New Opportunities for Business Ownership and Self-Sufficiency Act

This bill increases the percentage of individuals who may participate in a Self-Employment Assistance (SEA) program, generally expands eligibility for such programs, and modifies certain SEA program requirements.

As background, an SEA program provides an individual with an SEA allowance, rather than regular unemployment compensation benefits, if such individual is (1) eligible for unemployment compensation benefits and identified as likely to exhaust such benefits, (2) participating in self-employment assistance activities which include entrepreneurial training, business counseling, and technical assistance and are approved by the state, and (3) working full-time on establishing a business and becoming self-employed. Under current law, the number of individuals participating in an SEA program may not exceed 5% of the individuals receiving regular unemployment compensation benefits in the state.

The bill

• increases the percentage of individuals who may participate in a state SEA program to 10%,
• eliminates the requirement that an individual be determined likely to exhaust unemployment compensation benefits (generally expanding individual eligibility for an SEA program), and
• requires individuals to certify (at least weekly) that they are working full-time on establishing a business and becoming self-employed.

Finally, the bill allows individuals to meet the requirement to participate in state-approved self-employment assistance activities if such activities either (1) include entrepreneurial training, business counseling, and technical assistance (permitted under current law); or (2) are performed pursuant to a state-approved business plan and market feasibility study.