Some relief may be in sight for unemployed New Jersey residents. State officials have applied for an extra $300 per week of federal unemployment insurance for NJ residents who lost their job due to the coronavirus pandemic.
If you recall, the prior federal stimulus plan offered all unemployed citizens an extra $600 in benefits per week. However, that program expired in July and neither the House or Senate could agree on a new bill.
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So President Trump signed an executive order allowing states to apply for additional federal funds from FEMA. (It’s technically called Lost Wages Supplemental Assistance or LWA for short). Initially, states had to contribute $100/week for a total of $400/week in additional benefits. (That would’ve broken down to $300 from the government and $100 from the state). However, states no longer have to provide that extra $100/week. (Which would’ve amounted to $80 million per week for individual states).
If approved, NJ residents would retroactively receive checks for the month of August. There are a few catches. First, only residents who lost their job due to the coronavirus pandemic would qualify. (In other words, if you were unemployed prior to the pandemic, you’re not getting that extra $300/week). Also, it’s still unknown if residents will have to fill out new applications or if they’ll automatically be enrolled to receive the new benefits.
The program would run through December 6 and NJ residents could see their first payment by October.
