Employment Department backs HB 3024 to remove an 8-times penalty from unemployment benefits

The Oregon Employment Department and legal-aid advocates urged the Senate Committee on Labor and Business to support House Bill 3024 on May 15, 2025. The bill would remove a penalty that reduces a requalified claimant’s maximum unemployment benefit amount by eight times the weekly benefit after a disqualifying separation.

Lindsay Leahy, unemployment insurance division director at the Oregon Employment Department, told the committee that current law requires two consequences when a worker is disqualified for cause: the worker must requalify for benefits (typically by earning four times their weekly benefit) and, once requalified, the worker’s maximum benefit bank is reduced by eight times their weekly benefit. Leahy said the bill would keep the disqualification rules in place but eliminate the second penalty so an otherwise eligible requalified worker could access the full 26 weeks of benefits if needed.

“We estimate that about 400 additional people per biennium would be eligible to receive at least one more week of benefits with the passage of the bill,” Leahy said, adding that the department expects the change would streamline adjudication and reduce administrative complexity. Leahy told senators the department estimates an impact to the unemployment insurance trust fund of about $1.3 million over the 2025–27 biennium while noting that OED paid about $1.5 billion in benefits over the last two years.

Bridget Budbell of the Oregon Law Center urged support as well, saying the penalty “limits your future economic stability” when a worker needs extra weeks between jobs and that a few more weeks of benefits can matter for mortgage or rent payments.

The committee closed the public hearing and will consider the measure in future work sessions. No committee vote was recorded on the day’s testimony.