Idaho employers now have seven days to respond to initial claims

Idaho employers now have seven days to respond to filings by former employees for unemployment insurance benefits, reports the Idaho Department of Labor. If an employer contests an initial claim but fails to lodge those objections within seven calendar days after being notified of the claim, the employer's account could be charged for any benefits issued.

The U.S. Department of Labor required imposition of the seven-day response deadline as part of its initiative to reduce unemployment benefit overpayments.

The response deadline took effect in Idaho July 31 and will be enforced beginning Sept. 15. Benefit charges against an employer's account are used in determining the employer's future unemployment insurance tax rate.

When an initial claim for jobless benefits is filed, the employer is notified and asked for a response by email, through the department's employer Internet site or by fax. When a department adjudicator allows benefits despite the employer's objections within the seven-day period and the employer successfully appeals to have the benefits stopped, the employer's account will not be charged with those benefits.

But if the employer fails to supply a response within the seven-day period and still has the benefit payments stopped on appeal, the employer's account will be charged for the benefits paid up until the appellate decision.

When benefits are eventually denied on appeal, the Idaho Department of Labor takes steps to recover the money that was paid prior to the appellate decision. But even if the money is recovered, the employer's account will be charged for the paid benefits if the claim was not contested within the initial seven-day period.

In cases where the employer fails to respond in seven days, the imposition of charges against an employer's account for benefits paid but later stopped on appeal will occur after the second time an employer has failed to respond to a claim that the employer ultimately contests.

The Idaho Legislature overwhelmingly approved compliance with the federal mandate during the 2013 session.