New York joins federal $ 300 extra weekly unemployment program

Cuomo had refused the option to negotiate with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

Photo: Andrés Correa Guatarasma / Courtesy

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New York will request the coronavirus unemployment money that the White House made available, after the feds removed a requirement that required states to contribute a portion of those funds.

State budget director Robert Mujica said on Friday that New York will enroll in the so-called “Lost Wage Assistance” program, which will provide $ 300 dollars per week to unemployed New Yorkers, in addition to state benefits.

“As Governor (Andrew) Cuomo has said, politics does not affect policies, especially during a pandemic, and if New Yorkers need it, this administration will do everything possible to support them,” Mujica said in a statement.

Cuomo had refused the prospect of running for the show in recent weeks, following President Donald Trump’s offer to make available up to $ 44 billion from the United States Disaster Relief Fund. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Trump initially said that $ 400 a week would be available to the unemployed, but the problem was that states would be hard-pressed to get a quarter of that money.

The Labor Department issued new guidance this week that says states could waive contributing to the program.

So far, 13 states have been approved for the program and only Kentucky, Montana and West Virginia have agreed to share the additional $ 100, according to FEMA.