7100 Employment Development Department
Major Program Changes
  • Unemployment Insurance Interest Payment - The Governor's Budget includes $417 million General Fund to make an interest payment on funds borrowed from the federal government to pay California's unemployment insurance benefits without interruption. The Budget also authorizes a loan from the Unemployment Compensation Disability Fund to pay for this interest expense.

  • Employer Surcharge to Fund Unemployment Insurance Interest Payments - The Governor's Budget includes increased revenue of $472.5 million, Employment Training Fund, generated by implementing a surcharge on employers effective January 1, 2013. The surcharge revenue will fund interest payments on funds borrowed from the federal government to pay California's unemployment insurance benefits and repayment of funds borrowed from the Unemployment Compensation Disability Fund, relieving the General Fund of these obligations. In conjunction with the employer surcharge, the minimum monetary eligibility requirements to qualify for benefits will be increased to account for changes in employee wages that have occurred since the requirements were last adjusted.

  • California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board (Board) Elimination and Consolidation of Administrative Functions - The Governor's Budget includes a decrease of $2.6 million ($12,000 General Fund). This reduction is partially achieved by converting the Board into a bureau and eliminating the seven full-time board members that review second level appeal decisions, resulting in savings of $600,000 ($3,000 General Fund) in 2012-13. The remaining reduction is achieved by consolidating the administrative functions currently performed by the Board with the Employment Development Department's Administrative Services Branch and the elimination of seven vacant positions, resulting in savings of $2 million ($9,000 General Fund).

  • Financial Institutions Data Match (FIRM) - The Governor's Budget includes $427,000 to expand the use of the FIRM program to the Employment Development Department (EDD). In collaboration with the Franchise Tax Board, the FIRM collection tool will allow the EDD to collect additional taxes owed by requiring financial institutions to participate in a records match process between financial institution customer records and EDD debtor records.

  • Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Funding - The Governor's Budget includes a decrease of $39.5 million Federal Funds for the Governor's discretionary WIA funding. This decrease reflects a reduction in the discretionary funds, from 15 percent to 5 percent, provided by the federal government.

  • October Revise - The Governor's Budget includes a decrease of $5.4 billion in 2011-12 and $11.7 billion in 2012-13 for Unemployment Insurance benefit payments and an increase of $11.5 million in Disability Insurance benefit payments. The October Revise also includes a state operations increase of $11.6 million and 142.5 positions for administrative support for the Disability Insurance program.