Ohio’s unemployment system could get boost
COLUMBUS — Using federal dollars strategically to shore up Ohio’s unemployment system will also contribute to Ohio’s year of recovery, the state reported.
Last week, Gov. Mike Dewine recommended to the General Assembly that Ohio use a portion of its federal COVID relief and recovery dollars to pay off the Unemployment Insurance loan owed to the federal government.
“This loan was caused by the global pandemic, and paying it off now will free Ohio employers from this burden so they can instead focus on getting employees across our state back to work,” Dewine said in a news release providing details. “This will help small businesses owners and employees, and I look forward to working with our partners in the General Assembly on legislation to pay off the loan.”
The leader of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce issued a statement about Dewine’s remarks.
“The Ohio Chamber of Commerce applauds Gov. Dewine’s announcement today recommending a portion of the state’s federal pandemic relief funds be used to pay off the state’s unemployment compensation loan,” Ohio Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Andrew E. Doehrel said in the news release. “Eliminating Ohio’s outstanding federal unemployment loan balance and shoring up the state’s trust fund will prevent employers from facing an estimated tax increase in 2022 of over $100 million and could save employers as much as $658 million in tax increases over a threeyear period,” Doehrel said.
“The Dewine administration’s investment will also prevent a repeat of the tax hikes employers were saddled with stemming from the 2008 recession when it took the state 8 years to pay back Ohio’s federal unemployment loan of more than $3.3 billion,” Doehrel said.
The National Federation of Independent Business also issued a statement.
“During the last unemployment crisis, Ohio borrowed about $3.4 billion to pay unemployment benefits to workers,” said Roger Geiger, executive director for NFIB in Ohio.
“During that time, Ohio employers were hit with federal interest and penalties that cost them over $3 billion. Due to the COVID pandemic, Ohio is already over $1.4 billion in unemployment compensation debt. To pay that back would be a huge cost to Ohio businesses who are trying desperately to recover and hire people,” Geiger said in the news release.
The Ohio Department of Job and Family
Services (ODJFS) recently announced that it had begun issuing the supplemental weekly $300 payments made possible by the federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 for claimants in the traditional unemployment program.
Additional weeks of extended benefits, from 24 to 53, also made possible by the act are now available to claim, the state said in a March news release. “The most recent federal legislation provided straightforward extensions of these programs,which makes them quicker to implement,” said ODJFS Interim Director Matt Damschroder.
“The transition for claimants should be seamless,” Damschroder said.
System updates were underway in the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program, as well, to make it possible for eligible individuals to claim all available weeks provided by the new legislation, the March news release stated.
The third stimulus package extended weeks from up to 50 to up to 79, ending on Sept. 4. While this work is under way, those with PUA weeks remaining from the previous extension can continue to claim them if they remain unemployed, through April 10.
The American Rescue Plan Act, signed on March 11, extends many of the pandemic unemployment programs and benefits created by the federal CARES Act and the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021.
This includes but is not limited to the continuation of the Mixed Earner Unemployment Compensation Program and full federal funding of Ohio’s premier layoff aversion program, Sharedwork Ohio.
ODJFS is posting updates with target implementation dates at jfs.ohio.gov/caa
As a reminder, the news release stated, Ohio offers many selfservice options for unemployed individuals:
* Online claim filing at unemployment.ohio.gov This website is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
* Answers to frequently asked questions at unemployment.ohio. gov in three categories:
* “Employee” – for those receiving traditional unemployment benefits.
* “Expanded Eligibility” – for those receiving PUA benefits. * “Employers” – for employers. * “Chat with Virtual Assistant” at unemployment.ohio.gov for general questions about unemployment.
* Automated PIN resets via a chat feature on the log-in page for traditional unemployment claimants.
* Online PIN resets, document submission, and many other self-service features for PUA claimants.
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