AN ACT authorizing activation of an increased unemployment insurance weekly benefit amount when a disaster is declared under the emergency management act.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.(a)  G.S. 96‑14.2 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:

(f)       Temporary Enhancement During Declared Disasters. – Subject to the certification requirements of G.S. 96‑9.3(f), for claims filed during any period in which a disaster declaration has been declared pursuant to G.S. 166A‑19.21, and for the duration of the declaration, the maximum weekly benefit amount shall be temporarily increased to six hundred dollars ($600.00), notwithstanding the maximum weekly benefit amount established under subsection (a) of this section.

SECTION 1.(b)  G.S. 96‑9.2 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:

(f)       Enhanced Benefit Earmarking. – Funds within the Unemployment Insurance Fund shall be earmarked as a reserve dedicated to funding the enhanced benefits authorized by G.S. 96‑14.2(f). The Division shall project annually the amount of funds reasonably necessary to maintain the sufficiency for providing the enhanced benefits. Beginning January 1, 2027, then annually thereafter, the Division shall report to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Unemployment Insurance regarding the projections and earmarks for the preceding year.

SECTION 1.(c)  G.S. 96‑9.3 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:

(f)       Certification of Sufficient Funding. – The Division shall certify that sufficient funds have been earmarked under G.S. 96‑9.2(f) to pay enhanced benefits under G.S. 166A‑19.20, prior to the implementation of enhanced benefits under G.S. 96‑14.2(f). If the Division determines that funds in the Account are insufficient to provide enhanced benefits for the anticipated duration of the disaster declaration, temporary enhancement under G.S. 96‑14.2(f) shall not take effect for that disaster declaration unless the General Assembly enacts the temporary enhancement in accordance with Article II, Section 23 of the North Carolina Constitution.

SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2025.