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Indiana Gov. Mike Braun signed a pair of executive orders Thursday that he hopes will curb the amount of time Hoosiers spend receiving unemployment insurance benefits and root out misuse of the system.
“Unemployment insurance is an important temporary safety net,” he said. “So it should be exactly that: temporary assistance while searching for a new job.”
Braun said he wants the state’s unemployment program to provide more job assistance support and become a “springboard” for opportunity.
Currently, the state’s unemployment rate is 4.5%, which is higher than the national average of 4.1%. At the close of last year, the Department of Workforce Development reported that 24,631 continued unemployment insurance claims were filed.
One of the executive orders prompts DWD to review how it interacts with unemployed Hoosiers in its system. Braun orders the agency to make its first job search contact with recipients within the first week of enrollment, install additional work-search requirements and increase agency oversight of a person’s job search activities.
Braun did not provide how many Hoosiers may be impacted by requiring more work-search activities but said “it’s not going to be a huge number.”
DWD will move away from one-size-fits-all solutions too, Braun said. That will look like individualized job search plans and goals, he said, and a renewed pressure to hold people to those plans.
A bill currently awaiting introduction in the House could provide additional support for this goal, he said. Senate Bill 488, authored by Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne, would establish a pilot training program for people on unemployment to skill up into a higher-paying, in-demand job.
Those steps, Braun said, would motivate those in the program to find a job faster. He mentioned how additional notifications alone could reduce time needed on unemployment.
As for fraud, Braun directs DWD to audit its system to verify and cross-check applicants’ eligibility, investigate claims stemming from one IP address or bank account and any other measures needed to limit overpayment.
Indiana’s rate of improper unemployment payments is 8.05%, which is one of the lowest in the country, according to U.S. Department of Labor data. Many states have rates well over that percentage, including neighboring Kentucky, with 22.03%.
Situations where a state incorrectly paid out unemployment benefits include claiming stipends after returning to work, not being eligible, not actively seeking a job or failing to report accurate information.
Unemployment benefits are not paid out using state dollars. Instead, the state collects taxes from employers in a fund to pay out stipends to laid off workers. Generally, people who quit their jobs or are fired are not eligible.
Braun said he expects a “decent number” of fraud cases to be identified. He estimated $55 million in overpayments or fraudulent payments were made in the last three years.
“That still puts us in a pretty good shape versus other states,” Braun said. “If we’re doing everything right, using the latest in technology especially, we should hopefully get that down.”
Several states have codified harsher penalties for abusing the unemployment system spurred by a wave of scams enabled by the pandemic-era expansions. When asked if these orders could be a stepping stone for additional penalties in the future, Braun said this would instead prevent the state from having more issues.
“There are a lot of states that this is a much larger problem,” he said, “and this is to make sure that we don’t go that direction.”
A bill filed this session would limit the time laid-off workers could spend on unemployment benefits from 26 weeks to 14. The bill was heard for committee testimony but died after it failed to be called back up for a vote.
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