On April 4, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued Unemployment Insurance Guidance Letter 15-20 (UIPL 15-20) to provide additional guidance to the states on the temporary expanded unemployment insurance benefits available under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act of 2020 (CARES Act). UIPL 15-20 can be found here: https://wdr.doleta.gov/directives/attach/UIPL/UIPL_15-20.pdf

A general overview of the CARES Act can be found here: https://kahanafeld.com/2020/03/28/legal-alert-federal-government-enacts-2-trillion-dollar-stimulus-bill/ and https://kahanafeld.com/2020/04/01/small-businesses-receive-guidance-under-the-cares-act/.

UIPL 15-20 restates many provisions of the CARES Act, including what funding for the expansion of benefits covers, such as states’ administrative costs, along with how the states are supposed to seek reimbursement.   However, the primary emphasis of the new guidance is on section 2104 of the CARES Act, which authorizes Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) benefits. Under the FPUC, individuals who are otherwise entitled to receive regular unemployment insurance benefits through their states will also receive a $600 payment through July 31, 2020.  In Appendix I to UIPL 15-20, the DOL made clear for the first time that only if an individual is eligible to actually receive at least a nominal amount ($1.00) of regular unemployment insurance benefits for a given workweek will the individual also be eligible to receive the $600 payment.

We will provide further updates as additional guidance is published in the coming days and weeks.