Money for $300 unemployment boost to run out after 6 weeks
The temporary $300-a-week unemployment insurance boost implemented by President Donald Trump is about to end, with no extension in sight.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency said Thursday in an email to The Associated Press that it has distributed $30 billion of the $44 billion it had set aside for the benefit. The agency said the fund was enough to cover six weeks of additional jobless aid starting Aug. 1, so unemployed workers won't receive any more after this week.
FEMA emphasized that all eligible recipients will get the $300 boost to cover six weeks.
Some states had technical obstacles that have delayed the payments, and the federal government is still in the process of approving other states' plans to distribute the money. Eligible workers who have not yet received the $300-a-week supplement or have received less than six weeks' worth, will receive payments for their full share, according to FEMA. After that, the fund will be dry.
Trump created the program after a more generous $600-a-week benefit adopted by Congress expired. The federal government initially did not have an estimate of how long the money would last, but six weeks is in line with what experts expected.
The Trump administration and congressional Republicans and Democrats have been unable to agree on a new coronavirus relief package that would include an extension of the unemployment supplement.
Recipients have said the extra jolt of money from the federal government kept them afloat as the economy cratered amid stay-at-home orders and business closings. On Thursday, the government reported that 13.4 million Americans continue to receive state unemployment benefits, although not all of them are receiving the additional $300.
The $300-a-week payments came with a significant string attached: It...
