1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to unemployment insurance; providing extra unemployment benefits for 
1.3 	certain workers laid off from the Ainsworth Lumber Company.
1.4 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.5 	Section 1. LUMBER COMPANY EXTRA BENEFITS.
 1.6 		Subdivision 1.Extra benefits; availability. Extra unemployment benefits are 
1.7 	available to an applicant if the applicant was permanently laid off due to lack of work 
1.8 	after August 1, 2006, from the Ainsworth Lumber Company plants in Bemidji, Cook, 
1.9 	and Grand Rapids.
1.10 		Subd. 2.Payment from fund; effect on employer. Extra unemployment benefits 
1.11 	are payable from the unemployment insurance trust fund. Extra unemployment benefits 
1.12 	paid under this section will be used in computing the experience rating of Ainsworth 
1.13 	Lumber Company under Minnesota Statutes, section 268.047.
1.14 		Subd. 3.Eligibility conditions. An applicant is eligible to receive extra 
1.15 	unemployment benefits under this section for any week through December 31, 2008, 
1.16 	following the effective date of the applicant's benefit account of regular unemployment 
1.17 	benefits, as a result of a layoff described under subdivision 1, if:
1.18 	(1) a majority of the applicant's wage credits were with Ainsworth Lumber Company;
1.19 	(2) the applicant meets the eligibility requirements of Minnesota Statutes, section 
1.20 	268.085;
1.21 	(3) the applicant is not subject to a disqualification under Minnesota Statutes, section 
1.22 	268.095;
2.1 	(4) the applicant is not entitled to regular unemployment benefits and the applicant 
2.2 	is not entitled to receive unemployment benefits under any other state or federal law 
2.3 	for that week; and
2.4 	(5) the applicant is enrolled in, or has within the last two weeks successfully 
2.5 	completed, a program that qualifies as reemployment assistance training under Minnesota 
2.6 	Statutes, section 268.035, subdivision 21a, except that an applicant whose training is 
2.7 	scheduled to begin in more than 30 days may be considered to be in training if:  (i) the 
2.8 	applicant's chosen training program does not offer an available start date within 30 days; 
2.9 	(ii) the applicant is scheduled to begin training on the earliest available start date for 
2.10 	the chosen training program; and (iii) the applicant is scheduled to begin training in no 
2.11 	more than 60 days.
2.12 	If an applicant qualifies for a new regular benefit account at any time after exhausting 
2.13 	regular unemployment benefits as a result of the layoff under subdivision 1, the applicant 
2.14 	must apply for and exhaust entitlement to those new regular unemployment benefits.
2.15 		Subd. 4.Weekly amount of extra benefits. The weekly extra unemployment 
2.16 	benefits amount available to an applicant is the same as the applicant's weekly regular 
2.17 	unemployment benefit amount on the benefit account established as a result of a layoff 
2.18 	under subdivision 1.
2.19 		Subd. 5.Maximum amount of extra unemployment benefits. The maximum 
2.20 	amount of extra unemployment benefits available is equal to the maximum amount of 
2.21 	regular unemployment benefits available to the applicant up to 26 times the applicant's 
2.22 	weekly extra unemployment benefits amount.
2.23 		Subd. 6.Program expiration. This extra unemployment benefit program expires 
2.24 	on December 31, 2008. No extra unemployment benefits shall be paid for any week after 
2.25 	the expiration of this program.

2.26 	Sec. 2. EFFECTIVE DATE.
 2.27 	Section 1 is effective the day following final enactment and is retroactive from 
2.28 	August 1, 2006.