UIPL_27-20_acc.pdf

ETA Advisory File Text

EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION ADVISORY SYSTEM U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR Washington D.C. 20210 CLASSIFICATION Unemployment Insurance CORRESPONDENCE SYMBOL OUI DFAS DATE August 12 2020 RESCISSIONS None EXPIRATION DATE Continuing ADVISORY UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE PROGRAM LETTER NO. 27-20 TO STATE WORKFORCE AGENCIES FROM JOHN PALLASCH s Assistant Secretary SUBJECT Presidential Memorandum on Authorizing the Other Needs Assistance Program for Major Disaster Declarations Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 COVID- 19 Unemployment Insurance UI -Related Technical Assistance for States Administering Lost Wages Assistance LWA 1. Purpose. To provide states with Unemployment Insurance UI -related technical assistance for administering LWA provided under Section 408 e 2 in the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Stafford Act 42 U.S.C. 5174 e 2 as authorized by the Presidential Memorandum Authorizing the Other Needs Assistance Program for Major Disaster Declarations Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 issued on August 8 2020. 2. Action Requested. The U.S. Department of Labor s Department Employment and Training Administration ETA requests State Workforce Administrators to provide the information contained in this Unemployment Insurance Program Letter UIPL to appropriate program and other staff in state workforce systems. 3. Summary and Background. a. Summary On August 8 2020 the President issued a memorandum Authorizing the Other Needs Assistance Program for Major Disaster Declarations Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 Presidential Memo instructing the Secretary of Homeland Security acting through the Federal Emergency Management Agency FEMA to make available other needs assistance ONA for lost wages in accordance with Section 408 e 2 of the Stafford Act 42 U.S.C. 5174 e 2 . LWA will be administered by states and territories through a grant agreement with FEMA. FEMA will not administer benefits directly to individuals. The states and territories will distribute the funds through their UI system as a supplemental payment. The Presidential Memo also directed the Department to provide FEMA and the states with technical assistance in the implementation of the program through their existing UI systems. To apply for a grant from FEMA to implement the LWA program states may find information on the application process at the FEMA website at https www.fema.gov disasters coronavirus supplementa l-payments-lost-wages and at 2 Grants.gov application at https www.grants.gov web grants view- opportunity.html oppId 328611. Upon a grant award by FEMA states and territories may provide eligible claimants 400 per week with a 300 federal contribution in addition to the individual s underlying unemployment benefit. LWA is funded using a 75 percent federal cost share and a 25 percent state match. If states wish to provide this maximum 400 benefit to their claimants they may fund 100 out of amounts allocated to them out of the Coronavirus Relief Fund CRF provided under Title V of the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security CARES Act Public Law 116-136 or other state funding to cover the 25 percent state match. Alternatively states may count funds that are already used to provide regular state UI payments toward the state match if they choose to do so eligible claimants will receive a LWA payment of 300 from the Federal Government in addition to their weekly benefit amount. This is discussed further below. We acknowledge that American Samoa Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands are eligible to participate in the LWA program though they do not have an underlying UI program. Technical assistance will be provided separately to these territories regarding the state match. LWA is payable to eligible claimants beginning with weeks of unemployment ending on or after August 1 2020 through weeks of unemployment ending no later than December 27 2020. The LWA program may terminate earlier than December 27 2020 if FEMA expends the 44 billion from the Disaster Relief Fund DRF account designated by the President for the LWA program or The total balance of the DRF account decreases to 25 billion or Legislation is enacted that provides due to the COVID-19 outbreak supplemental federal unemployment compensation or similar compensation for unemployed or underemployed individuals. The Presidential Memo requires the Secretary of Labor to provide as appropriate and consistent with applicable law technical assistance to FEMA and state governors in the implementation of LWA programs. This UIPL provides technical assistance to states and includes i a summary of the requirements for eligible claimants as further described on the FEMA website ii important program dates and iii financial instructions related to benefit costs and administrative costs. b. Background The CARES Act was signed into law by the President on March 27 2020 and includes the Relief for Workers Affected by Coronavirus Act set out in Division A Title II Subtitle A as well as the CRF set out in Title V. The CARES Act provides 3 emergency assistance for certain individuals families and businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Section 2104 of the CARES Act provided for a temporary emergency increase in unemployment compensation benefits referred to as Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation FPUC and included funding to states for the administration of such program. This program previously provided eligible individuals with 600 per week in addition to the weekly benefit amount they received from certain other unemployment compensation UC programs. The Department issued UIPL Nos. 15-20 and 15-20 Change 1 setting forth operating and financial instructions for the FPUC program. If a state chooses to implement LWA an otherwise eligible individual could receive his or her last payment of FPUC for the week-ending July 25 2020 and then his or her first week of LWA for the week-ending August 1 2020 or later. 