Chamber weighs in on federal legislation harmful to employers and state workforce agencies

The Kentucky Chamber of Commerce opposes an amendment on federal legislation which would impose billions of dollars of unfunded burden on employers and add significant additional administrative costs for state workforce agencies.

The amendment, included in Section 913 of S 1269 as passed by the United States Senate on May 14, would require all of the 7 million employers in the country to collect information necessary to provide a Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code for every one of the 133 million employees whose wages they report quarterly. If passed, employers would be required to collect, code, maintain, and report the data, as well as to educate their employees on the changes. Some employers may also have to invest in new software systems, undertake major redesigns, or invest in additional storage capacity to house the data.

If approved, the mandate will take effect on January 1, 2017.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that the new administrative costs to states could exceed $50 million over the 2016-2025 period, with most of those costs in the early years as systems are adapted. The total cost will depend on the type of additional information employers will be required to provide.

Section 913 has passed the Senate but has yet to pass the House. The Kentucky Chamber and over thirty-seven associations and companies have opposed this mandate as an unnecessary burden on businesses and employers. As the House has yet to approve of the mandate, we urge Chamber members to contact their Congressmen and voice their opposition for this mandate. A copy of the bill can be found at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-114s1269pcs/pdf/BILLS-114s1269pcs.pdf