Waiting for the extra 300 weekly unemployment benefit?

Some workers were able to get an extra $300 income as the unemployment benefit this week. This aid is planned to start flowing to many people in the next couple of days. However, thousands of unemployed Americans may not receive this help. They may come from the low-wage and also part-time workers, although they are the ones who need the extra help from the government. Some self-employed and other workers may not get this help in some states, such as Alaska. President Trump creates the Lost Wages grant program which will offer $300 per week in federal aid through executive fiat.

11 states approved to distribute this aid

The Federal Emergency Management Agency approves 11 states for the funding distribution. Those 11 states may include Colorado, Arizona, Iowa, Idaho, Maryland, Lousiana, Montana, Missouri, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Utah. The state of Arizona started the paying out period on Monday. Other states are going to send out the aid in the next couple of weeks.

The Trump administration also limited the federal aid for all workers who have at least $100 a week in the state benefits. It means that thousands of workers will be left out without receiving the extra $300 per week. About 2% of the workers with unemployment insurance in the 11 approved states will get less than $100 per week for their unemployment benefit. More than 27,000 workers will be illegible for getting the extra $300 per week. The highest amount of workers who cannot receive this benefit is in Utah state. Many of them collect unemployment insurance in the state, so they cannot receive the extra $300 per week as the unemployment benefit.

Many people are vulnerable to crisis

States pay the unemployment benefits within a range of minimum and maximum weekly payments. The payments may vary from state to state. Most of them set a minimum of $100 per week. Therefore, thousands of people won't meet the official Trump administration's $100 per week threshold.

Many low-wage and part-time workers are going to suffer and be vulnerable to crisis in the next couple of months. A prior $600-a-week federal supplement expired at the end of July 2020. They are people who are considered as the most vulnerable people in this recession. They don't have enough savings to survive in this crisis.

Only 9 states have minimum payments which are more than $100 per week, including, Ohio, New York, New Jersey, Montana, Michigan, Kansas, Arizona, Oregon, and Washington. All unemployed workers from these states are eligible for getting the $300 subsidy per week after their applications are approved.

Pandemic unemployment assistance

Some states approved the lost wages grants for people who are the recipients of the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program. This program was created in March for offering unemployment benefits for all ineligible groups, such as a gig, freelance, contract, and self-employed workers. Workers with PUA benefits seem to be not eligible for the new federal benefits, such as the $300-per-week benefit. However, different states may have different rules and regulations for their workers.

According to Cathy Munoz, a deputy commissioner of the department of labor and workforce in Alaska, workers with PUA benefits won't be eligible for getting the new federal benefit. However, this state is going to submit an application to the FEMA for getting the lost wages assistance. This policy doesn't appear in all states in the United States.

Officials from Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona claimed that they would like to pay the $300 per week subsidy to all PUA recipients.

The PUA program is funded by the Federal. This program is not funded by state money. Because of this reason, the US department of labor advises that the PUA recipients should not be eligible for receiving another $300 per week. The entire PUA benefit is completely paid by the Federal funds, not the State money.

Although there are some debates about this topic, more than 17,000 were able to collect this benefit through this program in Alaska at the end of July. The United States is still planning to create some clear rules and regulations on how the unemployment benefit can be shared with all people who need it the most.