00                            HOUSE BILL NO. 203                                                                          
01 "An Act relating to wage payments."                                                                                     
02 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                                
03    * Section 1. AS 23.10.040(a) is amended to read:                                                                 
04 (a)  Except as otherwise provided by AS 23.10.044 and AS 37.25.050, an                                              
05 employer of labor performing services in this state shall pay the wages or other                                        
06 compensation for the services with lawful money of the United States or with                                            
07 negotiable checks, drafts, or orders payable upon presentation without discount by a                                    
08       bank or depository inside the state.                                                                              
09    * Sec. 2. AS 23.10 is amended by adding a new section to read:                                                     
10 Sec. 23.10.044. Wage payment by credit to a payroll card account. (a) An                                              
11 employer may credit employee wages to a payroll card account if an employee has                                         
12 voluntarily authorized the credit or the employee has not authorized deposit of the                                     
13       employee's wages under AS 23.10.043.                                                                            
14            (b)  An employer paying an employee's wages by credit to a payroll card                                      
15       account shall notify the employee                                                                                 

01                 (1)  of the employee's wage payment options;                                                            
02                 (2)  of the payroll card terms and conditions, including a list of fees                                 
03       assessed by the payroll card issuer;                                                                              
04                 (3)  of a cost-free method for the employee to access wages credited to                                 
05       the payroll card account;                                                                                         
06                 (4)  of a cost-free method for the employee to check the payroll card                                   
07       account balance; and                                                                                              
08                 (5)  that, in addition to fees assessed by the card issuer, the card may be                             
09       subject to additional fees.                                                                                       
10            (c)  A payroll card account must provide an employee                                                         
11 (1)  at least one cost-free withdrawal each week or pay period,                                                         
12       whichever is longer, in an amount up to the amount of the employee's net wages;                                   
13 (2)  an unlimited cost-free mechanism to check the payroll card account                                                 
14 balance through an automated telephone system and an additional unlimited cost-free                                     
15       electronic mechanism to check payroll card account balances.                                                      
16            (d)  An employer may not offer a payroll card account that charges fees for                                  
17 (1)  employee application for, initiation of, or participation in the                                                   
18       payroll card account;                                                                                             
19 (2)  issuance of an employee's initial payroll card and one replacement                                                 
20       card each calendar year;                                                                                          
21 (3)  transfer of employee wages or other compensation from the                                                          
22       employer to the payroll card account;                                                                             
23                 (4)  point-of-sale purchase transactions.                                                               
24 (e)  An employer may not offer a payroll card account unless employee wages                                             
25 or other forms of compensation credited to the account are insured on a pass-through                                    
26 basis to the employee by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the National                                        
27       Credit Union Administration, or another entity that insures bank deposits.                                        
28 (f)  This section does not limit the right of employees to bargain collectively                                         
29 through representatives of their own choosing to establish mechanisms for payment of                                    
30       wages in excess of the minimum requirements of this section.                                                      
31            (g)  In this section,                                                                                        

01                 (1)  "payroll card" means a card or other device used by an employee to                                 
02       access the employee's wages from a payroll card account;                                                          
03                 (2)  "payroll card account" means an employee's account established                                     
04       through an employer to which the employer transfers the employee's wages or other                                 
05       compensation.