Kathleen Pender helps make sense of stimulus checks and jobless benefits included in Congress’ rescue package.

The $2 trillion coronavirus relief act President Trump signed Friday will provide direct payments to most Americans and a vast expansion of unemployment benefits. Although many questions about these two programs have yet to be answered, here’s some of what we know.

Q: How does the bill beef up unemployment?

A: The socalled Cares Act provides federal funding for three new programs, with

names sure to confuse.

Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation. People who exhaust their regular state benefits, which max out at 26 weeks in California, could get up to 13 more weeks, for a total of 39.

Pandemic Unemployment Assistance: This will provide up to 39 weeks of unemployment benefits to people who are not eligible for regular state benefits. This includes people who are selfemployed, didn’t work enough to get regular unemployment benefits or have already run out. People can apply for these benefits and receive payment retroactively to Jan. 27. The program ends Dec. 31 for new claims.

To qualify, workers must certify that they can’t work or lost work for reasons related to the coronavirus. Workers cannot get this assistance if they are getting paid to work at home, are receiving paid sick days or paid leave, or are undocumented.

Pandemic Unemployment Compensation: This will add a flat $600 per week to a person’s regular or pandemic unemployment benefit, but only until July 31 for everyone. It appears that the extra payment won’t apply retroactively, said Katherine Wutchiett, a staff attorney with Legal Aid at Work.

Q: How much will I get?

A: In California, regular unemployment benefits range from $40 to $450 a week. Your

benefit will be based on your highestearning quarter in your base period, which is a 12month period that starts one or two quarters before you apply. You can estimate your benefit at http://bit.ly/eddcalc. (The calculator does not yet include the extra $600.)

Pandemic assistance benefits will range from about $190 a week (half of the average weekly regular benefit in California) to $450, according to Maurice Emsellem of the National Employment Law Project.

That means some selfemployed people could get a bigger check than workers whose employers were paying into the insurance fund on their behalf.

Bottom line: If your regular or pandemic benefit is $350 a week, you will get an extra $600, bringing it to $950 a week, until July 31, at which point it would drop back to $350. Remember that unemployment benefits are taxable.

Q: How do I apply?

A: Employees who have been laid off or had their hours cut can file for regular unemployment insurance at edd.ca.gov/ Unemployment. They can also apply by phone or mail, but it will take longer.

The state has waived the usual oneweek waiting period before benefits begin. It is also waiving the usual worksearch requirements for some claimants. The Employment Development Department encourages people who qualify as employees under state law to apply, even if they are being treated as independent contractors.

If you’re selfemployed, the process is not yet clear, but it’s likely you will apply the same way you’d apply for regular benefits, stating your income for each quarter of your base period. You should begin receiving benefits, but EDD might try to verify your income using tax returns or other documentation, Wutchiett said.

For more information, see the EDD’s coronavirus webpage at https:// bit.ly/eddcoronavirus or the law project’s fact sheet at https://bit.ly/ cares act fact sheet. Legal Aid at Work can also answer questions about California. For details, see https://legal aidatwork.org/clinics andhelplines or call 4154049093.

Q: Who will get a stimulus payment?

A: All adults with a workeligible Social Security number, who are not dependents of someone else and who are below certain income thresholds, will get $1,200 each; their dependent children who were younger than 17 at year end will get $500 each. Generally, fulltime college students younger than 24 are considered a dependent if they get more than half their support from parents. You do not need to have earned income or pay taxes to get the rebate. The payment is not taxable.

Q: What are the income limits?

A: The payment starts shrinking if your adjusted gross income is above $75,000 (single) or $150,000 (married filing jointly.) The payment phases down to zero if your income is above $99,000 (single) and $198,000 (married with no children.)

Q: How will I get a payment?

A: To determine eligibility, the IRS will look at your 2019 tax return if you filed it, or else your 2018 return. It will directly deposit the payment if it has your bank account information; if not, it will send you a check.

Q: What if I didn’t file a return?

A: File one, even if you don’t need to because your income is too low. To research free filing options, see www.irs.gov/freefile. If your only income is from Social Security or veterans’ disability payments and you didn’t file a return, the IRS can use additional tools to locate you and send your payment, but you might want to file a return to facilitate payment.

Q: What if I made too much in 2019 to get a payment but my 2020 income is below the limit?

A: The payment will be refunded to you or reduce your tax liability when you file your 2020 tax return.

Q: What if I was entitled to the payment in 2019, but my income went above the limit in 2020. Will I have to pay it back?

A: No, according to a Senate Finance Committee fact sheet. However, Mark Luscombe, principal analyst with Wolters Kluwer Tax and Accounting, said, “I am not sure that I see the clear authority for that statement in the CARES Act language, but the IRS might approach it that way.”