The Employment Security Department (ESD) collects employee wage and hour data from employers every quarter. ESD uses the information to calculate Unemployment Insurance (UI) fees and to load the UI database. The data come in via four methods: paper forms; electronic attachments to an e-mail message generated through a VB application ESD distributes on a CD; magnetic media, and mainframe interfaces. ESD provides telephone help for employers providing this required information.

• Every quarter ESD receives paper forms from about 112,000 businesses, electronic attachments and magnetic media from 35,000 business, and interface data from another 40,000.
• ESD processes 3,200,000 wage line items every quarter. About 900,000 of them come in on paper.
• Most forms come in over an 8 day period in the first month of each quarter.
• Each method of getting data has its own support needs.
• Over 20 staff scan all the paper forms for input into an imaging system and run many forms through an Optical Character Reader (OCR) process to digitize the data. Because of a high error rate, staff must validate all the data on the form after the OCR.
• Not all employers use the proper paper form. Incoming forms have a variety of fonts, layouts, and sizes.
• Many incoming forms are not suitable for OCR. Staff key data from these forms directly into the database. The error rate for keying is higher than for the OCR process.
• The VB application needs to work on a variety of different computer configurations.
• ESD receives many telephone class requiring assistance related to this process.
• If data are not on the forms or incorrect, ESD staff spend a lot of time researching Unemployment Insurance claims.
• Employers whose forms are lost in the mail are not notified until they receive a delinquency notice.
• Employers who do not get their data in on time are given a small ($10) penalty.

Vision / Benefits / Objectives:

Develop a process that will result in:

• Repeatable processes and end-to-end efficiencies in receiving and processing data.
• Less time to collect and process data.
• Less time to research problems.
• Less FTE involvement in telephone help and manual processing of forms.
• More consistent form of input via e-form.
• Context-sensitive and dynamic help available to people who prepare the form.
• Cleaner data arrives at ESD.
• Ability to provide an on-line receipt.
• Archival / storage of paper is now saved as a scanned image. Still will have two systems, but the new system should free up imaging system resources for other needs.
• Benefits for UI claimants: Check more timely because less research needed to get all data in.
• Benefits for Employers: Spend less problem solving time with ESD staff. Easier and faster to complete the e-form than the paper form. Less follow-up, resulting in less intrusion by ESD.
• Benefits for ESD: Less follow-up time. Less printing and mailing cost for forms. Less staff time to validate and enter data from the paper forms. Fewer telephone help issues.

Design Goals / Constraints:

• Reduce and eliminate manual processes as much as possible.
• Easy to use for the customer.
• Make the e-form available to employers over the Internet regardless of hardware or software.
• Reduce errors in data through on-line edits.
• Need to handle high volumes at peak time (scalability).
• Meet audit standards.
• Retain confidentiality of the information. Assurance to the user about security or they will not use it.
• Focus on smaller employers as well as large ones. Much of ESD’s time is spent helping smaller employers with their forms.
• Incorporate current standard design guidelines, business rules, and look and feel.
• Import from existing systems. Get cleaner data. Benefit for the employer is that it saves time, consistency with other applications that allow importing.
• Accessibility: satisfies the ADA standards. Meets Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. Can convert text related to fields and actions on the form to speech.
• Handle electronic payments in a future phase.

Customer & Stakeholder Profile:

Conceptual Solution:

Create an end-to-end e-forms solution. Employers will use the Internet to receive, fill out, and submit the UI Tax Form. ESD will create the e-form with Shana products.

• Phase 1: Employers go to a protected Internet site and get a pre-filled form or a blank form. The form will use edited and calculated fields. They will complete the form and submit it to ESD. ESD will electronically receive and extract the information into the UI database.
• Phase 2: Accept electronic payments from Employers.
• Phase 3: Load the form with employee name and SSN detail from previous submissions.