108.151
108.151
Financing benefits for employees of nonprofit organizations. 108.151(1)(1)
Employer's contribution rate. Each nonprofit organization which is or becomes an employer subject to this chapter shall be subject to all its provisions except as it may elect reimbursement financing in accordance with
sub. (2). If such an approved election is terminated, the employer's contribution rate shall be 2.5% on its payroll for each of the next 3 calendar years.
108.151(2)
(2) Election of reimbursement financing. Any nonprofit organization may, in lieu of the contribution requirements of
ss. 108.17 and
108.18, elect reimbursement financing, as of the beginning of any calendar year, subject to the following requirements:
108.151(2)(a)
(a) It shall file a written notice to that effect with the department before the beginning of such year except that if the employer became newly subject to this section as of the beginning of such year, it shall file the notice within 30 days after the date of the determination that it is subject to this chapter.
108.151(2)(b)
(b) An employer whose prior election of reimbursement financing has been terminated pursuant to
sub. (3) may not thereafter reelect reimbursement financing unless it has been subject to the contribution requirements of
ss. 108.17 and
108.18 for at least 3 calendar years thereafter and is not, at the time of filing such reelection, delinquent under
s. 108.22.
108.151(2)(c)
(c) No election of reimbursement financing shall be valid unless the employer has satisfied the requirements of
sub. (4) within 60 days after it filed the notice of election.
108.151(2)(d)
(d) Sections 108.17 and
108.18 shall apply to all prior employment, but after all benefits based on prior employment have been charged to any account it has had under
s. 108.16 (2) any balance remaining therein shall be transferred to the balancing account as if
s. 108.16 (6) (c) or
(6m) (d) applied.
108.151(3)(a)(a) An employer who elected reimbursement financing may terminate its election as of the close of the 2nd calendar year to which such election applies, or at the close of any subsequent calendar year, by filing a written notice to that effect with the department before the close of such calendar year;
108.151(3)(b)
(b) The department may terminate any election as of the close of any calendar year if the department determines that the employer has failed to make the required reimbursement payments or no longer satisfies the requirements of
sub. (4), or whenever
s. 108.16 (8) applies.
108.151(4)(a)(a) An employer electing reimbursement financing shall file an assurance of reimbursement with the fund's treasurer, payable to the unemployment reserve fund, guaranteeing payment of the required reimbursement together with any interest and any tardy filing fees. The assurance shall be a surety bond, letter of credit, certificate of deposit or any other nonnegotiable instrument of fixed value.
108.151(4)(a)1.
1. The amount of assurance shall be equal to 4% of the employer's payroll for the year immediately preceding the effective date of the election, or the employer's anticipated payroll for the current year, whichever is greater as determined by the department, but the assurance may be in a greater amount at the option of the employer. The amount of the assurance shall be similarly redetermined prior to the beginning of the 3rd year commencing after the year in which it is filed and prior to the beginning of every other year thereafter.
108.151(4)(a)2.
2. Prior to the beginning of each year, an employer electing reimbursement financing shall file an assurance for the 4-year period beginning on January 1 of that year in the amount determined under
subd. 1. An assurance shall remain in force until the liability is released by the fund's treasurer.
108.151(4)(a)3.
3. No assurance may be approved unless the fund's treasurer finds that it gives reasonable assurances that it guarantees payment of reimbursements.
108.151(4)(a)4.
4. Failure of any employer covered by the assurance to pay the full amount of its reimbursement payments when due together with any interest and any tardy filing fees shall render the assurance liable on said assurance to the extent of the assurance, as though the assurance was the employer.
108.151(4)(b)
(b) The fund's treasurer shall issue a receipt to the employer for its deposit of assurance. Any assurances shall be retained by the fund's treasurer in escrow, for the fund, until the employer's liability under its election is terminated, at which time they shall be returned to the employer, less any deductions made under this paragraph. The employer may at any time substitute assurances of equal or greater value. The treasurer may, with 10 days' notice to the employer, liquidate the assurances deposited to the extent necessary to satisfy any delinquent reimbursements or assessments due under this section together with any interest and any tardy filing fees due. The treasurer shall hold in escrow any cash remaining from the sale of the assurances, without interest. The fund's treasurer shall require the employer within 30 days following any liquidation of deposited assurances to deposit sufficient additional assurances to make whole the employer's deposit at the prior level. Any income from assurances held in escrow shall inure to and be the property of the employer.
