Bill > HB4424

This bill introduces several significant changes to Texas's unemployment benefits program aimed at promoting re-employment and preventing fraud. The bill requires unemployment claimants to perform at least five work search activities per week, which can include submitting job applications, attending job fairs, participating in interviews, or engaging in job training programs. Local workforce boards can require more than five work search actions but cannot mandate fewer. The bill also expands disqualification criteria for benefits, such as adding failure to respond to employer interview requests. Additionally, the bill mandates that the Texas Workforce Commission cross-check unemployment claims against multiple databases, including national new hire directories, death records, incarceration records, and immigration status verification systems, to ensure claim validity. The legislation introduces stricter penalties for fraudulent claims, including forfeiting current and future benefits for multiple occurrences of misrepresentation, with escalating penalties for repeated offenses. Claimants must now verify their identity using government-issued identification, and the commission is authorized to immediately suspend benefits upon confirming an invalid claim. These changes are set to take effect on January 1, 2026, and will apply only to unemployment claims filed on or after that date.

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https://capitol.texas.gov/BillLookup/History.aspx?LegSess=89R&Bill=HB4424