Unemployment insurance.

California's Senate Committee on Labor, Public Employment and Retirement, led by Senator Smallwood-Cuevas, proposes modernizing the state's Unemployment Insurance Code by expanding the definition of mail-related terms to include electronic communications alongside traditional postal services.

The legislation establishes that "mail," "mailing," and "mailed" encompass both physical delivery through the United States Postal Service or other common carriers and electronic transmission methods. For electronic communications, the bill defines the postmark date as the transmission date of the writing. This definition applies throughout the Unemployment Insurance Code except where specifically noted otherwise.

The measure adapts the state's unemployment insurance system to contemporary communication methods while maintaining existing administrative processes. State agencies overseeing unemployment insurance programs will need to incorporate electronic transmission protocols into their document handling systems, while ensuring proper recording of electronic postmark dates for time-sensitive communications.