108.151(5)(a)(a) For each nonprofit organization which has elected reimbursement financing, pursuant to
sub. (2), the fund's treasurer shall maintain a reimbursement account, as a subaccount of the fund's balancing account.
108.151(5)(b)
(b) The department shall charge the employer's reimbursement account with all regular benefits, and with its share of any extended benefits under
s. 108.141, based on wages paid within each quarter ended while its election is in effect.
108.151(5)(c)
(c) The employer's reimbursement account shall be credited with any reimbursement paid by or for it to the fund, and with any benefit overpayment from the account recovered by the department.
108.151(5)(d)
(d) The employer may at any time make other payments to be credited into its reimbursement account, in anticipation of future benefit charges.
108.151(5)(e)
(e) Whenever the employer's reimbursement account has a positive net balance no reimbursement of the benefits charged thereto shall be required.
108.151(5)(f)
(f) Whenever an employer's reimbursement account has a negative balance as of the close of any calendar month, the fund's treasurer shall promptly bill such employer, at its last-known address, for that portion of its negative balance which has resulted from the net benefits charged to such account within such month. Reimbursement payment shall be due within 20 days thereafter. Any required payment which remains unpaid after its applicable due date is a delinquent payment.
Section 108.22 shall apply for collecting delinquent payments.
108.151(6)
(6) Group reimbursement accounts. If any group of nonprofit organizations who have elected reimbursement financing file a joint request, they shall be treated as if they were one employer for the purposes of this chapter, provided that:
108.151(6)(a)
(a) They shall be so treated for at least the 3 calendar years following their request, unless their election of reimbursement financing is terminated under
sub. (3), but they may discontinue their group arrangement as of the beginning of any subsequent calendar year by filing advance notice with the department. A member of such a group may discontinue its participation in the group and the group shall be dissolved at the beginning of any calendar year after the 3rd year.
108.151(6)(b)
(b) They shall be jointly and severally liable for any required reimbursements together with any interest thereon and any tardy filing fees.
108.151(6)(c)
(c) They shall designate one or more individuals as agent for all members of the group for all fiscal and reporting purposes under this chapter.
108.151(6)(d)
(d) If such a group is discontinued,
par. (a) shall apply to each of its members.
108.151(7)(b)
(b) Except as provided in
par. (f), each employer that has elected reimbursement financing under this section and that is subject to this chapter as of the date that a rate of assessment is established under this subsection shall pay an assessment to the fund at a rate determined by the fund's treasurer under
par. (c).
108.151(7)(c)
(c) The fund's treasurer shall determine the total amount due from employers electing reimbursement financing under this section that is uncollectible as of June 30 of each year, but not including any amount that the department determined to be uncollectible prior to January 1, 2004. No amount may be treated as uncollectible under this paragraph unless the department has exhausted all reasonable remedies for collection of the amount, including liquidation of the assurance required under
sub. (4). The department shall charge the total amounts so determined to the uncollectible reimbursable benefits account under
s. 108.16 (6w). Whenever, as of June 30 of any year, this account has a negative balance of $5,000 or more, the treasurer shall determine the rate of an assessment to be levied under
par. (b) for that year, which shall then become payable by all employers that have elected reimbursement financing under this section as of that date.
108.151(7)(d)
(d) The rate of assessment under this subsection for each calendar year shall be a rate, when applied to the payrolls of all employers electing reimbursement financing under this section for the preceding calendar year, that will generate an amount that equals the total amount determined to be uncollectible under
par. (c), but not more than $200,000 for any year.
108.151(7)(e)
(e) Except as provided in
par. (f), the rate of each employer's assessment under this subsection for any calendar year is the product of the rate determined under
par. (d) multiplied by the employer's payroll for the preceding calendar year, as reported by the employer under
sub. (8) or
s. 108.15 (8),
108.152 (7),
108.17 (2) or
108.205 (1) or, in the absence of reports, as estimated by the department.
108.151(7)(f)
(f) If any employer would otherwise be assessed an amount less than $10 for a calendar year, the department shall, in lieu of requiring that employer to pay an assessment for that calendar year, apply the amount that the employer would have been required to pay to the other employers on a pro rata basis.
