Employment Security Department

  Average Annual FTEs Near General Fund State Other Funds Total Funds
  (Dollars in Thousands)
Current Budget 2,239.3 71,960 840,049 912,009
2023-25 Maintenance Level 2,239.3 71,958 813,994 885,952
Difference from 2023-25 Original 0.0 (2) (26,055) (26,057)
% Change from 2023-25 Original 0.0% (0.0%) (3.1%) (2.9%)

2024 Policy Other Changes

Unemployment Insurance Appeals 0.0 0 3,928 3,928
Career Connected Learning Grants 0.0 1,000 0 1,000
Federal Fund Shortfall Correction 0.0 0 14,234 14,234
Paid Leave Caseload Staffing 28.9 0 5,655 5,655
PFML System Completion 24.0 0 7,305 7,305
Adjust Overpayment Processing 11.0 0 0 0
UI Overpayment Interest Waiver 2.1 0 961 961
Opioid Workforce Grant 0.0 0 4,404 4,404
WorkSource System Replacement 18.0 0 12,826 12,826
2024 Policy Other Changes Total 84.0 1,000 49,313 50,313

2024 Policy Comp Changes

State Employee Benefits 0.0 0 157 157
Pension Rate Month of Death Bill 0.0 0 69 69
2024 Policy Comp Changes Total 0.0 0 226 226

2024 Policy Central Services Changes

Archives/Records Management 0.0 0 1 1
Audit Services 0.0 0 7 7
Legal Services 0.0 0 24 24
Administrative Hearings 0.0 0 189 189
CTS Central Services 0.0 (1) 361 360
DES Central Services 0.0 0 17 17
OFM Central Services 0.0 3 3,677 3,680
GOV Central Services 0.0 0 34 34
2024 Policy Central Services Changes Total 0.0 2 4,310 4,312
Total Policy Changes 84.0 1,002 53,849 54,851
2024 Policy Level 2,323.3 72,960 867,843 940,803
Difference from 2023-25 Original 84.0 1,000 27,794 28,794
% Change from 2023-25 Original 3.8% 1.4% 3.3% 3.2%

Policy Changes

Audit Services

Adjustments are made for each agency's anticipated cost of audits performed by the State Auditor's Office. (General Fund - Federal, Family & Medical Leave Insur Acct - State, Unemployment Compensation Admin - Federal)

Legal Services

Adjustments are made for each agency's anticipated cost of legal services provided by the Attorney General's Office. Because legal services expenditures are based on consumption, funding provided in the central service model is not all inclusive. The methodology to estimate consumption is a two-year average and allows for analysis to incorporate unique agency circumstances. (Unemployment Compensation Admin - Federal, Family & Medical Leave Insur Acct - State)

Administrative Hearings

Adjustments are made for each agency's anticipated cost of hearings performed by the Office of Administrative Hearings. (Family & Medical Leave Insur Acct - State, Unemployment Compensation Admin - Federal, Long-Term Servs & Sup Trust Account - State)

CTS Central Services

Adjustments are made to reflect each agency's anticipated share of charges from Consolidated Technology Services (CTS) for the Office of the Chief Information Officer, Office of Cybersecurity, state network, enterprise and small agency IT services, enterprise architecture and data management, Microsoft 365 licenses, and other items. (General Fund - Federal, Unemployment Compensation Admin - Federal, Family & Medical Leave Insur Acct - State, other funds)

DES Central Services

Adjustments are made to reflect each agency's anticipated share of charges from the Department of Enterprise Services (DES) for Capitol campus costs; real estate, risk management, and small agency services; the Perry Street and Capitol Campus child care centers; enterprise applications, and other items. (Family & Medical Leave Insur Acct - State, Unemployment Compensation Admin - Federal, General Fund - Federal, other funds)

OFM Central Services

Adjustments are made to reflect each agency's anticipated share of charges from the Office of Financial Management for existing statewide applications, the One Washington program, and other central services. See Chapter 11 of the 2023-25 OFM Budget Instructions for allocation methodologies. (General Fund - Federal, Family & Medical Leave Insur Acct - State, Unemployment Compensation Admin - Federal, other funds)

Unemployment Insurance Appeals

One-time funds are provided to cover the cost of the increased workload at the Office of Administrative Hearings associated with processing a backlog of unemployment insurance appeals. (Administrative Contingency Account - State)

Career Connected Learning Grants

Funding is provided as ongoing rather than one-time for the Career Connected Learning grants funded in the 2023-25 biennium, in addition to a one-time increase in grant funding for fiscal year 2025. (Workforce Education Investment Acc - State)

Federal Fund Shortfall Correction

Additional one-time funding is provided to bridge the Employment Security Department's gap in federal funding revenue for the state's unemployment insurance program for the 2023-25 biennium. (Administrative Contingency Account - State, Employment Services Administrative - State)

Paid Leave Caseload Staffing

Funding and staffing are provided to increase the Paid Family and Medical Leave program's capacity to process claims and respond to customer inquiries in a timely manner. (Family & Medical Leave Insur Acct - State)

PFML System Completion

Funding is provided for IT staff to complete the remaining components of the Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) program, including, but not limited to, the collection of overpayments, crossmatching of eligibility with other programs, and elective coverage for tribes. (Family & Medical Leave Insur Acct - State)

Adjust Overpayment Processing

Unexpended funds and staffing for the Unemployment Insurance overpayment project are shifted from fiscal year 2024 to fiscal year 2025. The department created a dedicated team to process and resolve the unemployment insurance overpayment caseload backlog. (General Fund - State)

UI Overpayment Interest Waiver

Funding is provided for staffing to complete IT system changes to enable the department to waive interest on non-fraudulent unemployment insurance overpayments established between February 2, 2020 and September 4, 2021. (Unemployment Compensation Admin - Federal)

Opioid Workforce Grant

Federal expenditure authority is provided for two grants awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor to provide for disaster-relief employment and training services for people living in Clark, Cowlitz, and Spokane counties affected significantly by the health and economic effects of opioid use, addiction and overdose. (General Fund - Federal)

WorkSource System Replacement

Funding is provided for the continued replacement of the WorkSource Integrated Technology platform. The replacement system will support statewide workforce administration to ensure adoption of the U.S. Department of Labor's integrated service delivery model and to meet program performance requirements for the state's Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and other federal grants. Funding covers the continuation of staffing needed due to a project delay, new project staff, additional vendor costs, and reimbursement for the Local Workforce Development Board's participation in the project. (Employment Services Administrative - State)

State Employee Benefits

Funding is provided to increase the retiree health insurance subsidy, adjusting the cap from $183 to $193 per month and raising the base subsidy percentage from 50 percent to 60 percent. The insurance funding rates are set at $1,145 per month for fiscal year 2024 and $1,158 per month for fiscal year 2025. (Family & Medical Leave Insur Acct - State, General Fund - Federal, Unemployment Compensation Admin - Federal, other funds)

Pension Rate Month of Death Bill

Funding is provided for contribution rate impacts associated with proposed legislation that ensures the continuation of benefit payments through the end of the month in which a retiree or beneficiary dies. (Family & Medical Leave Insur Acct - State, Unemployment Compensation Admin - Federal, General Fund - Federal, other funds)

Archives/Records Management

Adjustments are made for each agency's anticipated share of charges for archives and records management services provided by the Secretary of State's Office. (Unemployment Compensation Admin - Federal)

GOV Central Services

Adjustments are made to reflect each agency's anticipated share of charges from the Office of the Governor for the Office of Equity. (General Fund - Federal, Family & Medical Leave Insur Acct - State, Unemployment Compensation Admin - Federal, other funds)