Title 61, REEMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE

An unemployed individual who was discharged or suspended from the individual's most recent employment, the employment being at least thirty calendar days in duration for misconduct connected with the individual's work shall be denied benefits until the individual has been reemplo…

As used in this chapter, misconduct is: (1) Failure to obey orders, rules, or instructions, or failure to discharge the duties for which an individual was employed; or (2) Substantial disregard of the employer's interests or of the employee's duties and obligations to the employe…

An individual is not entitled to any benefits for any week with respect to which the secretary finds that the individual's total or partial unemployment is due to a labor dispute at the factory, establishment, or other premises at which the individual is or was last employed. How…

If the Department of Labor and Regulation finds that an unemployed individual has failed, without good cause, either to apply for available suitable work when so directed by the department or to accept suitable work when offered to the individual, the claimant shall be denied ben…

In determining whether or not any work is suitable for an individual, the department shall consider the degree of risk involved to the individual's health, safety, and morals, the individual's physical fitness and prior training, the individual's experience and prior earnings, th…

Notwithstanding any other provisions of this title, no work is deemed suitable and no benefits may be denied under this title to any otherwise eligible individual for refusing to accept new work under any of the following conditions: (1) If the position offered is vacant due dire…

An individual's weekly benefit amount is computed as follows: For each fiscal year, one twenty-sixth of the wages paid for insured work in the individual's quarter of highest earnings in the individual's base period, but not to exceed an amount equal to fifty percent of the avera…

A person attending a high school, vocational school, college or university is considered principally occupied as a student if school attendance substantially reduces the opportunity for reemployment. A person who is principally occupied as a student may not receive reemployment a…

Notwithstanding any other provisions in this chapter, no otherwise eligible individual may be denied benefits for any week because the individual is in training with the approval of the department, nor may any such individual be denied benefits with respect to any week in which t…

No individual may be denied regular benefits based on availability for work pursuant to subdivision 61-6-1(3), actively seeking work pursuant to rules promulgated pursuant to § 61-6-1 , or refusal to accept work pursuant to § 61-6-16 , solely because the individual is seeking onl…

Benefits based on service in employment defined in §§ 61-1-13 and 61-1-15 shall be payable in the same amount, on the same terms and subject to the same conditions as benefits payable on the basis of other service subject to this chapter. However, with respect to service performe…

With respect to services performed in any other capacity for an educational institution, no benefits may be paid to an individual on the basis of the individual's services for any week that commences between two successive academic years or terms if the individual performs the se…

No benefits authorized by § 61-6-24 or 61-6-25 may be paid to an individual for any week which commences during an established and customary vacation period or a holiday recess if the individual performed insured work in the period immediately preceding the period or recess and t…

The provisions of §§ 61-6-24 to 61-6-26 , inclusive, apply to benefits based on service performed in an education institution while in the employ of an education service agency and to benefits based on service in employment defined in §§ 61-1-13 and 61-1-15 provided to or on beha…

Benefits based upon services performed for an employer are subject to §§ 61-6-24 and 61-6-25 if: (1) The employment was provided pursuant to a contract between the employer and a public or private school; (2) The contract was for services which the public or private school could …

No benefits may be paid to any individual on the basis of any services, substantially all of which consist of participating in sports or athletic events or training or preparing to so participate, for any week which commences during the period between two successive sport seasons…

The exception in §§ 61-6-24 and 61-6-25 that disqualifies an individual because the individual performs services in an educational institution does not disqualify an individual who is in the employ of an elementary or secondary school operated by the federal government or an agen…

No benefits may be paid on the basis of services performed by an alien unless the alien is an individual who was lawfully admitted for permanent residence at the time the services were performed, was lawfully present for purposes of performing the services, or was permanently res…

No individual is entitled to any benefits for a week for which the individual is receiving, has received, or will receive remuneration in the form of: (1) Termination, vacation, holiday, severance, or dismissal payments or wages in lieu of notice whether legally required or not. …

The wage credits of an individual earned in employment with base period employers during the period commencing with the end of the base period and ending on the date on which the individual filed a valid claim are not available for benefit purposes in a subsequent benefit year un…

An individual is not entitled to any benefits for any week with respect to which or a part of which the individual has received or is seeking reemployment assistance under a reemployment assistance or unemployment compensation law of another state or of the United States. However…

It is unlawful for any person to make a false statement or representation knowing it to be false or knowingly fail to disclose a material fact to obtain or increase any benefits or other payments under this title, or under an unemployment insurance law of another state, of the fe…

Any individual who has willfully or fraudulently misrepresented any fact to secure or increase benefits under this title shall be denied benefits for weeks of otherwise compensable unemployment, as defined in this chapter from and after the date such misrepresentation or fraudule…

No individual is entitled to benefits unless the individual's base period wages paid in other than the individual's highest quarter equal or exceed twenty times the individual's weekly benefit amount, and unless the wages paid for insured work in the individual's quarter of highe…