108.151(7)(g)
(g) The department shall bill assessments to employers under this subsection in the same manner as provided in
sub. (5) (f) for the month of September in each year, and the assessment is due for payment in the same manner as other payments under
sub. (5) (f). If any assessment is past due, the department shall assess interest on the balance due under
s. 108.22. If any employer is delinquent in paying an assessment under this subsection, the department may terminate the employer's election of reimbursement financing under this section as of the close of any calendar year in which the employer remains delinquent.
108.151(7)(h)
(h) If the payroll of an employer for any quarter is adjusted to decrease the amount of the payroll after an employment and wage report for the employer is filed under
s. 108.205 (1), the department shall refund any assessment that is overpaid by the employer under this subsection as a result of the adjustment.
108.151(8)
(8) Reports. Each nonprofit organization that is an employer shall make employment and wage reports to the department under the same conditions that apply to other employers.
108.152
108.152
Financing benefits for employees of Indian tribes. 108.152(1)(1)
Election of reimbursement financing. Each Indian tribe that is an employer may, in lieu of paying contributions under
ss. 108.17 and
108.18, elect reimbursement financing for itself as a whole or for any tribal units or combinations of tribal units that are wholly owned subdivisions, subsidiaries, or business enterprises, as of the beginning of any calendar year, subject to the following conditions:
108.152(1)(a)
(a) The Indian tribe or tribal unit shall file a written notice of the election with the department before the beginning of that year except that, if the Indian tribe or tribal unit became an employer as of the beginning of that year, it shall file the notice within 30 days after the date of the determination that it is an employer.
108.152(1)(b)
(b) An Indian tribe or tribal unit whose election of reimbursement financing is terminated under
sub. (2) (a) may not thereafter reelect reimbursement financing unless it has been subject to the contribution requirements of
ss. 108.17 and
108.18 for at least 3 calendar years thereafter and is not, at the time of filing such reelection, delinquent under
s. 108.22.
108.152(1)(d)
(d) If the Indian tribe or tribal unit is an employer prior to the effective date of an election,
ss. 108.17 and
108.18 shall apply to all employment prior to the effective date of the election, but after all benefits based on prior employment have been charged to any account that it has had under
s. 108.16 (2), the department shall transfer any positive balance or charge any negative balance remaining therein to the balancing account as if
s. 108.16 (6) (c) and
(6m) (d) applied.
108.152(2)(a)(a) An Indian tribe or tribal unit that elected reimbursement financing may terminate its election as of the close of the 2nd calendar year to which the election applies, or at the close of any subsequent calendar year, by filing a written notice of termination with the department before the close of that year.
108.152(2)(b)
(b) If an Indian tribe or tribal unit terminates an election under this subsection, the employer's contribution rate is 2.5% on its payroll for each of the next 3 calendar years.
108.152(4)
(4) Reimbursement account. The department shall maintain a reimbursement account, as a subaccount of the fund's balancing account, for each Indian tribe, tribal unit, or combination of tribal units in accordance with any valid election made under
subs. (1) and
(5) and subject to the procedures and conditions provided for other employers under
s. 108.151 (5).
108.152(5)
(5) Group reimbursement account. An Indian tribe that has elected reimbursement financing for tribal units or one or more combinations of tribal units may request to have specified tribal units treated as one employer for purposes of this chapter. The department shall approve any such request subject to the following conditions:
108.152(5)(a)
(a) The tribal units shall be so treated for a period of at least the 3 calendar years following their request, unless their election of reimbursement financing is terminated under
sub. (2) or
(6), but the Indian tribe may discontinue the treatment as of the beginning of any calendar year following that period by filing notice with the department prior to the beginning of that calendar year.
108.152(5)(b)
(b) The tribal units shall be jointly and severally liable for any required reimbursements, together with any interest thereon and any penalties or tardy filing fees.
108.152(5)(c)
(c) The Indian tribe shall designate one or more individuals to act as an agent for all members of the group for all fiscal and reporting purposes under this chapter.
108.152(6)(a)(a) If an Indian tribe or tribal unit fails to pay required contributions, reimbursements in lieu of contributions, penalties, interest, or fees within 90 days of the time that the department transmits to the tribe a final notice of delinquency:
108.152(6)(a)1.
