Posts Tagged ‘Unemployment Insurance’

Many States Leave Federal Unemployment Money Unclaimed

A few governors were loud about rejecting stimulus funding for expanding unemployment insurance, but many states have quietly let their share of the funding sit in Washington.

So far, only about half of the $7 billion included in the stimulus package has been claimed by states. (See interactive map and chart. [1]) What’s more, about two-thirds of the funding that has been distributed has gone to states with existing laws, and not to states with newly expanded benefits.

Four states have explicitly rejected the funding, but many others have so far failed to pass legislation qualifying them for incentive payments.

States have until 2011 to qualify for the funding, but government projections predict that by then the worst of the unemployment crisis will be over.

Under the stimulus bill [2], states can qualify for the extra funding by extending unemployment insurance to new categories of workers. To receive a third of the funding, they must begin using something called an alternative base period, which would allow more low-wage workers to receive unemployment benefits.

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