NEW YORK – A breath of relief is coming for New Yorkers.
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The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) approved a grant to the state that will allow it to pay additional benefits each week to unemployed residents.
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The program will be retroactive to early August, a Labor Department spokesman said.
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About 2 million New Yorkers are prequalified for assistance because they indicated in their initial claim for benefits that their unemployment was related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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If you belong to this group, you do not need to take any other action. You only need to be aware of an email that you should receive.
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- Another 435,000 residents will need to submit an additional certification to qualify. This should indicate that your unemployment is related to COVID-19.
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You can certify starting Friday online or by phone. You will receive an email from DocuSign from the Department of Labor with a link to certify benefits. You can also call 833-491-0632 to certify through an automated phone system.
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“All New Yorkers should be alert to these messages and, if additional certification is required, respond immediately,” said Department of Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon.
The aid is part of some $ 44 billion set aside from FEMA’s emergency fund for people who lost their wages due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These were enabled by an executive order from President Donald Trump in August.
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