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Committee advances bill to clarify unemployment 'reasonable assurance' for adjunct instructors
Summary
House Bill 67 would replace a multifactor test with a five-part checklist to determine reasonable assurance of reemployment for adjunct faculty, aiming to align state practice with federal unemployment rules and reduce inconsistent administrative decisions.
The House Education Committee advanced House Bill 67 after sponsors and witnesses described the bill as a targeted fix to clarify when adjunct and contingent faculty qualify for unemployment benefits between academic terms.
House Bill 67 would amend state statute to specify five criteria that together establish "reasonable assurance" of reemployment for adjunct instructors. The sponsor said the change replaces a vague multifactor test with clearer, objective criteria intended to help institutions, claimants and staff at the Department of Workforce Solutions apply federal-state unemployment rules more consistently.
Steven Curtis, an attorney who testified as an expert, told the committee that federal law requires states to consider reasonable assurance for higher-education employees but allows states to define the test. Curtis and witnesses said the current multifactor approach produces inconsistent outcomes; the bill’s checklist requires that (1) the institution has made an offer of employment for the following term or year (written, oral or implied); (2) the offer came from a person with actual authority; (3) the offered position is substantially the same or higher; (4) compensation is at least 90% of prior earnings for the current academic year; and (5) the offer is not contingent on factors within the institution's control such as course programming or funding allocations.
Labor and higher-ed advocates including AFT New Mexico and the New Mexico Federation of Labor testified in support, calling the proposal a fairness measure that would reduce arbitrary denials and better align state determinations with federal guidance. Committee members had few questions; the panel approved a do-pass recommendation by voice, with Representative Latta moving the motion and Representative Miro Almoya seconding.
Committee members and witnesses described the bill as a modest procedural change that would not alter federal standards but would make state determinations more administrable for Workforce Solutions, employers and adjunct instructors.
