
Gov. J.B. Pritzker is pictured in his Springfield office in August 2019.
SPRINGFIELD — Illinois is one of the last states to apply and be approved for a federal program providing an additional $300 in unemployment assistance per week to qualifying residents.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced Monday he instructed the Illinois Department of Employment Security to submit an application “despite serious concerns about the unfairness” of the program. The Federal Emergency Management Agency certified that request on Tuesday.
Funding for the Lost Wage Assistance Program was redirected by President Donald Trump from the agency’s disaster relief fund. That money is typically used to finance the federal government’s response to major domestic disasters, such as assisting hurricane survivors.
Trump issued the order in July shortly after a measure creating $600 in added weekly benefits through the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security, Or CARES, Act expired.
Up to $44 billion is available to states through Dec. 27, or until the funding runs out. Benefits can be retroactively paid to eligible Illinoisans, starting with the week ending Aug. 1.
The governor’s office, in a news release, estimated that funding will be exhausted in three weeks. It cited unspecified “economic projections for the demand of these funds.”
Only those Americans who are eligible for at least $100 per week in unemployment benefits qualify for the extra $300 in federal funding. That is why Pritzker said Illinois did not apply for the program sooner — about 55,000 residents will be excluded, according to his office.
As of Wednesday, 45 states are approved to receive grants, including Illinois, which was the 44th state approved. Applications were accepted beginning Aug. 15 and the federal government has begun paying out benefits.
“President Trump’s program will likely cut off the most vulnerable workers, create needless competition among the states for these limited FEMA dollars, and sow more confusion among the unemployed, so I want to caution that those eligible for these dollars will likely encounter frustration and unfairness brought on by the president’s short-sighted and short lived program,” Pritzker said in a written statement.
“However, the $300 benefit will provide much needed assistance for those who can get it, too many of whom are facing terrible choices about whether to pay their rent, buy groceries or get medicine,” he continued. “We will do everything in our power to make sure that every eligible recipient can participate in this program.”
Other states developed a work-around to tackle the issue of residents not otherwise qualifying for the extra federal financial assistance. New Hampshire, for example, is supplementing its residents’ unemployment benefits to ensure everyone reaches the $100 threshold.
According to the New Hampshire Employment Security Department, “for those people eligible for less than $100 in weekly unemployment benefits, New Hampshire is making additional changes to increase the minimum state unemployment benefit up to $100 so that all unemployed Granite Staters will be eligible.”
In Rhode Island, Scott Jensen, the state’s Department of Labor and Training director, said officials will briefly increase residents’ benefits so they qualify for the Lost Wage Assistance program.
Spokespeople for Pritzker and the Department of Employment Security did not respond to questions about whether a similar strategy was considered in Illinois.
IDES is tasked with distributing whatever federal funds Illinois is allocated and identifying which residents qualify for that assistance.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 24,116 Illinoisans filed new unemployment claims for the week ending Aug. 29. That is down 2,146 new claims filed the week prior.
The number of those residents receiving continuing unemployment benefits also decreased by more than 35,000, from 593,305 the week ending Aug. 15 to 555,582 the week after.
The number of Illinoisans who filed Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claims slightly increased from 4,169 the week ending Aug. 22 to 4,433 the week ending Aug. 29. The PUA program was designed for those who are self-employed and independent contractors who typically do not qualify for unemployment benefits.
Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service covering state government and distributed to more than 400 newspapers statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.
‘Big Jim’ Thompson left a big impression on Southern Illinois
Jim Thompson

Gov. Jim Thompson in Vienna.
Jim Thompson

Former Gov. Jim Thompson in the Du Quoin State Fair parade in 1986.
Jim Thompson

Gov. Jim Thompson receives the key to the Du Quoin State Fair in December 1985.
Jim Thompson

Gov. Jim Thompson and his wife, Jayne, at the Du Quoin State Fair in August 1990.
Jim Thompson

Governor Jim Thompson at Mary Lou's Grill in Carbondale.
Jim Thompson

Mayor Paul Wilkey, of Nashville, shakes hands with Gov. Jim Thompson after the governor announced that Magna International will open a new plant in the city, employing about 600.
Jim Thompson

Gov. Jim Thompson discusses renovation of the Du Quoin State Fair track with Rep. Wayne Goforth (second from left) and Rep. Jim Rea in 1985 shortly after announcing a deal for the state to take over the troubled fair from the Jabr family.
Jim Thompson

Gov. Jim Thompson at Giant City State Park Lodge in Carbondale.
Jim Thompson

Gov. Jim Thompson talks with Herrin Mayor Ed Quaglia in Herrin on Feb. 22, 1989.
Jim Thompson

Gov. Jim Thompson at the Du Quoin State Fair parade in August 1986.
Jim Thompson

Gov. Jim Thompson at a jewelry store in Herrin in January 1989.
Jim Thompson

Gov. Jim Thompson is the longest serving governor in Illinois history. He served four consecutive terms, from 1977 to 1991.
Jim Thompson

Gov. Jim Thompson speaking to a John A. Logan political science class in 1987.
Hambletonian

Illinois Gov. Jim Thompson (left) presides over presentation of the Hambletonian trophy to 1980 winner Billy Haughton (far right), who drove Burgomeister, owned by the estate of his son Peter, to the win over a field that included his younger son, Tom. It was the last running of the Hambletonian in Du Quoin.