1. The department shall immediately notify the federal internal revenue service and the federal department of labor of that failure.
108.152(6)(a)2.
2. Any valid election of reimbursement financing is terminated as of the end of the current calendar year.
108.152(6)(a)3.
3. The department may consider the Indian tribe not to be an employer and may consider services performed for the tribe not to be employment for purposes of this chapter.
108.152(6)(b)
(b) An Indian tribe whose prior election of reimbursement financing has been terminated under
par. (a) may not thereafter reelect reimbursement financing unless it has been subject to the contribution requirements of
ss. 108.17 and
108.18 for at least one calendar year thereafter and is not delinquent under
s. 108.22 at the time that it files a request for reelection.
108.152(6)(c)
(c) The final notice of delinquency specified in
par. (a) shall include information that failure to make full payment within the prescribed time will cause the Indian tribe to be liable for taxes under the federal Unemployment Tax Act (
26 USC 3301, et seq.), will cause the tribe to be precluded from electing reimbursement financing, and may cause the department to determine that the tribe is not an employer and that services performed for the tribe are not employment for purposes of this chapter.
108.152(7)
(7) Reports. Each Indian tribe that is an employer shall make employment and wage reports to the department under the same conditions that apply to other employers.
108.16
108.16
Unemployment reserve fund. 108.16(1)
(1) For the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this chapter there is established a fund to be known as the "Unemployment Reserve Fund," to be administered by the department without liability on the part of the state beyond the amount of the fund. This fund shall consist of all contributions and moneys paid into and received by the fund pursuant to this chapter and of properties and securities acquired by and through the use of moneys belonging to the fund.
108.16(2)(a)(a) A separate employer's account shall be maintained by the department as to each employer contributing to said fund.
108.16(2)(b)
(b) Each employer's account shall be credited with all its contributions paid into the fund, and shall be charged with all benefits duly paid from the fund to its employees based on their past employment by it, except as otherwise specified in this chapter.
108.16(2)(c)
(c) Any reference in this chapter to eligibility for, or to payment of, benefits "from an employer's account", or any similar reference, shall mean benefits payable or paid from the fund based on past employment by the employer in question.
108.16(2)(d)
(d) The fund shall be mingled and undivided, and nothing in this chapter shall be construed to grant to any employer or employee any prior claim or right to any part of the fund.
108.16(2)(e)
(e) Except as provided in
par. (em), benefits to be charged against a given employer's account shall be so charged as of the date shown by the check covering such benefits. Each such check shall be promptly mailed and shall, in determining the experience or status of such account for contribution purposes, be deemed paid on the date shown on the check.
108.16(2)(em)
(em) Benefits improperly charged or credited to an employer's account for any reason other than adjustment of payroll amounts between 2 or more employers' accounts shall, when so identified, be credited to or debited from that employer's account and, where appropriate, recharged to the correct employer's account as of the date of correction. Benefits improperly charged or credited to an employer's account as a result of adjustment of payroll amounts between 2 or more employers' accounts shall be so charged or credited and, where appropriate, recharged as of the date shown by the check covering such benefits. This paragraph shall be used solely in determining the experience or status of accounts for contribution purposes.
108.16(2)(f)
(f) The department shall promptly advise the employer as to benefits charged to its account.
108.16(2)(g)
(g) Whenever the department receives a request of 2 or more partnerships or limited liability companies consisting of the same partners or members to be treated as separate employers prior to October 1 of any year, the department shall apportion the balance in any existing account of the partnerships or limited liability companies among the separate employers on January 1 following the date of receipt of the request in proportion to the payrolls incurred in the businesses operated by each of the employers in the 4 completed calendar quarters ending on the computation date preceding the date of receipt of the request and shall calculate the reserve percentage of each separate employer in accordance with the proportion of the payroll attributable to that employer.
Section 108.18 (2) is not made applicable to the separate employers by reason of such treatment. For purposes of
s. 108.18 (7), the department shall treat the partnerships or limited liability companies as separate employers on November 1 preceding that January 1. For purposes of
s. 108.18 (7) (b) and
(c), the department shall treat the separate employers as existing employers on that January 1.
