Section 590. Rights to benefits

1. Entitlement to benefits. A claimant
  shall be entitled to  accumulate  effective  days  for  the  purpose  of
  benefit  rights  only  if  he  has  complied with the provisions of this
  article regarding the filing of his claim, including  the  filing  of  a
  valid  original  claim,  registered  as totally unemployed, reported his
  subsequent  employment  and  unemployment,  and  reported  for  work  or
  otherwise given notice of the continuance of his unemployment.
    3.  Compensable  periods. Benefits shall be paid for each accumulation
  of effective days within a week.
    4. Duration. Benefits shall not be paid for more than one hundred  and
  four  effective  days in any benefit year, except as provided in section
  six hundred one and subdivision two of section five hundred  ninety-nine
  of this chapter.
    5.  Benefit  rate.  A  claimant's  weekly  benefit amount shall be one
  twenty-sixth of  the  remuneration  paid  during  the  highest  calendar
  quarter  of  the  base  period by employers, liable for contributions or
  payments in lieu of  contributions  under  this  article.  However,  for
  claimants  whose  high  calendar  quarter  remuneration  during the base
  period is three thousand five hundred seventy-five dollars or less,  the
  benefit amount shall be one twenty-fifth of the remuneration paid during
  the  highest calendar quarter of the base period by employers liable for
  contributions or payments in lieu of contributions under  this  article.
  Any  claimant  whose  high calendar quarter remuneration during the base
  period is more than three thousand  five  hundred  seventy-five  dollars
  shall not have a weekly benefit amount less than one hundred forty-three
  dollars.  The weekly benefit amount, so computed, that is not a multiple
  of one dollar shall be lowered to the next multiple of  one  dollar.  On
  the  first Monday of September, nineteen hundred ninety-eight the weekly
  benefit amount shall not exceed three hundred sixty-five dollars nor  be
  less  than  forty  dollars,  until  the  first  Monday of September, two
  thousand, at which time the maximum benefit  payable  pursuant  to  this
  subdivision  shall  equal  one-half of the state average weekly wage for
  covered employment as calculated by the department no sooner  than  July
  first,  two  thousand  and  no  later  than  August first, two thousand,
  rounded down to the lowest dollar.
    6. Notification requirement. No effective day shall be counted for any
  purposes except effective days as to which notification has  been  given
  in a manner prescribed by the commissioner.
    7.  Waiting  period.  A  claimant  shall not be entitled to accumulate
  effective days  for  the  purpose  of  benefit  payments  until  he  has
  accumulated a waiting period of four effective days either wholly within
  the  week  in  which  he  established his valid original claim or partly
  within such week and partly within his benefit year  initiated  by  such
  claim.
    8.  Benefit payments to professional athletes. If substantially all of
  a claimant's employment during his base period is as  a  participant  in
  sports or athletic events or in training or preparing to so participate,
  no  benefits  shall be payable for any week commencing during the period
  between two successive sports seasons or similar periods, provided there
  is a reasonable assurance that the claimant  will  perform  services  in
  such capacity for both of such seasons or similar periods.
    For  the  purposes  of  this subdivision, "reasonable assurance" shall
  mean a written contract that the claimant will perform services  in  the
  same  capacity  during  the ensuing sports season or similar period or a
  claimant's offering of services in  the  successive  season  or  similar
  period and an interest by an employer in employing him.
    9.  Benefits  based  on  employment  performed  by illegal aliens. (a)
  Remuneration received by a claimant who was an alien at  the  time  such

  remuneration  was  paid  shall  not  be taken into consideration for the
  purpose of establishing rights to benefits under this article unless the
  claimant was then lawfully  admitted  for  permanent  residence  in  the
  United States, was then lawfully present for purposes of performing such
  services  or  was  then  permanently residing in the United States under
  color of law, including a claimant lawfully present pursuant to  section
  207 or 208 of the federal immigration and nationality act.
    (b)  A  determination  that  benefits  are  not  payable to a claimant
  because of the claimant's  alien  status  shall  be  made  only  upon  a
  preponderance  of  the evidence, and shall be effective only if it is in
  conformity with section 3304 (a) (14) of the  federal  unemployment  tax
  act.
    (c)  Any  data  or  information  required  of  a claimant to determine
  whether benefits are not payable to him  because  of  his  alien  status
  shall be uniformly required from all claimants.
    10.   Benefits  based  on  professional  employment  with  educational
  institutions, including the state  university  of  New  York,  the  city
  university  of New York and any public community colleges. If a claimant
  was employed in an instructional, research, or principal  administrative
  capacity  by an institution of education, including the state university
  of New York, the city university of New York and  any  public  community
  colleges,  or performed services in such an institution in such capacity
  while employed by an educational service  agency,  the  following  shall
  apply  to  any  week commencing during the period between two successive
  academic years or terms, or during a similar period between two  regular
  but  not  successive  terms when the contract provides therefor instead,
  provided the  claimant  has  a  contract  to  perform,  or  there  is  a
  reasonable  assurance  that  the claimant will perform, services in such
  capacity for any such institution  or  institutions  for  both  of  such
  academic  years  or  such  terms,  and  to any week commencing during an
  established and customary vacation period or holiday recess, not between
  such academic terms or years, provided the claimant  performed  services
  for  such institution immediately before such vacation period or holiday
  recess and there is  a  reasonable  assurance  that  the  claimant  will
  perform any services described in this subdivision or subdivision eleven
  of this section in the period immediately following such vacation period
  or holiday recess:
    (a) In the case of a claimant who has no current benefit year, whether
  the  claimant  meets the conditions of section five hundred twenty-seven
  in any such week shall be determined by  disregarding  the  remuneration
  paid for such employment.
    (b) In the case of a claimant who does have a current benefit year, no
  benefits  shall  be  payable  with respect to any such week provided the
  claimant would not have met  the  conditions  of  section  five  hundred
  twenty-seven  in  the  week in which the claimant filed a valid original
  claim if the remuneration paid for such employment is disregarded.
    (c) The benefit rate of a claimant with respect to any such week shall
  be determined or redetermined by disregarding the remuneration paid  for
  such employment.
    "Educational   service   agency"   means   a  governmental  agency  or
  governmental entity or Indian tribal entity  which  is  established  and
  operated  exclusively  for  the  purpose  of  providing  to  one or more
  educational institutions services mentioned under  this  subdivision  or
  subdivision eleven of this section.
    For  purposes  of  this  subdivision  or  subdivision  eleven  of this
  section, "educational  institution"  shall  include  any  not-for-profit
  community  art  school  which  is  chartered as a school by the board of
  regents of the university of state of New York.

