Title: Millions could exhaust all of their jobless benefits by January
Headings: It’s not just the extra $600—millions of workers could exhaust all of their jobless benefits by January
It’s not just the extra $600—millions of workers could exhaust all of their jobless benefits by January
Food Banks in the Orlando area face continued demand as unemployment due to the COVID-19 pandemic persists. (Photo by Paul Hennessy/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Gig workers lose out
Don’t miss:
How a 31-year-old DACA recipient making $46,000 in Denver spends his money

Content: But it’s not just the enhanced benefit that is on the line — millions could run out of jobless benefits altogether by the end of the year if Congress does not pass legislation extending eligibility, according to an analysis from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP). The CARES Act substantially increased the number of weeks those out of work can collect jobless benefits, from most states offering 26 weeks to all states providing a total of at least 39 weeks. However, that 13 week extension, called Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC), and the provision extending 39 weeks of unemployment benefits to gig and contract workers and the self-employed, called Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), expire at the end of December 2020. States also offer “extended benefits,” separate from what was created under the CARES Act, in times of high unemployment. Most states offer 13 weeks of extended benefits, though this varies. Florida, for example, offers six weeks of extended benefits, according to the CBPP, while others offer as much as 20. Unlike the CARES Act’s 13 extra weeks, these do not expire at the end of the 2020, so someone without a job could claim these in 2021 if he or she does not use them up this year. That said, those who do not qualify for ordinary state unemployment benefits also do not qualify for extended benefits. Depending on when someone began collecting benefits, and whether they are collecting PEUC or PUA benefits, “by early next year, it’s likely that millions of people will have exhausted their benefits before finding work,” writes the CBPP. Economists anticipate unemployment rates will remain high through 2021.