LANSING, Mich. — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's request for additional federal aid for unemployed Michiganders was approved.
The United States Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) approved the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency’s application for funding that would provide an additional $300 per week payment to those receiving unemployment benefits.
“This is good news for the thousands of Michiganders who are still without work as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it’s still a short term band aid that falls short of what’s needed,” Whitmer said in a release Friday.
“We need the president, Mitch McConnell, and Congress to put partisanship aside and pass a bipartisan recovery package that will help us save lives and get people back on their feet," Whitmer continued. "Michigan families, frontline workers, and small business owners are counting on the federal government to do the right thing and work together on their behalf.”
The UIA estimates that under the program, about 910,000 Michiganders would receive at least $300 per week in supplemental benefits. The program allows for existing Unemployment Trust Fund payments delivered by Michigan’s Unemployment Insurance Agency to count as 25% matching funds required for participation. Eligible claimants will be paid benefits retroactive to August 1. It is unclear at this time how long funding for the program will last.
At this time, claimants do not have to take any action to receive the additional benefit amount provided by the program. The additional benefits will be added automatically for all claimants who are eligible to receive at least $100 in weekly unemployment benefit payments. This includes claimants receiving any type of regular unemployment insurance benefits as well as those receiving Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) benefits.
Earlier this month, President Donald Trump issued an executive order that would provide $300 a week in federal aid to the jobless to replace the expired $600-a-week benefit. But experts say it would take weeks for the states to implement that payment.
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