Michigan will be unable to rule that someone committed unemployment benefits fraud unless a state worker verifies it under legislation signed by Gov. Rick Snyder.
The law OK'd Monday prohibits what's known as "auto-adjudication." It codifies a change the state Unemployment Insurance Agency put in place in 2015 after thousands of people receiving jobless benefits were mistakenly accused of fraud by a computer system.
Gov. Rick Snyder's administration announced last week that the director of the agency was reassigned in the wake of criticism over the problem.
Also Monday, Snyder signed a bill shifting $10 million from the unemployment contingent fund to Michigan's general fund as part of a prior budget deal.
Democrats have accused Republicans of balancing the budget on the backs of innocent people wrongfully accused of fraud.
