House Commerce panel reviews draft S.11718 to extend UI modernization deadline, add quarterly reporting on late wage‑payment penalties

The Vermont House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development on Thursday, April 24, 2025, reviewed draft 4.2 of S.11718, a bill that moves a deadline for the state's unemployment insurance information‑technology modernization project, clarifies workers' compensation language on late weekly wage payments, and adds a session‑law requirement for quarterly reporting of any late‑fee payments beginning Oct. 1, 2025.

The changes matter because the reporting requirement is intended to give the Department of Labor data before the Legislature considers whether to change penalties for late wage payments; the committee paused further action so staff and agencies can resolve technical rulemaking questions and timing.

Sophie Zidane, of the Office of Legislative Council, told the committee the draft updates several dates tied to the unemployment insurance modernization project, moving at least one statutory deadline from July 1, 2025, to July 21, 2026. Zidane said she removed a redundant subsection from the workers' compensation section and restored clearer statutory language tying late‑payment penalties to an "established day" agreed to with a claimant rather than a confusing five‑business‑day mailing/deposit test.

The draft also adds a new session‑law provision requiring employers or insurers to report payments of any late fees on a quarterly basis beginning Oct. 1, 2025. The bill as drafted would allow the Department of Labor commissioner to track those reports by whatever mechanism the department selects and would authorize an administrative penalty of not more than $500 for failure to file a required quarterly report. The draft asks the commissioner to deliver findings and recommendations to the committee on or before Jan. 15, 2027.

Dirk Anderson, workers compensation and safety director at the Vermont Department of Labor, said the agency is "receptive to the changes" in draft 4.2 and that it wants the reports so it can in turn report back to the Legislature. Anderson asked for a short delay so the department can confer with the Secretary of State about the bill's rulemaking language; he said a deputy secretary of state raised concerns that sections 1–4, which address expedited rulemaking for VOSHA, might not provide the rule the full weight and process required under the Administrative Procedure Act.

Committee members and agency representatives discussed practical timing for the quarterly filings. Some members suggested minor calendar adjustments (for example, allowing 5–15 days after a quarter to assemble prior‑quarter data); Anderson and Mike Herrington, Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Labor, said the exact submission date could follow existing quarterly reporting conventions and that the industry and department could coordinate a workable deadline. Jamie Feeney of the American Property Casualty Insurance Association said the industry expects the department would issue a bulletin or guidance for carriers ahead of the first report to clarify form, format and timing.

David McKenbergh of the Vermont Association for Justice said his organization will help educate claimants about eligibility for late‑fee penalties through its practitioner networks.

Separately, Susan Aronoff of the Vermont Developmental Disabilities Council praised section 7 of the draft for striking the state provision that would permit paying some workers with disabilities less than the prevailing minimum wage. Aronoff noted that the authority for subminimum‑wage programs derives from federal law and said the council supports removing the state permission that remained on the books.

The committee did not take a formal vote on the bill. Dirk Anderson requested time to consult with the Secretary of State about the expedited‑rulemaking language; the committee agreed to hold the bill for further review and to revisit it on Tuesday, April 29, 2025, to allow agencies to propose technical edits and agree on reporting dates.

What happens next: staff and the Department of Labor will confer with the Secretary of State on rulemaking language, the department plans to prepare guidance for carriers on the new reporting obligation, and the commissioner will prepare the mandated report summarizing quarterly filings and any recommended changes to penalties by Jan. 15, 2027.