About 12 million unemployed workers were on the verge of losing their unemployment benefits on December 26, due to the salary of two pandemic crisis Software. But a lifeline came on Monday, when Congress passed a $ 900 billion stimulus package that would extend these programs, in addition to adding $ 300 in extra weekly unemployment payments.
Now, the lifeline of this lifeline is in the air for a number of reasons, including that of President Donald Trump last minute demand for account changes.
While Mr. Trump on Tuesday night expressed complaints about several issues in the bill, his most direct complaints were directed to the $ 600 direct stimulus payments, which he called “ridiculously low”. Mr. Trump also commented on a tax breaks for business meals, which should be extended for longer than the two years stipulated in the bill.
Mr. Trump did not address the issue of unemployment benefits, however. The stimulus project would extend two major pandemic programs for 11 weeks, as well as supplement the state’s regular benefits with an extra $ 300 in weekly unemployment benefits. While the new round of aid will undoubtedly provide welcome relief, it is only half of the extra $ 600 in aid received by unemployed workers at the beginning of the pandemic and which expired in July. At the same time, the number of people applying for unemployment benefits remains at a high level, showing that the coronavirus continues to hurt the economy.
“Many workers are concerned because they lost their lives during unemployment; they accumulated debt,” said Andrew Stettner, a leftist tendency unemployment specialist at the Century Foundation. “Some research shows that the average unemployed person has a negative net worth.”
The extra $ 300 a week, as well as additional weeks of unemployment, will probably not be enough for many unemployed workers to get out of debt, Stettner added, but it would likely help many to meet their basic needs – at least until the programs expire in the middle March.
Kenneth Elliott, 50, a tour driver in West Palm Beach, Florida, has been out of work since March. Between April and July, he was able to receive $ 600 a week in additional benefits, which covered his expenses. But since August, he has been living on just $ 275 a week in state unemployment benefits, “which is kind of impossible to survive,” he recently told MoneyWatch.
Several months ago, Elliott gave up his own apartment and moved in with a friend to try to save on living costs, he told CBS MoneyWatch. But the $ 275 still doesn’t cover all of his expenses, which include medical insurance, car insurance and his phone bill, so he found himself late in rent.
“I was fortunate to have a very understanding owner who is trying to work with me, but I don’t know how far it will go,” said Elliott. “I’m reaching the limit.”
A month of waiting?
Democrats are now trying to change the stimulus law, following Trump’s insistence, increase stimulus checks to $ 2,000 per person, from the $ 600 currently in the legislative text. This effort will delay the stimulus package, which means that unemployed Americans can expect more for that extra $ 300 in weekly unemployment benefits.
But even before Trump made his objections, it was likely that many states would need three to four weeks to start paying the extra $ 300 in weekly benefits, Stettner said. These benefits would come from the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) program, created by the Aid, Aid and Economic Security Act (CARES) in March, but expired in July. To release these $ 300 payments, states would first need to get this program up and running again after a long break.
Unemployment programs are administered independently by each state, and unemployed workers apply for help through their state labor departments. Depending on the efficiency of your state’s computer systems and personnel, unemployed workers may face very different waiting times to receive benefits. Some states can send the $ 300 in FPUC benefits quickly, but others may see longer delays.
For example, 8 out of 10 unemployed workers in Wyoming receive their unemployment benefits within 14 days of being considered eligible for benefits, according to the Century Foundation. But only 2 out of 10 unemployed people in Kentucky receive their first payments in two weeks.
Gap in benefits
The delay in the stimulus project can also create a gap in the current benefits paid to unemployed workers.
About 12 million are receiving unemployment benefits through two programs that expire on December 26: the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program, which covers giant and self-employed workers, and the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation program ( PEUC), which provides additional weekly unemployment benefits to those left without their regular state unemployment benefits.
The stimulus project approved by Congress on Monday aimed to avoid an abyss of benefits for unemployed workers, currently in these programs, extending them until March 14. The two programs currently pay regular state unemployment benefits, which on average are just over $ 300 a week.
“There is almost certainly a delay for people now” who participate in these programs that are about to expire, said Stettner. “At best, they will lose a week of benefits.”
However, benefits would be paid retroactively as soon as an account was signed by Mr. Trump. Unemployed workers must continue to claim benefits, even if there is a loophole to ensure that they receive late payment, Stettner noted.
“It will affect people, so it is important that it is approved,” added Stettner. “People will blame the states because they are the ones who know, but this is a misplaced guilt. Congress took forever and now the president is delaying even more.”