As many as 200,000 Louisianans on unemployment could be ineligible to receive the new 300 dollar federally enhanced weekly benefits.
Workers must receive at least 100 dollars a week in state benefits to qualify for the 300 extra. Governor Edwards says that’s only about half of all state unemployment beneficiaries.
“There is some question about whether the full universe of unemployed people who were getting the 600 dollars will be able to get the 300 dollars, so there are still a lot of questions about this,” says Edwards.
A spokesperson for Senator Bill Cassidy told The Advocate that people receiving under 100 dollars a week from the state could get a prorated cut of the 300 dollar federal benefit.
The 300 dollar benefit is the result of an executive order by the President over the weekend. Edwards was alarmed that the benefit is being funded by FEMA emergency relief funds during hurricane season.
“If you look at the available portion of the disaster relief fund and then look back at the burn rate of unemployment benefits, if every state participated it wouldn’t last more than four or five weeks,” says Edwards.
Edwards also raised concerns that without some federal intervention the state unemployment trust fund will soon be depleted, and the state will have to start borrowing that money from the feds.
“The balance of which is 253 million dollars. It was about one billion and fifty million or so on March the 1st,” says Edwards.
State beneficiaries can receive a maximum of 247 dollars a week.
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