Sneak Preview: ARPA Extends COVID-Related UI Benefit Availability

(The following was excerpted from a recent Thompson Grants 360 article.) The Department of Labor (DOL) Employment and Training Administration (ETA) recently issued guidance to state workforce agencies informing them about key Unemployment Insurance (UI)-related provisions, including the extension of the availability of benefits, as established under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) (Pub. L. 117-2).

Along with discussing how ARPA affects the various UI programs previously developed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the guidance also addresses the importance of program integrity and new funding under ARPA for fraud detection and prevention.

ARPA, which was signed into law March 11, 2021, amended certain provisions in the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (Pub. L. 116-127), the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (Pub. L. 116-136) and the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (Pub. L. 116-260).

According to the guidance, ARPA extended from March 14 to Sept. 6 the period of time during which the federal government will deem interest as paid, and no interest will accrue, on state advances from the Federal Unemployment Account. In addition, full federal funding for sharable regular compensation and sharable extended compensation for eligible states will be extended through the weeks of unemployment beginning before Sept. 6 (or ending on Sept. 11 in states where the week of unemployment ends on a Saturday, or on Sept. 5 in states where the week of employments ends on a Sunday).

ARPA also extended the authority for states to temporarily hire emergency staff in response to the spread of COVID-19 from March 14 to Sept. 6. However, “this flexibility only applies for responding to workload and increased demand resulting from the spread of COVID-19 and is limited to engaging temporary staff, rehiring retirees and former employees on a noncompetitive basis, and other temporary actions to quickly process applications and claims,” according to the guidance.

Other UI provisions implemented under the CARES Act also will be extended under ARPA. The Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program, which provides benefits for individuals affected by the pandemic who do not qualify for regular UI, has been extended to weeks of employment ending on or before Sept. 6. ARPA repealed the program’s phaseout period, which was to begin April 5 as originally provided for in the Consolidated Appropriations Act. The maximum number of weeks PUA benefits will be available was increased from 50 weeks to 79 weeks, although states may only pay the additional 29 weeks of benefits if the weeks apply to weeks of unemployment ending after March 14 (or on March 20 in states where the week of unemployment ends on a Saturday, or March 21 in states where the week of unemployment ends on a Sunday).

(The full version of this story has now been made available to all for a limited time here.)

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