the Act is replaced by the following:
Annual premium rate setting	66. The Commission shall set the premium rate for each year at a rate that the Commission considers will, to the extent possible,
	(a) ensure that there will be enough revenue over a business cycle to pay the amounts authorized to be charged to the Employ ment Insurance Account; and
	(b) maintain relatively stable rate levels throughout the business cycle.
Obligation to hold hearing	66.1 (1) No later than six months after the coming into force of this section and every two years thereafter, the Commission shall hold at least one hearing for representations by persons interested in the subject of the past or future setting of the premium rate by the Commission under section 66.
Notice by Commission	(2) Sixty days before the beginning of the hearing, the Commission shall cause a notice to be published in the Canada Gazette and no fewer than five major English-language newspapers and five major French-language newspapers a notice, and the notice shall contain the following:
	(a) a statement that the Commission will hold at least one hearing for representations by persons interested in the past or future setting of the premium rate by the Commis sion under section 66;
	(b) the date, time and place of the hearing;
	(c) an invitation to all interested persons to make representations before the Commis sion; and
	(d) a statement indicating that no represen tation by an interested person shall be heard by the Commission at the hearing unless notice in writing is received by the Com mission not later than fifty-three days after the date of the publication of the notice under this subsection, stating the name and address of the person who is seeking to make the representation.
No represen- tation without notice to Commission	(3) No representation by an interested person shall be heard by the Commission at a hearing held under this section unless notice in writing is received by the Commission not later than fifty-three days after the date of the publication of the notice under subsection (2), stating the name and address of the person who is seeking to make the representation.
	16. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 80.1:
Credits to the Employment Insurance Account	80.2 Notwithstanding any other provision in this Act or any other Act of Parliament, on September 1, in each and every year, there shall be credited to the Employment Insurance Account and charged to the Consolidated Revenue Fund an amount equal to the amount calculated in accordance with the following formula:
	A - B
	where
	A represents all amounts paid into the Con solidated Revenue Fund or obtained by it pursuant to this Act in the preceding finan cial year; and
	B represents the total amounts used by the Consolidated Revenue Fund to meet its obligations under this Act that have been credited to the Employment Insurance Ac count in the preceding financial year.
	17. Subsections 96(4) and (5) of the Act are replaced by the following:
Refund - insurable earnings up to $5,000	(4) If a person has insurable earnings of not more than $5,000 in a year, the Minister shall refund to the person the aggregate of all amounts deducted as required from the insurable earnings, whether by one or more employers, on account or the person's employee's premiums for that year.
Refund - insurable earnings over $5,000	(5) If a person has insurable earnings of more than $5,000 in a year, but the insurable earnings minus the aggregate of all amounts mentioned in subsection (4) are less than $5,000 , the Minister shall refund to the person an amount calculated in accordance with the following formula if that amount is more than $1:
	$5,000 - (IE-P)
	where
	P is the aggregate of all deducted amounts mentioned in subsection (4); and
	IE is the person's insurable earnings in the year.
	18. Subsection 145(8) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Limitation	(8) For greater certainty, repayments under this section do not affect the determination under subsections (2) and (3) of the number of weeks of regular benefits paid to a claimant.
	19. Section 153.1 of the Act and the heading before it are repealed.
	20. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 153.1

Bill C-377

BILL C-377

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