132nd MAINE LEGISLATURE
		LD 2101		LR 2689(01)
	An Act to Establish a Monetary Penalty for Employers Whose Unemployment Payment Is Returned Unpaid
	Preliminary Fiscal Impact Statement for Original Bill
	Sponsor: Rep. Roeder of Bangor
	Committee: Labor
	Fiscal Note Required: Yes
Preliminary Fiscal Impact Statement
			FY 2025-26	FY 2026-27	Projections  FY 2027-28	Projections  FY 2028-29
Appropriations/Allocations
	Other Special Revenue Funds		$0	$7,000	$7,000	$7,000
Revenue
	Other Special Revenue Funds		$0	$8,750	$8,750	$8,570
Fiscal Detail and Notes
	This bill provides that if a payment made under the Employment Security Law is returned for any reason (such as for insufficient funds), the Commissioner of Labor must assess a penalty equal to $25 or 1% of the payment amount, whichever is greater. The Department of Labor (department) would require an allocation of $7,000 for the payment of bank fees charged for returned payments. The department processes approximately 350 returned payments per year, averaging about $360 per payment. This fiscal note assumes that a $25 penalty will be greater than 1% of each returned payment, given that 1% of the average returned payment is about $3.60. The department is expected to collect approximately $8,750 in returned payment penalties each year, of which $20 per payment, or approximately $7,000 each year, will be paid directly to the bank used by the department for collecting payments made under the Employment Security Law.