The Nome Nugget

Senate Beats Back
Two Revisions of
Employment Aid

JUNEAU (P) - The Senate beat back two attempts at major revision of the State's Employment Security Act yesterday and then defeated a bill to boost the basic weekly benefit amount by $5, to $50.

The benefit amount boost had been requested by Gov. Egan. It was thumbed down on a 10-10 tie vote.

While no notices of reconsideration were given before the Senate adjourned for the day, it appeared certain that the upper chamber would probably receive a request that it rescind its action.

The proposed major revisions came in the form of amendments offered by Sens. John Coghill and George McNabb to the Egan bill.

McNabb's amendment, actually offered Monday and held over for consideration yesterday, would have removed the $7,200 ceiling on wages subject to employment security taxes.

It would also have relaxed the eligibility requirements for receiving employment security benefits and would have tightened up the benefits paid for dependents.

Coghill's amendment amounted to a complete revision of the variable rates of contribution structure of the employment security statute.

Basically, it would have boosted the average contribution rate, for both employers and employees, to an average of 3.9 per cent from .7 to 7.1 per cent, compared to the present 1.8 to 4.9 per cent.

The average employers contribution rate would have gone up from 2.9 to 3.0 per cent and the variable rate would have climbed from 1.5-4.0 per cent to .5-5.7 per cent.

The average employees contribution rate would have been boosted from .6 to .9 per cent and the variable rate would have climbed from .3-.9 per cent to .2-1.4 per cent.

Coghill told the Senate that his amendment had what he called a built-in safety factor. Noting that it was tied very closely to McNabb's amendment and the lifting of the ceiling on taxable wages, Coghill said:

"Through my amendment the contribution rate for stable industries would be cut, and even though the limit on taxable wages would be lifted, industries which cause little drain on the employment security fund would be paying approximately what they pay now.

"The amendment would take more from the seasonal industries. While I don't think we should raid the construction industry, it is the industry which is causing a large share of the drain and it is the industry which should pay a large share of the bill."

The Senate tossed Coghill's amendment aside, 13-7, defeated the McNabb amendment, 10-10, and then proceeded almost immediately to the 10-10 vote on the bill itself.