Dialogue on Unemployment Insurance Reform; Notice of Public Meetings

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration

Dialogue on Unemployment Insurance Reform; Notice of Public

Meetings

When President Clinton signed his 1999 budget proposals, he set in

motion a reform of the Unemployment Insurance (UI) program. On March

13, 1998, Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman announced a ``Dialogue'' to

examine the UI program and the related Employment Service IES) program

in light of a changing economy. The framework for the ``Dialogue'' was

set forth in the Dialogue Paper which as been mailed to stakeholders

and other interested parties. This paper can also be found on the

Internet at www.dol.gov. The ``Dialogue'' will allow interested parties

to comment on a broad array of questions about the programs'

effectiveness and will take place over the next year through several

venues and forums, i.e., stakeholders meetings, public meetings. Major

``Dialogue'' issues for discussion include:

Individual Economic Adjustment: How well does the UI program help

individuals unemployment workers by providing adequate financial

resources and promoting transition to employment? Who should receive

benefits; what kinds of reemployment services should he provided and

how could these reemployment services be made more effective?

Macroeconomic Stabilizer: How well does the UI program serve as a

counter-cyclical macroeconomic stabilizer--does it serve to stabilize

the economy locally, regionally, nationally? How could the program's

performance be improved?

Insurance Concepts: How well does the UI program operate in terms

of core insurance principles of forward funding, risk pooling, and

solvency? How well does the program accumulate resources for payment

during periods of economic downturn? How well does the program operate

in terms of pooling risks for employers and States? What are the

consequences of diverging from these insurance principles?

Financing Benefits: How should the UI benefit financing structure

work to assure efficiency, equity and incentives? To what extent should

employer tax rates be based on experience with unemployment? How could

employer reporting and record keeping be streamlined?

Financing Administration: How should the administration of the UI

and ES programs be financed? How well does the administrative financing

system respond to workload changes over the business cycle? How should

the administrative financing system encourage efficient and cost-

effective operations?

Federal-State System: How should the Federal-State partnership work

to assure a basic national UI program that reflects differences among

the States? How can the partnership be improved? Are any changes needed

in the division of responsibilities, such as financing, benefit

structures, or oversight? What should be the relationship between UI

and ES? What form should ES take in the future?

Time and Place: Two meetings will be held, the first on August 4,

1998 in Seattle, Washington and the second on August 11, 1998 in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Seattle meeting will be held at the

Seattle Airport Doubletree Hotel, 18740 Pacific Highway South, from 10

a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The Philadelphia meeting will be held at the

Philadelphia Airport Marriott Hotel, Arrivals Road, from 11:30 a.m. to

5:00 p.m. More meetings will be held.

Agenda: Agenda topics include the following:

(a) Opening remarks--purpose/overview of meeting, introduction of

discussion leaders

(b) Description of Dialogue Issues

(c) Oral Testimony

(d) Open discussion of Dialogue Issues

(e) Closing remarks

Public Participation: The meeting will be open to the public.

Seating will be available to the public on a first-come, first-served

basis. Seats will be reserved for the media. Individuals with

disabilities should contact the Regional Coordinators, listed below, if

special accommodations are needed. Individuals or organizations wishing

to present oral testimony should contact the Regional Coordinator, and

those wishing to submit written statements should send five (5) copies

to the Regional Coordinator.

For Additional Information Contact: Seattle Coordinators--Larry

Heasty and Bill James (206 553-7700), U.S. Department of Labor/ETA,

1111 Third Ave., Suite 900, Seattle WA 98101-3213. Philadelphia

Coordinators--Leo Bull (215 596--0778), Rosemary Williams--Raysor (215

596-1411), and April Hunt (215 596-0789), U.S. Department of Labor/ETA,

P.O. Box 8796, Philadelphia, PA 19101

Signed at Washington, D.C. this 30th day of June 1998.

Raymond J. Uhalde,

Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor.

[FR Doc. 98-18225 Filed 7-8-98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4510-30-M