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Extra $600 Unemployment Benefit Unlikely to Be Extended

July 14, 2020

The extra $600 of weekly unemployment is set to end on July 25, and the Employment Development Department is not expecting it to be extended.

An EDD spokesperson told ABC 7 that unless Congress creates an extension or passes a new bill, it is highly unlikely that the $600 unemployment benefit will continue.

On March 31, the CARES Act was signed into law, provided over $2 trillion to U.S. workers and businesses. Part of the act sent out $1,200 checks to qualifying Americans, and the law also added $600 of weekly unemployment payouts on top of whatever unemployment benefits were already being received.Â

Before the act, the maximum amount one could receive for unemployment in California was $450 a week. With the extra $600, unemployed individuals could potentially receive a maximum bi-weekly check of $2,100 before any deductions.

The benefit was automatically added to the payout total without any additional steps taken from the recipient.

This presented a situation where unemployed workers were leery of returning to work and risking exposure to COVID-19 while earning more than they would working, according to NPR.Â

Because of the volume of unemployment claims during the pandemic, the EDD temporarily waived the certification process to receive benefits. Californians will have to retroactively certify by October 5, 2020 and return any overpayments.

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