A. During an extended benefit period in this state, an individual shall be eligible to receive extended benefits with respect to any week of unemployment in his eligibility period only if the secretary finds that with respect to such week:

(1) he is an "exhaustee" as defined in Section 51-1-48 NMSA 1978;

(2) he has been paid wages for insured work during his base period equal to at least one and one-half times the wages paid in that quarter of his base period in which his wages were highest or as otherwise provided by the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970, as amended; and

(3) he has satisfied those provisions of the Unemployment Compensation Law which apply to claims for, and the payment of, regular benefits and which are consistent with the provisions of this section and the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970, as amended.

B. An individual shall be ineligible for payment of extended benefits for any week of unemployment in the individual's extended eligibility period if the secretary finds that during such period the individual failed to accept any offer of suitable work or failed to apply for any suitable work to which the individual was referred by the department or the individual failed to actively engage in seeking work.

(1) For purposes only of this subsection, "suitable work" means any work which is within an individual's capabilities, provided that the gross average weekly remuneration payable for the work must:

(a) exceed the individual's weekly extended benefit amount as determined in Subsection A of Section 51-1-48.2 NMSA 1978 plus the amount of any supplemental unemployment benefits (as defined in Section 501 (c)(17)(D) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954) payable to the individual;

(b) equal or exceed the higher of: 1) the minimum wage required by Section 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standard Act of 1938, as amended, without regard to any exemption; or 2) the minimum wage provisions of Section 50-4-22 NMSA 1978, as amended; and

(c) the offer of work is a bona fide offer made to the individual in writing or is currently listed with the employment service of the division.

(2) For purposes of this subsection, an individual shall be treated as actively engaged in seeking work during a week of unemployment if the individual furnishes tangible evidence each week, as provided by regulation of the secretary, that he has made a systematic and sustained effort to obtain work which meets the criteria in Paragraph (1) of this subsection.

C. If any individual is ineligible for extended benefits for any week because of his failure to accept any offer of suitable work or to apply for any suitable work when referred by the department or to actively seek new work as provided in this section, the individual shall be ineligible to receive extended benefits for any week during the period beginning with the week following the week in which such failure occurs and until the individual has been employed during at least four weeks and has earned a total remuneration of at least four times his weekly extended benefit amount established during his benefit year.

D. If an individual furnishes evidence satisfactory to the division that such individual's prospects for obtaining work in his customary occupation or trade within a reasonably short period are good, the determination of suitable work with respect to such individual shall be made in accordance with the state law provisions applicable to claimants for regular benefits.

E. The employment service of the division shall refer applicants for extended benefits to suitable work meeting the criteria of Paragraph (1) of Subsection B of this section.

F. An individual shall not be eligible for extended benefits for any week for which such benefits would be payable pursuant to an interstate claim filed under the interstate benefit payment plan if no extended benefit period is in effect for the week in the state in which the interstate claim is filed. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to the first two weeks for which extended benefits are payable to the individual on an interstate claim from the extended benefit account established for the individual with respect to the benefit year.

History: 1978 Comp., § 51-1-48.1, enacted by Laws 1981, ch. 354, § 13; 1982, ch. 41, § 6; 1993, ch. 209, § 7.

Cross references. — For the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970, see 26 U.S.C. § 3304, et seq.

For Section 501(c)(17)(D) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, see 26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(17)(D).

For Section (6)(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standard Act of 1938, see 29 U.S.C. § 206(a)(1).

The 1993 amendment, effective April 5, 1993, substituted "division" for "employment security department" throughout the section; added the language beginning "or as otherwise provided" at the end of Subsection A(2); added the language beginning "and the Federal-State" at the end of Subsection A(3); and made minor stylistic changes.