Key Insights: State Pandemic Unemployment Insurance Programs
Summary
A page titled Key Insights: State Pandemic Unemployment Insurance Programs, saying the PRAC looked at more than 40 reports from 16 states on how they handled jobless benefits early in the pandemic. It says the unemployment rate hit 15% in April 2020 and the federal government made $716 billion worth of unemployment benefits available to states. It says Ohio took more than 70 days to process nearly half of its first payments and that Arizona paid $1.6 billion in benefits to individuals who applied using a stolen identity. It also says California estimated it sent $800 million in benefits to 45,000 prisoners, and that a single social security number was used in 29 states to get more than $220,000.
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“Key Insights: State Pandemic Unemployment Insurance Programs.”
Original at www.pandemicoversight.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/prac-state-ui-report-captured-2026-07-06-219e06b482/
, SHA-256 149bfc2e334112e529bee3cc659b4dc9b5a36baafa7e28f56e99ddb27453afaf.Full text
Key Insights: State Pandemic Unemployment Insurance Programs Historic unemployment. Record relief. We looked at more than 40 reports from 16 states to see how they handled jobless benefits early in the pandemic. Image Jobless rate in April 2020 - the highest on record Image The pandemic caused historic levels of unemployment. By April 2020, the unemployment rate hit 15% - the highest rate since data collection began in 1948. The federal government responded by making $716 billion worth of unemployment benefits available to states. This caused a surge in applications for unemployment benefits. Image Kansas received 12.5 million phone calls to its State Workforce Agency customer service line in April 2020. Image Oklahoma paid out ten times the amount it does in a typical year. Image Washington received more than 180,000 claims in one week in March, 2020. Claims typically peaked at 10,000 per week. CALIFORNIA 960% INCREASE BETWEEN JANUARY AND APRIL 2020 Image KANSAS 1,092% INCREASE BETWEEN JANUARY AND APRIL 2020 Image LOUISIANA 3,536% INCREASE BETWEEN JANUARY AND APRIL 2020 Image OHIO 1,317% INCREASE BETWEEN JANUARY AND APRIL 2020 Image WASHINGTON 1,227% INCREASE BETWEEN JANUARY AND APRIL 2020 Image The surge overwhelmed State Workforce Agencies that processed the applications. It took Ohio more than 70 days to process nearly half of its first payments – far longer than the federal government’s goal for states to issue payments within 14 days . The state eventually hired temporary staff to help speed up processing applications. Image A new federal unemployment insurance program let applicants self-certify eligibility for benefits – no proof of income or identity needed. The CARES Act created the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program to provide unemployment benefits to workers not typically eligible to receive benefits, such as self-employed workers and gig workers. For these types of workers, there is no third party or employer that can verify employment status. Without the ability to verify eligibility, fraud was rampant. And the schemes varied. Image Arizona paid $1.6 billion in benefits to individuals that applied using a stolen identity. Image California estimated it sent $800 million in benefits to 45,000 prisoners . Image A single social security number was used in 29 states to get more than $220,000 in unemployment benefits. NOTE In December 2020, Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, which amended the CARES Act to require documentation to receive unemployment benefits from the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program. Starting January 31, 2021, individuals who applied for UI benefits have 21 days to provide proof of employment or self-employment. In August 2021, the Department of Labor made $240 million available in grants to states to help upgrade their unemployment systems and purchase identity verification services. In September 2021, all three federal unemployment insurance programs ended . Read the full report here. Page last modified: 11/06/2023
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- www.pandemicoversight.gov