A person who attempts to obtain benefits or payments in violation of § 61-6-38 , but does not obtain any benefits or payments, or a person who violates § 61-6-38 and obtains benefits or payments in an amount of two hundred dollars or less, is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. A pe…

An individual who was paid any amount as benefits under this title to which the individual is not entitled is liable for repayment of the amount overpaid, or for the amount received in the event of misrepresentation, unless recovery of the overpayment is waived as provided in §

The department may also recover the overpayment in the manner provided in §§ 61-5-59 to 61-5-66 , inclusive, for the collection of delinquent contributions. Source: SL 1936 (SS), ch 3 , § 16 (d); SDC 1939, § 17.0844; SL 1974, ch 328 , § 2; SL 1993, ch 377 , § 12; SL 2008, ch 277 …

If an agency administering another reemployment assistance or unemployment compensation law in another state has overpaid benefits to an individual located in South Dakota, the Department of Labor and Regulation may, in its own name and acting as agent for such other agency, coll…

Any benefit erroneously paid which is not repaid shall bear interest at the rate of Category C rate of interest under subdivision 54-3-16 (3). If the claimant was at fault in causing the overpayment, interest applies from the date of the determination of overpayment until payment…

If benefit sums paid remain unpaid by the recipient or have not been deducted from benefits payable to the recipient within ten years following the date the overpayment was established, the secretary of labor and regulation may declare the sums uncollectible and cancel the overpa…

Benefits are due and payable under this title only to the extent provided in this title and to the extent that moneys are available therefor to the credit of the unemployment compensation fund. Neither the state nor the department nor the secretary is liable for any amount in exc…

No employer may directly or indirectly require or accept any waiver of any right under this title by any employee. Any agreement by an employee to waive, release, or commute the employee's rights to benefits or any other rights under this title is void. Any employer or officer or…

Any assignment, pledge, or encumbrance of any right to benefits which are or may become due or payable under this title is void except as provided in this section. The rights to benefits are exempt from levy, execution, attachment, or any other remedy provided for the collection …

Terms used in §§ 61-6-50 to 61-6-63 , inclusive, mean: (1) "Additional benefits," benefits totally financed by a state and payable under a state law to exhaustees by reason of conditions of high unemployment or by reason of other special factors, such as an exhaustee's being in t…

For each individual who is unemployed in any week, as defined in §§ 61-1-51 to 61-1-54 , inclusive, benefits with respect to that week are paid in an amount determined by § 61-6-2 . A benefit amount that is not a multiple of one dollar, is computed to the next lower multiple of o…

Computations required by the provisions of subdivision 61-6-49 (5) shall be made by the department, in accordance with regulations prescribed by the United States secretary of labor. Source: SL 1971, ch 276 , § 91; SDCL § 61-6-30 ; SL 2012, ch 252 , § 59.

With respect to compensation for weeks of unemployment, there is a state "on" indicator for this state for a week if the director determines, in accordance with the regulations of the United States secretary of labor, that for the period consisting of that week and the immediatel…

With respect to compensation for weeks of unemployment, there is a state "off" indicator for this state for a week if the director determines, in accordance with the regulations of the United States secretary of labor, that for the period consisting of that week and the immediate…

No extended benefits period may begin by reason of a state "on" indicator before the fourteenth week following the end of a prior extended benefit period which was in effect with respect to this state. Source: SL 1971, ch 276 , § 82; SDCL § 61-6-35 ; SL 2012, ch 252 , § 59.

Whenever an extended benefit period is to become effective in this state (or in all states) as a result of a state or a national "on" indicator, or an extended benefit period is to be terminated in this state as a result of state and national "off" indicators, the department shal…

An individual is eligible to receive extended benefits with respect to any week of unemployment in the individual's eligibility period only if the department finds that with respect to such week the individual is an exhaustee, as defined in § 61-6-56 , and the individual has sati…

The term, exhaustee, under the provisions of §§ 61-6-49 to 61-6-63 , inclusive, means an individual who, with respect to any week of unemployment in the individual's eligibility period: (1) Has received, prior to the week, all of the regular benefits that were payable to the indi…

For the purposes of § 61-6-56 , an individual is considered to have received, in the individual's applicable benefit year, all of the regular benefits that were payable or available to the individual, even though: (1) As a result of a pending appeal with respect to wages or emplo…

The term, exhaustee, under the provisions of §§ 61-6-49 to 61-6-63 , inclusive, includes an individual who, with respect to any week of unemployment in the individual's eligibility period: (1) The individual's benefit year having ended prior to that week, has insufficient wages o…

The term, applicable benefit year, means, with respect to an individual, the individual's current benefit year if at the time the individual files a claim for extended benefits the individual has an unexpired benefit year only in the state in which the individual files the claim …

No week may be counted as a week of unemployment for the purpose of subdivision 61-6-1(4): (1) Unless it occurs within the benefit year which includes the week with respect to which the individual claims benefits; (2) If benefits have been paid with respect thereto; and (3) Unles…