The
Montana Department of Labor & Industry (DLI) today announced that Montana
has begun paying out Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits under the Pandemic
Unemployment Assistance and Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation
program extensions passed through the federal Continued Assistance for
Unemployed Workers Act of 2020.
Below are
the additional major program changes or extensions passed through the Act that
Montana has finished implementing:
- The
Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program, which provides
unemployment benefits to the self-employed and others affected by
COVID-19, will remain active until UI week ending March 13, 2021, with
final payments on continued claims ending April 10, 2021. Eligible
claimants will now have up to 50 weeks of eligibility.
- The
Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) program now provides
up to an additional 11 weeks of benefits, for a total of up to 24 weeks,
for those eligible who have exhausted their UI claims. Initial claims will
be accepted through March 13, 2021, with final payments on continued
claims ending April 10, 2021.
- The
Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) program provides an
additional $300 weekly unemployment payment to eligible claimants. The
payment is available from the UI week ending January 2, 2021, through the
week ending March 13, 2021.
PEUC, PUA
and FPUC benefits are 100% federally funded.
In
addition, Montana is participating in the new Mixed Earner Unemployment
Compensation (MEUC) program, created under the federal Continued Assistance for
Unemployed Workers Act of 2020
. MEUC is an
optional program for states to administer. The program provides specific
individuals with an additional $100 Unemployment Insurance (UI) payment each
week. To receive this additional weekly payment, eligible individuals must:
- Have received at least $5,000
in annual self-employment income in the most recent taxable year prior to
their regular unemployment compensation application.
- Be receiving an unemployment
benefit other than Pandemic Unemployment Assistance.
- Submit documentation
substantiating their self-employment income.
This
program will be payable from the UI week ending January 2, 2021, through the UI
week ending March 13, 2021. DLI is in the process of implementing
programming changes to accept applications for this new program. Eligible
claimants will receive backdated payments once software changes are
complete. The Department will announce by press release, on dli.mt.gov,
and social media when MEUC programming is complete.
MEUC marks
the ninth new stimulus UI program DLI has launched since March, alongside
numerous additional changes to existing programs to help claimants access
benefits during the ongoing pandemic. Since the beginning of the COVID-19
pandemic, DLI has issued over $1.1B in benefits, providing economic relief to
Montanans and their surrounding communities.
DLI continues to encourage anyone
who believes they may be eligible for UI to file a claim online at
MontanaWorks.gov, or at mtpua.mt.gov for those that fall under the
PUA eligibility guidelines. Those with technical,
eligibility, or benefits questions are encouraged to view the COVID-19 resource
website at
dli.mt.gov/covid-19. A variety of information for both Montana workers
and employers are available, in addition to resources to help claimants
navigate the unemployment process.