DeSantis eyes ways to get benefits
TALLAHASSEE – Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday he’s looking into ways to take advantage of President Trump’s executive order to extend unemployment benefits but added the state likely would have to borrow money from the federal government to make it happen.
That and other complications could make it unlikely that jobless Floridians would receive the benefit anytime soon.
One of Trump’s orders issued Saturday uses $44 billion from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to pay for $400 in federal jobless benefits, extending a program of $600 weekly benefits paid for by the CARES Act that expired July 31.
The order requires states to pay for $100 out of every $400 spent, but the money could come out of CARES Act funding already sent to the states to help them contend with the coronavirus pandemic. DeSantis said that isn’t an option for Florida, where the more than $5 billion in CARES Act money has already been obligated, even if it hasn’t been spent yet. Instead, he’s looking at getting a loan from the U.S. Department of Labor to pay for the state’s share, as the state did in 2008 during the Great Recession. Even that option, however, could be difficult as anticipated revenues continue to drop, putting constraints on the state budget.
“We’re looking to see what that would entail,” DeSantis told reporters in Tallahassee. “One concern I have is – obviously this is a tough budget time for us, and so if I’m having to potentially have general revenue obligated for this then that is something that would be very problematic given our circumstances.”
As of June, there were more than 1 million Floridians out of work, which means the program could cost Florida $400 million if the state were to take advantage of it. The state had $4 billion in its unemployment trust fund when the onset of the pandemic led to mass layoffs throughout the state. So far, Florida has paid $2.8 billion in benefits, with another $10.6 billion coming from the federal government.
Also in question how quickly CONNECT, the state’s unemployment compensation computer system, could handle the reprogramming needed to distribute the payments. Thousands of jobless Floridians have complained since March about long wait times on customer service lines and glitches that have prevented getting both their state and federal checks.
In addition, drawing the money from FEMA funding could harm response time to hurricanes, in a season that experts say could become the busiest on record, with up to 25 named storms.
DeSantis also said he is apprehensive about immediately drawing down the funds in case there’s a legal challenge to Trump’s orders, which he decided to issue after being unable to negotiate a deal through Congress and the Democratic-led U.S. House.
“There’s also only so much you can do through executive action,” DeSantis said. “We’re now at the point where presidents just do that. But I want to make sure there’s no legal risks where if someone were to challenge this, then we’d be left on the hook.”
Until new federal benefits arrive, the payments for out of work Floridians will drastically decrease. The maximum weekly jobless benefit in Florida is $275, one of the lowest in the country. DeSantis has previously said he couldn’t unilaterally increase the weekly cap.
Democrats in the Legislature have called for a special session to increase the payments, especially during March and April when thousands struggled to receive benefits. But Republicans in charge of both chambers have balked, saying that while the system needs to be improved it needs administrative fixes and there’s little the Legislature can do.
Now, Democrats are urging DeSantis to take action.
“We don’t really have a choice, Floridians need to get paid,” said Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith, D-Orlando. “Floridians are desperate. We’ve got people who are being evicted from their homes.”
At the same time, Smith is frustrated the Legislature hasn’t been called back to deal with these issues.