New Developments on Federal Unemployment Extensions (Up-dated February 16, 2012)
en Español
02/16/12 2:30 p.m.
Updated: Status of legislation reauthorizing the federal extended benefits.
Recent activities in Congress, relating to federal extensions of Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits, indicate there is discussion to continue extensions past the current filing deadlines. However, they have not been discussing adding any additional weeks of benefits to increase the maximum of up to 99 weeks of benefits that are available now. Unless Congressional members and President Obama can reach an agreement before the end of the month, current filing deadlines for extension claims will take effect. This means an estimated 1.1 million Californians currently certifying for unemployment benefits will see a shortened supply of benefits available to them.
Some of these claimants will face an end to their benefits much faster than others. That includes the more long-term unemployed who are currently collecting on the separate extension known here in California as the FED-ED. The EDD estimates that’s about 90,000 people. Others who face a quick end to benefits are those who will be running out of their state regular UI or federal extension benefits shortly after March 4, 2012. Without further Congressional action, once they run out of those current benefits, there would no longer be any further federal extension benefits available.
But the majority of our current 1.1 million benefit recipients would still have a few weeks or months left on their current claim. Then once those benefits run out, no further federal extension benefits will be available.
We are committed to keeping our customers informed of all developments regarding federal extended unemployment benefits that may impact them, and will continue to monitor developments closely. We encourage you to watch for updates on this EDD website and on our EDD Twitter and Facebook pages.
In the meantime, here are the details on the current status of the unemployment extension benefits program.
Current Benefits Status
Currently, there are more than 1.1 million people certifying for benefits in California. The majority of these customers are collecting on a federal extension claim while the remainder are somewhere in the midst of a regular unemployment claim. A regular claim provides up to 26 weeks of benefits and federal extension benefits provide up to another 73 weeks of benefits, provided by the federal government due to the length and severity of the economic recession. Between regular and federal extension benefits, the EDD has paid a total of $17.1 billion in benefits for calendar year 2011 and $2.0 billion so far this year (as of February 14, 2012), and is currently paying about $327 million a week. These benefits provide critical sustenance to unemployed workers and their families, in addition to local businesses where much of the benefits are spent on basic needs.
Current UI Extended Benefit Duration & Claim Deadlines
Here is a breakdown of the filing deadlines for federal extension benefits:
| UI Claims | Maximum Weeks of Benefits Provided | Deadline for Starting This Type of UI Claim |
|---|---|---|
| Regular UI Claim | Up to 26 weeks of benefits | Once someone becomes unemployed |
| 1st Tier of Federal Extension | Up to 20 weeks of benefits | February 26, 2012 |
| 2nd Tier of Federal Extension | Up to 14 weeks of benefits | March 4, 2012 |
| 3rd Tier of Federal Extension | Up to 13 weeks of benefits | March 4, 2012 |
| 4th Tier of Federal Extension | Up to 6 weeks of benefits | March 4, 2012 |
| Separate FED-ED Extension | Up to 20 weeks of benefits | March 4, 2012* |
| POTENTIAL TOTAL MAXIMUM BENEFITS | Up to 99 weeks of benefits |
* As long as California continues to meet the unemployment rate threshold, it is anticipated that California will continue to be able to file FED-ED extensions through the effective date of March 4, 2012.
Customers Who Have Run Out of Maximum Benefits
The maximum total of unemployment benefits remains up to 99 weeks of benefits. As of February 13, 2012, there have been more than 623,088 unemployed workers in California who have run out of all available benefits, up to the 99 week maximum.
Unemployed individuals may be eligible for assistance to meet basic needs as well as other services such as health care, counseling, employment and training assistance. For more information, read the Assistance for Unemployed California Residents flyer and the Job Dislocation Brochure: English | Spanish.
For any further developments in the Unemployment Insurance program, as well as all other EDD programs and services, we encourage our customers watch for updates on our Website and on our EDD Twitter and Facebook pages.
