Wisconsin residents receiving an additional $ 300 in weekly unemployment benefits are being asked to return the money if Congress passes a new law to replace unemployment benefits created by Trump’s executive action last month.
Labor and unemployment experts worry that this leaves many jobless Americans confused as to what to do at a time when money ordered by Trump has already been delayed and Congress has failed to pass a new aid package for employers. Some legislators say more economic relief is unlikely to reach Americans before November.
If Republicans and Democrats agree to new aid in the future, federal beneficiaries could be seen as double-dipping unemployed: they will get pre-paid from the new law even though they have already been paid by Trump’s executive action.
“All this confusion only makes for more administrative burdens at a time when people are leaving without benefits for a long time, living standards are declining and poverty is rising, while millions have lost their jobs without losing any of their defects from the epidemic.” Senior economist and policy director at the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute.
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A spokesman for the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development said the state is following the guidelines of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which funds Trump’s Lost Wage Assistance Program and the Labor Department. FEMA, however, said states operate the program while the agency provides funding.
It’s still unclear how widespread this is outside of Wisconsin. Colorado, Indiana, Georgia, Iowa, Alabama, Idaho, Arizona, Arkansas, Hawaii, Alaska and Nebraska said they were not advising recipients a refund.
The Louisiana Workforce Commission said it would oversee congressional legislation, adding that it would ensure that any future guidelines are met as provided by the Department of Labor.
The weekly benefit of Workers 300 is a precursor to workers who qualify on Gust 1. Wisconsin’s DWD does not expect to be forced to return plaintiffs’ assistance, although its own website warns out-of-business residents who tried to file unemployment claims.
It is not clear whether future congressional assistance will be undone by August 1, a spokesman said.
The DWD expects that if Congress passes a new law, it will begin once Trump’s Lost Wage Assistance program ends once the week ends in September, so there will be no overlap, they added.
Overpayment?
Still, the potential overpayment issue threatens to cause problems in other states ahead of Wisconsin, if Congress allows the overpayments to overlap, experts say. People have been warned that states could face calculations on how to recover money if people are paid higher wages.
Andrew Steiner, an unemployment expert and senior fellow at the Three Centuries Foundation, says, “Congress offers the opportunity behind a new relief program, which is also creating trouble for states that have already disbursed money from the Lost Wage Assistance Program.”
“If Congress doesn’t address this in the new relief package, there will be an overpayment situation for many employed Americans across the country that needs to be addressed,” he added.
‘Nightmarish’ scenario for employed Americans
Michelle Evermore, a senior researcher and policy analyst at the National Employment Law Project, expressed concern that something like this could happen as states rush to launch Trump’s Lost Wage Assistance Program and implement it in August. The program replaces the 600 federal unemployment supplement that ended in late July.
“If people are forced to give back money it will be a nightmare for unemployed Americans and the state’s unemployment systems alike,” Evermore said. “Wisconsin isn’t necessarily wrong to share a disclaimer. It’s worth telling people that this temporary benefit is uncertain.”
In August, President Trump called on Congress to re-employ workers who have lost their jobs due to the epidemic after the stall of coronavirus assistance stalled to receive employment benefits from a 300-week federal fund.
Trump instructed FEMA to run a કાર્યક્રમ 300-a-week relief program through its Disaster Relief Fund, which would be $ 44 billion. It was to run until December. But experts estimate that states will run out of funds in about five or six weeks in early August, and threatened to leave jobless Americans without additional aid in the weeks after Congress failed to pass a second aid package this month.
And some states, including Arizona, Missouri and Montana, have already drained the funds. And Texas said Wednesday that the distribution of the additional ડ 300 will end in the week ending Sept. 5.
Washington’s latest failed attempt to strike a deal in Washington could be the last chance for lawmakers to reach an agreement on a stimulus bill before the November election. Some economists say the loss in aid could also make it harder for household spending, which could hit U.S. No. accounts for more than two-thirds of economic growth.
About 30 million Americans are receiving unemployment benefits, according to the Department of Labor. State unemployment programs only cover about 41% of one’s lost wages, data from the Brookings Institution shows.
“Some people cannot cover their basic needs on regular state benefits. Statner says it will get tougher until the economy improves. “People may be forced to make tougher decisions by raiding 401 (k) or selling their homes, contributing to greater inequality in America.”
Almost all states except South Dakota have applied for funding through the FMA. So far, at least 22 of them have started distributing money.
States generally cannot pay unemployment insurance that is not authorized by Congress. They are therefore forced to reconfigure their systems for the distribution of funds, resulting in long delays.
Wisconsin, the main swing state in the U.S. election, was allowed to provide 300 times a week in federal aid for three weeks to people who were unemployed due to wages lost from the epidemic. And additional week funding will be determined based on the following week.
But the state warned last week that it could take up to eight weeks to re-program the state’s unemployment system for the distribution of funds.
States lack guidance without new laws
U.S. Guidance by the Department of Labor has shown that the end of the Lost Wage Assistance Program from the Trump administration must end if Congress passes a new law providing complementary unemployment benefits, including an extension of the federal epidemic unemployment compensation program that ended in July.
However, the question of whether the money provided by Trump’s program is to be returned to the public cannot be answered until the new law provides guidance, according to the Department of Labor.
Essentially, the federal government is saying it has not yet decided how the overpayments will be paid through the program. The Wisconsin-based labor and employment attorney, who specializes in unemployment cases, has opened the way for states like Wisconsin to interpret how to get money, according to Victor Forberger.
Forburger argues that “Wisconsin has made an administrative interpretation contrary to the law’s approval,” adding that the state is “very aggressive” when it comes to reimbursing overpayments.
To be sure, it is possible that Wisconsin could go beyond its authority, some experts argue, as there is nothing in the current declaration that would require states to repay loss wage aid to the people.
The Labor Department asked USA Today to contact FEMA for comment.
“FMA provides the money, states operate the program,” FEMA said in an email statement to USA Today. “FEMA cannot estimate whether people are eligible or ineligible to receive lost wage assistance. Eligibility is determined at the state level. ”
How people can return funds
It is unclear how people will return the money, but there can be many ways.
If Congress passes a new advanced unemployment program, people could cut their predecessor federal payments to cover higher pay, Shearers said. Or they will be able to get full pay under the new program but will have to repay what they owe, he added.
Contributors: Brent Scrottenboer and Cherry Jones
