States mull how to carry out Trump order on unemployment aid
Governors and state labor department officials are scrambling to determine whether they could implement President Donald Trump's executive order to partially extend federal unemployment benefits to millions of jobless Americans.
Mr. Trump's order allocates $44 billion in federal dollars from FEMA's Disaster Relief Fund to boost unemployment aid for the jobless and calls on states to kick in roughly $15 billion. The Trump administration says states can pull from federal coronavirus relief funds already distributed earlier in the crisis, although some states have already fully allocated that money for other needs.
The White House action extends additional unemployment payments of $400 a week to help cushion Americans from the devastating economic impact of the pandemic. Congress had approved payments of $600 a week at the outset of the outbreak, but those benefits expired Aug. 1, and lawmakers have failed to agree on an extension.
Many Republicans have expressed concern that a $600 weekly benefit, on top of existing state benefits, gives people an incentive to stay unemployed. The White House described the $400 level as an appropriate compromise, and top administration officials including Vice President Mike Pence on Monday urged governors in a private call to pressure Democratic lawmakers to come to a deal.
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