FEMA ends Lost Wages Assistance unemployment benefit program

AUSTIN, Texas - FEMA has ended its Lost Wages Assistance program, which provided an additional $300 a week in unemployment benefits.

The program ended on Sept. 5 and the Texas Workforce Commission says that because funding provided by FEMA was limited, they cannot extend payments beyond that date.

FEMA previously approved TWC funding requests for the benefit weeks of:

August 1, 2020
August 8, 2020
August 15, 2020
August 22, 2020
August 29, 2020
September 5, 2020

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TWC says it will continue to pay eligible claimants for the approved six weeks, for as long as the existing FEMA funds deposited to TWC remain available. Claimants will continue to receive normal weekly benefit amounts for any benefit weeks for which they are eligible.

The Lost Wages Assistance Program was a temporary provision established after the expiration of the $600 Federal Pandemic Assistance Program, a part of the CARES Act. Other provisions of the federal act do not expire until December 26, says TWC. This includes Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC), which provides an extra 13 weeks of benefits to those who exhaust traditional benefits, and Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), which provides up to 46 weeks of benefits to persons who are self-employed or who would not otherwise qualify for state benefits.

For more information on eligibility requirements, available benefits and questions about the unemployment process, visit TWC’s COVID-19 FAQ page.

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