SC approved for extra $300 per week in federal unemployment benefits

Sep. 2--The Federal Emergency Management Agency has approved South Carolina's application for extra unemployment benefits, the Department of Employment and Workforce announced Tuesday night.

The funds will provide an extra $300 per week for every eligible person in the state who files for support, dating retroactively to Aug. 1, DEW has said.

South Carolina's economy has suffered during the coronavirus pandemic, and while the unemployment rate has declined every month since April, it is still at 8.6%, more than triple what it was in February. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported around 212,000 South Carolinians were out of work in July.

The added assistance comes from a federal program established by President Donald Trump in August after negotiations in Congress over a second round of COVID-19 aid stalled. The Lost Wages Assistance program offers an extra $300 per week for anyone already receiving $100 in unemployment benefits and allows states to contribute an extra $100 per week as well.

Gov. Henry McMaster and DEW opted not to contribute the extra $100, which would have required approval from the state legislature. In doing so, DEW said, it will not have to pay $20 million more per week, for a total of up to $462 million.

How quickly the new payments will start now that South Carolina's application has been approved is still unclear.

DEW director Dan Ellzey has said the agency will work as quickly as possible to get the application into DEW's system, but reports have warned that it could take weeks, if not months, given the crush of applicants. In a release Tuesday, DEW said it is working to update its online portal with the requirements of the new program, which could take two to three weeks.

And how long the program, which replaces the extra $600 per week paid out under the CARES Act that expired, will last is unclear as well.

DEW said the program and all payments will end on Dec. 26 if the funding is not gone before the sunset date. But reports from CNBC and Business Insider indicate that funding could run out well before then.

___

(c)2020 The State (Columbia, S.C.)

Visit The State (Columbia, S.C.) at www.thestate.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.