11-10-534. Extended benefits — Definitions.

11-10-534. Extended benefits — Definitions. As used in this section and §§ 11-10-535 — 11-10-543, unless the context clearly requires otherwise: (1) “Additional benefits” means benefits payable to exhaustees by reason of conditions of high unemployment or by reason of other special factors under the provisions of any state law; (2) “Eligibility period” of an individual means the period consisting of the weeks in his or her benefit year which begin in an extended benefit period and, if his or her benefit year ends within that extended benefit period, any weeks thereafter which begin in that period; (3) “Exhaustee” means an individual who, with respect to any week of unemployment in his or her eligibility period: (A)(i) Has received, prior to that week, all of the regular benefits that were available to him or her under this chapter or any other state law, including dependents' allowances and benefits payable to federal civilian employees and ex-service personnel under 5 U.S.C. § 8501 et seq. in his or her current benefit year that includes that week. (ii) For the purposes of this subdivision (3)(A), an individual shall be deemed to have received all of the regular benefits that were available to him or her although: (a) As a result of a pending appeal with respect to wages that were not considered in the original monetary determination in his or her benefit year, he or she may subsequently be determined to be entitled to added regular benefits; or (b) He or she may be entitled to regular benefits with respect to future weeks of unemployment, but benefits are not payable with respect to such week of unemployment by reason of the provisions of § 11-10-506 or the parallel provisions of any other state law; (B) His or her benefit year having expired prior to such week, he or she has no wages or insufficient wages on the basis of which he or she could establish a new benefit year that would include that week or, having established a benefit year, no regular compensation is payable to him or her during that year because his or her wage credits were cancelled or his or her right to regular compensation was totally reduced as a result of the application of disqualification; (C)(i) Has no right to unemployment benefits or allowances, as the case may be, under the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act, the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, the Automotive Products Trade Act of 1965, and such other federal laws as are specified in regulations issued by the United States Secretary of Labor; and (ii) Has not received and is not seeking unemployment benefits under the unemployment compensation law of the Virgin Islands or of Canada. If he or she is seeking benefits and the appropriate agency finally determines that he or she is not entitled to benefits under law, he or she is considered an exhaustee. However, this provision shall not be applicable to individuals seeking benefits under the unemployment compensation laws of the Virgin Islands on and after the date the Virgin Islands meets the definition of a state as set forth in § 11-10-213; (4) “Extended benefit period” means a period that: (A) Begins with the third week after the first week for which there is a state “on” indicator; and (B) Ends with: (i) The third week after the first week for which there is a state “off” indicator; or (ii) The thirteenth consecutive week of such period; (C) Provided that no extended benefit period may begin before the fourteenth week following the end of a prior extended benefit period which was in effect with respect to this state; (5) “Extended benefits” means benefits, including benefits payable to federal civilian employees and to ex-service personnel pursuant to 5 U.S.C. § 8501 et seq. payable to an individual under the provisions of this section for weeks of unemployment in his or her eligibility period; (6) There is a state “off” indicator for a week if, for the period consisting of that week and the immediately preceding twelve (12) weeks, either subdivision (7)(A) or subdivision (7)(B) of this section was not satisfied; (7) There is a state “on” indicator for a week if the rate of insured unemployment under this chapter for the period consisting of such week and the immediately preceding twelve (12) weeks: (A) Equalled or exceeded one hundred twenty percent (120%) of the average of such rates for the corresponding thirteen-week period ending in each of the preceding two (2) calendar years; and (B) Equalled or exceeded four percent (4%), provided that for periods beginning on and after September 25, 1982, such rate equalled or exceeded five percent (5%); except that effective July 1, 1991, the rate of insured unemployment equalled or exceeded six percent (6%) even though the provisions of subdivision (7)(A) of this section were not met; (8) “Rate of insured unemployment”, for purposes of subdivision (7) of this section, means the percentage derived by dividing: (A) The average weekly number of individuals filing claims for regular benefits in this state for weeks of unemployment with respect to the most recent thirteen (13) consecutive week period, as determined by the Director of the Division of Workforce Services on the basis of his or her reports to the United States Secretary of Labor; by (B) The average monthly employment covered under this chapter for the first four (4) of the most recent six (6) completed calendar quarters ending before the end of such thirteen-week period; and (9) “State law” means the unemployment insurance law of any state, approved by the United States Secretary of Labor under section 3304 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954.