108.16(2)(h)
(h) Whenever, prior to October 1 of any year, the department receives a written request by all partnerships or limited liability companies consisting of the same partners or members which have elected to be treated as separate employers for the partnerships or limited liability companies to be treated as a single employer, the department shall combine the balances in the existing accounts of the separate employers into a new account on January 1 following the date of receipt of the request and shall calculate the reserve percentage of the single employer in accordance with the combined payroll attributable to each of the separate employers in the 4 completed calendar quarters ending on the computation date preceding that January 1.
Section 108.18 (2) is not made applicable to the single employer by reason of such treatment. For purposes of
s. 108.18 (7), the department shall treat the partnerships or limited liability companies as a single employer on November 1 preceding that January 1. For purposes of
s. 108.18 (7) (b) and
(c), the department shall treat the single employer as an existing employer on that January 1.
108.16(3)
(3) The fund's treasurer shall write off:
108.16(3)(a)
(a) Any overpayment for which the claimant's liability to reimburse the fund is established under
s. 108.22 (8) or any assessment under
s. 108.04 (11) (cm) for which a final determination has been issued under
s. 108.09 upon receipt of certification by the department that reasonable efforts have been made to recover the overpayment or the amount of the assessment and that the amount due is uncollectible.
108.16(3)(b)
(b) Any overpayment of benefits that was made under the circumstances described in
s. 108.22 (8) (c), upon certification by the department to that effect.
108.16(4)(a)(a) Consistently with
sub. (5), all contributions payable to the fund shall be paid to the department, and shall promptly be deposited by the department to the credit of the fund, with custodians that the department may from time to time select, who shall hold, release and transfer the fund's cash in a manner approved by the department. Payments from the fund shall be made upon vouchers or drafts authorized by the department, in the manner that the department may from time to time approve or prescribe. Any procedure thus approved or prescribed shall be considered to satisfy, and shall be in lieu of, any and all statutory requirements, for specific appropriation or other formal release by state officers of state moneys prior to their expenditure, which might otherwise be applicable to withdrawals from the fund.
108.16(4)(b)
(b) The department shall designate a treasurer of the unemployment reserve fund, who shall be either a regular salaried employee of the department or the state treasurer and shall serve as treasurer of the fund until a successor designated by the department has assumed the duties of this office.
108.16(4)(c)
(c) The treasurer of the fund shall give a separate bond conditioned upon the faithful performance of these duties pursuant to
s. 19.01 (2), which bond shall be considered likewise conditioned upon the faithful performance by his or her subordinates of their duties, in such amount as may be fixed by the department. All premiums upon the bond required pursuant to this section when furnished by an authorized surety company or by a duly constituted governmental bonding fund shall, except as otherwise provided in this section, be paid from the interest earnings of the fund, but shall not exceed one-fourth of one percent, per year, of the amount of the bond.
108.16(5)(a)(a) All money received for the fund shall promptly upon receipt be deposited to the fund's credit in the "Unemployment Trust Fund" of the United States, in the manner that the secretary of the treasury of the United States, or other authorized custodian of the U.S. unemployment trust fund, may approve, so long as the U.S. unemployment trust fund exists and maintains for this state a separate book account, for the purposes of this chapter, from which no other state or agency can make withdrawals, any other statutory provision to the contrary notwithstanding.
108.16(5)(b)
(b) The department shall requisition from this state's account in the "Unemployment Trust Fund" necessary amounts from time to time, shall hold such amounts consistently with any applicable federal regulations, and shall make withdrawals therefrom solely for benefits and for such other unemployment insurance payments or employment security expenditures as are expressly authorized by this chapter and consistent with any relevant federal requirements.
108.16(5)(c)
(c) While the state has an account in the "Unemployment Trust Fund", public deposit insurance charges on the fund's balances held in banks, savings banks, savings and loan associations and credit unions in this state, the premiums on surety bonds required of the fund's treasurer under this section, and any other expense of administration otherwise payable from the fund's interest earnings, shall be paid from the administrative account.
108.16(6)
(6) The department shall maintain within the fund a "balancing account," to which shall be credited:
108.16(6)(a)
(a) All interest earnings, on moneys belonging to the fund, received by, or duly apportioned to, the fund, as of the close of the quarter in which the interest accrued.