4. Guidance. a. Eligible Claimants. As provided in the Presidential Memo an eligible claimant is an individual who 1 provides self-certification that he or she is unemployed or partially unemployed due to disruptions caused by COVID-19 and 2 receives for the week of unemployment with respect to which LWA is sought at least 100 of regular UC or any of the following UC programs Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees UCFE Unemployment Compensation for Ex-Servicemembers UCX Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation PEUC Pandemic Unemployment Assistance PUA Extended Benefits EB Short-Time Compensation STC Trade Readjustment Allowances TRA and Payments under the Self-Employment Assistance SEA program. States will need to develop a self-certification process in accordance with FEMA instructions for claimants to certify weekly that they are unemployed or partially unemployed due to disruptions caused by COVID-19. LWA is not payable to individuals collecting Disaster Unemployment Assistance DUA . Additionally a number of state laws include provisions for extending the potential duration of benefits during periods of high unemployment for individuals in approved training who exhaust benefits or for a variety of other reasons. Although some state laws call these programs extended benefits the Department uses the term additional benefits AB for these state programs to avoid confusion with the Federal-State EB program. LWA is not payable to individuals who are receiving AB payments. For additional information for identifying eligible claimants refer to the FEMA website. 4 b. Important Program Dates. LWA is payable for weeks of unemployment ending on or after August 1 2020 through weeks o f unemployment ending before December 27 2020 contingent upon sufficient balances remaining in the DRF . Accordingly in states wh ere the week of unemployment ends on a Saturday the first week that LWA may be paid is the week ending August 1 2020. For states where the week of unemployment ends on a Sunday the first week that LWA is payable is the week ending August 2 2020. LW A is not payable for any week of unemployment ending after December 27 2020. Accordingly for states where the week of unemployment ends on a Saturday the last week that LWA may be paid is the week ending December 26 2020. For states where the week of unemployment ends on a Sunday the last week that LWA is payable is the week ending December 27 2020. However the LWA program may terminate earlier if FEMA expends the 44 billion from the DRF account designated by the President for the LWA progra m or The balance of the DRF decreases to 25 billion o r Legislation is enacted that provides due to the COVID -19 outbreak supplemental federal unemployment compensation or similar compensation for unemployed or underemployed individuals. For addi tional information regarding termination of the program refer to the FEMA website . c. Financial Instructio ns . Benefit Costs . Upon a grant award by FEMA states and territories may provide eligible claimants 400 per week with a 300 federal contribution. LWA is funded using a 75 percent federal cost share and 25 percent state match. For information regarding the federal cost share refer to the FEMA website . If states wish to provide this maximum benefit to their claimants they may pay an additional 100 per claimant per week us ing amounts allocated to them out of the CRF provided under Title V of the CARES Act Public Law 116 -136 or other state funding to cover the 25 percent state match. States may meet the 100 per claimant per week state ma tch with the payments they make for regular state UI benefits to claimants that also meet the requirement to be unemployed or partially unemployed as a result of COVID -19 if they choose to do so . This includ es states in borrowing status pursuant to Title XII of the Social Security Act. In this case eligible claimants will only receive a LWA payment of 300 in addition to their weekly benefit amount . 5 If a state chooses to use another state funding source e.g . CRF or general revenue besides those curren tly supporting the state UI program to cover the 25 percent state match eligible claimants will receive a total LWA payment of 400 in addition to their weekly benefit amount . The 400 consists of 300 from the federal cost share and 100 from the state match . The Presidential Memo does not change any requirements for using a state s unemployment account within the Unemployment Trust Fund . Administrative Costs. Administrative funding for the LWA program including changes to existing UI systems to acco mmodate the program is provided by FEMA. For information regarding the available federal administrative funds refer to the FEMA website . Federal grants fo r administration of state UC l aw may not be used to pay for any part of the costs of administrat ion of LWA. In addition if any state staff or other assets e.g. information technology office space utilities are normally paid for with UC administrative funding including from the state s UC state administrative grant or other sources of funding for UC administration e.g. Reed Act funding and are used to support the LWA program then cost sharing agreements must be in place. LWA administrative funding must pay for the proportionate share of these resources used to support administration of LWA . Training and Employment Guidance Letter TEGL No. 06 -02 provides additional information regarding indirect cost rates and cost allocation plans. 5. Inquiries . States should direct inquiries regarding LWA to FEMA -IHPHelpdesk fema.dhs.gov . States may direct inquiries reg arding the intersection of LWA with unemployment benefit programs to covid -19 dol.gov . 6. References . Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic S ecurity CARES Act Pub. L. 116 -136 including Division A Title II Subtitle A Relief for Workers Affected by Coronavirus Act and Title V Coronavirus Relief Funds CRF Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act 42 U.S.C. 5121 e t seq. Presidential Memorandum Authorizing the Other Needs Assistance Program for Major Disaster Declarations Related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 issued August 8 2020 UIPL No. 15 -20 Change 1 Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security CARES Act of 2020 Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation FPUC Program Reporting Instructions and Questions and Answers issued May 9 2020 https wdr.doleta.gov directives corr doc. cfm DOCN 3946 UIPL No. 15 -20 Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security CARES Act of 2020 Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation FPUC Program Operating Financial and Reporting Instructions issued April 4 2020 https wdr.doleta.gov directives corr doc.cfm DOCN 9297 TEGL No. 06 -02 Guidance on the Recovery of Indirect Costs issued August 21 2002 https wdr.doleta.gov directives corr doc.cfm DOCN 1416 6 Grants.gov Application at https www.grants.gov web grants view - opportunity.html oppId 328611 and FE MA Website at https www.fema.gov disasters coronavirus supplementa l-payments - lost -wages .