    11.  Benefits  based  on  non-professional  employment  with   certain
  educational  institutions.  If  a claimant was employed in other than an
  instructional, research  or  principal  administrative  capacity  by  an
  educational institution, or performed services in such an institution in
  such  capacity  while  employed  by  an  educational service agency, the
  following shall apply to any week commencing during the  period  between
  two  successive  academic  years or terms provided there is a reasonable
  assurance that the claimant will perform services in such  capacity  for
  any  such institution or institutions for both of such academic years or
  terms, and to any week commencing during an  established  and  customary
  vacation  period  or  holiday recess, not between such academic terms or
  years, provided the claimant performed  services  for  such  institution
  immediately before such vacation period or holiday recess and there is a
  reasonable  assurance  that  the  claimant  will  perform  any  services
  described in this subdivision or subdivision ten of this section in  the
  period immediately following such vacation period or holiday recess:
    (a) In the case of a claimant who has no current benefit year, whether
  the  claimant  meets the conditions of section five hundred twenty-seven
  in any such week shall be determined by  disregarding  the  remuneration
  paid for such employment.
    (b) In the case of a claimant who does have a current benefit year, no
  benefits  shall  be  payable  with respect to any such week provided the
  claimant would not have met  the  conditions  of  section  five  hundred
  twenty-seven  in  the  week in which the claimant filed a valid original
  claim if the remuneration paid for such employment is disregarded.
    (c) The benefit rate of a claimant with respect to any such week shall
  be determined or redetermined by disregarding the remuneration paid  for
  such employment.
    (d)  Notwithstanding  the  foregoing provisions of this subdivision, a
  claimant who was not offered an opportunity to perform services for  the
  educational  institution  for the second of such academic years or terms
  shall be entitled to be paid benefits retroactively for  each  week  for
  which  the  claimant  filed  a  timely  claim for benefits and for which
  benefits were denied solely by reason of this subdivision.
    "Educational  service  agency"  means   a   governmental   agency   or
  governmental  entity  or  Indian  tribal entity which is established and
  operated exclusively for  the  purpose  of  providing  to  one  or  more
  educational  institutions  services  mentioned under this subdivision or
  subdivision ten of this section.
    12. An  individual  claimant  who  has  received  a  determination  of
  entitlement  pursuant  to  section  five  hundred  twenty-seven  of this
  article may request the commissioner to reconsider the benefit  rate  to
  which such claimant is entitled under the following circumstances:
    (a)(1)   the  claimant  filed  a  valid  original  claim  pursuant  to
  subdivision one or two of section  five  hundred  twenty-seven  of  this
  article  or,  in  the  event  the claimant exercised his or her right to
  apply to the commissioner to determine his or her benefits  pursuant  to
  paragraph  (b) of subdivision two of such section, the claimant selected
  the base period to be utilized; and
    (2) after the establishment of the base period to utilize pursuant  to
  subparagraph  one  of this paragraph, and within ten days of the date of
  the mailing of the determination  of  the  benefit  rate  to  which  the
  claimant  is  entitled  for  such  base  period by the commissioner, the
  claimant produces proof satisfactory to the commissioner and  consistent
  with  wage  data  contained  in  the  statewide  wage  reporting  system
  maintained by  the  department  of  taxation  and  finance  or,  in  the
  commissioner's  sole  discretion,  sufficient  to warrant its use in the
  event that it is inconsistent with such wage data, that he or she has at

  least twenty weeks of employment, as defined  in  section  five  hundred
  twenty-four of this chapter, in such established base period. Such proof
  shall include paycheck stubs, payroll envelopes, or cancelled checks.
    (b) in the event that a claimant submits a request for reconsideration
  of  the  benefit  rate  to the commissioner pursuant to paragraph (a) of
  this subdivision, and one-half of the average weekly wage of  all  wages
  paid  for  all  weeks  of employment for which proof satisfactory to the
  commissioner was submitted pursuant to subparagraph two of paragraph (a)
  of this subdivision during the established  base  period  referenced  in
  such  paragraph  is  at  least five dollars more than the weekly benefit
  amount calculated pursuant to subdivision  five  of  this  section,  the
  commissioner  shall  determine  the  claimant's  benefit rate to be such
  amount, but in no event shall such  amount  be  more  than  the  maximum
  benefit rate in effect pursuant to subdivision five of this section.