“Federal stimulus legislation offered a critical lifeline to millions of households impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and included a host of programs that provide financial support to eligible Americans. Some of those unemployment benefit programs, including Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC), Extended Benefits (EB) and $300 Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC), expire on Sept. 5.

However, New Yorkers who are unemployed and in the first 26 weeks of benefits are still eligible for state unemployment insurance (UI) benefits after Sept. 5. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has also asked states to continue accepting new PUA claims for a period of 30 days after it expires and backdate eligible claims as necessary. Recently, New York State’s unemployment rate has also fallen below the threshold to qualify for the highest level of EB. Beginning Aug. 9, EB will be available for a maximum of 13 weeks and the program fully ends on Sept. 5. Claimants who have received 13 or more weeks of EB after Aug. 9 may be eligible for PEUC or PUA benefits through Sept. 5.

To learn how these changes may affect you and your household or access job search resources, visit www.dol.ny.gov/fedexp . New Yorkers can also visit mybenefits.ny.gov to learn more about state assistance programs and apply for a host of benefits.

“As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact my office at 631-537-2583 or ThieleF@nyassembly.gov.”