Unemployment Extended Benefits

Unemployment Extended Benefits

On Saturday, March 9, 2002, President Bush signed into law a program of extended unemployment insurance benefits. Governor Swift has taken action to make this extension effective immediately in Massachusetts.

Notification plans
DET will notify, by letter, everyone who may be eligible for these extended benefits. This letter will also explain how and when to file for the extension. The letters were to have been mailed starting on March 20, 2002.

There are two "tiers" of extended benefits in the program.

Tier 1 Extended Benefits
Up to 13 weeks of "Tier I" extended benefits are available effective immediately for the week-ending Saturday, March 16, 2002 for individuals who meet the following criteria:

Filed a claim for regular unemployment insurance benefits on or after March 15, 2001;
Are currently unemployed and have exhausted all regular benefits;
Worked an equivalent of 20 weeks during the year prior to starting their claim for regular benefits.

Massachusetts only requires the equivalent of 15 weeks of work to qualify for regular benefits. Therefore, it is possible that some individuals who qualified for regular UI benefits may not qualify for extended benefits.

The weekly amount of extended benefits will be equal to the weekly benefit amount the claimant received while collecting regular unemployment insurance benefits. This includes any dependency allowance the individual received.

The maximum number of weeks in which an individual may collect Tier I extended benefits is set at one-half the number of weeks the individual collected regular benefits, up to a maximum of 13 weeks.

There is one change for people who are eligible for more than 26 weeks of benefits under the regular state program. Under Massachusetts law, regular benefits are capped at 26 weeks (instead of the maximum of 30 weeks) whenever there is a program of extended benefits. This means that, effective immediately, individuals will be able to collect up to 26 weeks of regular benefits and up to 13 weeks of Tier I extended benefits, for a maximum total of 39 weeks. However, individuals who have already collected more than 26 weeks of benefits prior to this law change will also be eligible for up to 13 weeks of Tier 1 extended benefits.

Tier 2 Extended Benefits
"Tier 2" extended benefits will be available to individuals who exhaust both their regular benefits and their "Tier 1" extended benefits if/when Massachusetts has an "insured unemployment rate" that meets the criteria for "triggering" a program of extended benefits.

Massachusetts currently meets the criteria, and the Tier 2 program will be operational in this state until at least the end of May 2002.

The same criteria regarding eligibility and the benefit amount that apply to Tier 1 Extended Benefits applies to Tier 2 Extended Benefits, with the maximum number of weeks set at 13.

Both tiers of extended benefits expire on December 28, 2002.

The number for filing extended benefits claims. is 1-800-535-0796.

For more information: www.detma.org/workers/extendedqanda.htm

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