What Trump's $400 Unemployment Order Means For PA Residents

PENNSYLVANIA — President Donald Trump signed a series of executive orders on Saturday to offer reduced federal unemployment benefits as the previous program had expired. But Pennsylvania officials are wary that the fine print indicates this could spell a bureaucratic nightmare.

Through Trump's order, benefits will be lowered from $600 to $400 per week, and states are being told to cover 25 percent of the cost. The $600 a week program was allowed by Congress to expire on Aug. 1, and negotiations to extend them had been mired in partisan gridlock until the weekend.

However, according to Gov. Wolf's administration, the memorandum from the president is not simply an extension of the existing program. It is an entirely new program, as it was created under auspices of FEMA, and not the U.S. Department of Labor.

"It would have to be created from scratch and run parallel with Pennsylvania’s existing unemployment benefits programs. This is not something that any state will be able to do quickly," a spokesperson for Gov. Wolf's office told Patch.

Currently, the state is continuing to review the president's order and is awaiting official guidance and clarity on how to move forward from both the Department of Labor and FEMA.

Meanwhile, Gov. Wolf continues to advocate for an extension of the existing $600 weekly program, and has been joined in his advocacy by other Senate Democrats, including Pennsylvania's U.S. Sen. Bob Casey.

"Hardworking Pennsylvanians have lost their jobs and haven't been able to find work since," Gov. Wolf said on Twitter Tuesday. "Congress must act quickly to continue the extra $600 benefit. Pennsylvanians deserve all of the support possible and they need it now."

Additionally, Pennsylvania's remaining funding from the CARES Act, which could be used to contribute the state portion of the $400 of weekly payments, are currently in a budgetary reserve. In order to spend these funds, the Pennsylvania General Assembly would have to pass new legislation to authorize it, officials said.

The orders from President Trump came after negotiations with Democrats on a new economic relief package collapsed last week.

The Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation has disbursed more than $15 billion in economic relief to 2 million Pennsylvania residents since it began in mid-April.