'They need to know': Florida lawmakers push Governor DeSantis for timeline of unemployment payments
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Members of Congress sent a letter to Governor Ron DeSantis asking for a timeline of when people will get their unemployment benefits.
Congressman Darren Soto said Florida has seen the slowest response rate for unemployment benefits in the nation and the process needs to be streamlined.
“Bills have a timeline. Therefore people’s unemployment benefits need to have a timeline. People need to organize their finances. They have obligations; families to support,” Congressman Soto said. “They need to know when this help is coming in.”
The state of Florida launched an online dashboard on Monday showing unemployment assistance statistics. It says of the more than 650,000 confirmed unique claims that have been submitted since March 15, only around 40,000 people have been paid. That is about 6 percent.
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People who need to file a new unemployment claim should use the online application found on the Florida Jobs website.
The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity said its CONNECT system will be offline every night from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. as the DEO performs upgrades, allowing the system to process claims faster. CONNECT will only be available from between 8 a.m. to 7:59 p.m. daily.
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