N.M. Admin. Code § 11.3.300.311

Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 21, November 5, 2024

Section 11.3.300.311 - COMBINED-WAGE CLAIMS

All combined-wage claims shall be subject to the provisions of the interstate arrangement for combining employment and wages, the interstate benefit payment plan, the regulations and guidelines prescribed by the United States secretary of labor, and the applicable provisions of the Unemployment Compensation Law and department regulations which apply to claims for and payment of regular unemployment compensation.

A. FILING OF CLAIMS:

(1) An unemployed claimant who has covered employment and wages in more than one state has the right to combine such wages and employment in the base period of one state if the combination will provide benefits for which the claimant could not otherwise qualify or will increase the benefits for which the claimant qualifies in a single state. The claimant must file a combined-wage claim if the claimant is eligible to do so rather than claim extended benefits. If the claimant wishes, the claimant has the right to reject a combined-wage and file against a state in which the claimant is separately eligible or to cancel the combined-wage claim and file no claim.

(2) Restrictions on combined-wage claims:

(a) any unemployed claimant who has covered employment in New Mexico and in another state may file a combined-wage claim unless:

(i) the claimant has established a valid claim under any other state;

(ii) the benefit year has not ended; and

(iii) there are still unused benefit rights; a claimant will not be considered to have unused benefit rights on a prior claim if all benefits have been exhausted or benefits have been denied by a seasonal restriction or benefits have been postponed for an indefinite period or for the remainder of the benefit year;

(b) if a claimant files a combined-wage claim, all wages and employment in all states in which the claimant worked during the base period of the paying state must be included except employment and wages which are not transferable under the provisions of Subsection C of 11.3.300.311 NMAC.

B. RESPONSIBILITIES OF NEW MEXICO WHEN TRANSFERRING WAGES:

(1) Wages earned in New Mexico in covered employment during the base period of the combined wage claim filed by a claimant will be promptly transferred to the paying state.

(2) Wages earned in New Mexico will not be transferred if the employment and wages have been:

(a) transferred to another paying state and have not been returned unused, or which have been previously used by New Mexico as the basis for a monetary determination which establishes a benefit year, or

(b) cancelled or are otherwise unavailable to the claimant as a result of a monetary determination by New Mexico prior to its receipt of the request for transfer, if such determination has become final or is the subject of a pending appeal; if the appeal is finally decided in favor of the combined-wage claimant, any employment and wages deemed eligible for use as wages in establishing monetary eligibility will be transferred to the paying state.

C. NON-MONETARY ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION: When a combined-wage claim is filed, the law and eligibility requirements of the paying state apply even if an issue has been previously adjudicated by a transferring state.

D. CONDITIONS FOR WITHDRAWAL OF A COMBINED WAGE CLAIM: A combined-wage claimant may withdraw the combined-wage claim any time before the monetary determination of the paying state becomes final, provided that the combined-wage claimant:

(1) repays in full any benefits paid to the claimant; or

(2) authorizes the state against which the claimant will claim benefits to withhold and forward to the former paying state a full repayment of benefits.

E. RECOVERY OF PRIOR OVERPAYMENTS: If there is an overpayment outstanding in the transferring state, including New Mexico, and such transferring state so requests, the overpayment shall be deducted from any benefits the paying state would otherwise pay to the combined-wage claimant on the combined-wage claim except to the extent prohibited by the law of the paying state. The paying state shall transmit the amount deducted to the transferring state or credit the transferring state's required reimbursement under the arrangement. This paragraph shall apply to overpayments only if the transferring state certifies to the paying state that the determination of overpayment was made within three years before the combined-wage claim was filed and that repayment is legally required and enforceable against the combined-wage claimant under the law of the transferring state.

F. NOTIFICATION AND APPEALS:

(1) A combined-wage claimant will receive a monetary determination notice from the paying state once the wage information from all states is received. The claimant has the right to appeal any aspect of the monetary determination. The appeal may be against either the paying state or the transferring state depending upon which agency issued the determination which the combined-wage claimant considers adverse to the claimant's interest. If the transferring state refused to transfer wages because the wage credits were cancelled under a disqualification or because the work was not covered, the combined-wage claimant will be sent an appealable determination by the transferring state.

(2) Except as provided in this rule, when the claimant files a combined-wage claim in the paying state, any protest or appeal shall be in accordance with the law of such state.

(a) Where the combined-wage claimant files a combined-wage claim in a state other than the paying state or under the circumstances described in this rule, any protest or appeal shall be in accordance with the interstate benefit payment plan.

(b) To the extent that any protest or appeal involves a dispute as to the coverage of the employing unit or services in the transferring state or otherwise involves the amount of wages subject to transfer, the protest or appeal shall be decided by the transferring state in accordance with its law.

N.M. Admin. Code § 11.3.300.311

7-15-98; 11.3.300.311 NMAC - Rn & A, 11 NMAC 3.300.311, 01-01-2003; A, 11-15-2012, Adopted by New Mexico Register, Volume XXIX, Issue 20, October 30, 2018, eff. 11/1/2018