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Unemployment benefits extended for another 20 weeks in New York State
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Rate of unemployment benefit exhaustion, by state, per 1,000 population
On November 6, 2009, President Obama signed legislation that extends unemployment benefits for 14 weeks in all states and 20 weeks in states that have 8.5% unemployment or higher. Since New York’s unemployment rate currently stands at 8.9%, New Yorkers are eligible for the 20-week extension. That extension now allows some New Yorkers to collect up to 99 weeks of unemployment benefits.
One drawback of the legislation is that those who lost unemployment benefits since the last extension was exhausted - about four weeks ago - will not be eligible to collect benefits for those missed weeks. It’s important to know that if you did lose your benefits during that four-week period, you will have to reapply for the benefits extension. Update: As alert reader Bud noted: You do not have to reapply if you continued to sign each week.
As one reader pointed out and according to unemployment101 there is a glitch in the system with regard to collecting the 20 weeks of extended benefits in states with unemployment rates at or exceeding 8.5%. It seems that congress wrote the extension legislation as two separate extensions; one for 14 weeks and one for six weeks. Here's the problem as noted by unemployment101:
There is also the issue of the end-of-the-year filing deadline. The bill signed by Obama earlier this month, H.R. 3548, grants an additional six weeks of unemployment aid to jobless workers who will have exhausted their benefits by the end of 2009 and live in a state with an unemployment rate at or above 8.5 percent. But because the new law treats the 20-week extension as two separate extensions (one of 14 weeks and one of six weeks) with participants required to exhaust the first 14 weeks before applying for the next six, the December 31 application deadline prevents anyone from collecting the full allotment. (The end of the year is seven weeks away, so no one will have exhausted their initial 14 weeks by then.)
Congress is likely to issue clarification to address this matter and I'll update you when an update is available. On a side note, why would Congress pass unemployment legislation that on its face seems rather simple - an extension of 14 weeks or 20 weeks - but in reality makes no sense at all, since no one would be able to collect 20 weeks as it's written? It only took Congress about five weeks to draft, discuss and then finally pass defective legislation. Don't worry, we're in good hands...........well, worry a little. :)
If you have questions about the extension, you can email NYS Department of Labor at labor.sm.ui.division@labor.state.ny.us, or call the NYSDOL information line for a recorded message at 888-581-5812.
If you live in another state, take a look at the BLS report to see your state’s latest reported unemployment rate, or visit “Where does your state rank?” to use an interactive map.
The New York Times has an FAQ article that answers some unemployment extension questions: Extended Unemployment Benefits: F.A.Q.
This latest extension is an update to my previous article: How long can you collect unemployment benefits in New York?
The attached graphic shows that more than 1.3 million people would have lost benefits if this extension had not been approved.
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