Senator Urges Gov. Northam To Fix Unemployment Benefits Problems

VIRGINIA — U.S. Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) sent a letter to Gov. Ralph Northam Thursday urging him to accelerate the state’s processing of unemployment insurance claims now that the American Rescue Plan has been signed into law.

The American Rescue Plan provided billions in federal relief for Americans who are out of work by extending the unemployment insurance reforms established in the CARES Act through Sept. 6, 2021.

“It is my understanding that, following earlier passage of congressional legislation to extend these programs in December, constituents in Virginia faced many delays and communication problems with the Virginia Employment Commission (VEC),” Warner wrote in his letter.

“I am writing this letter today to urge you to use every lever at your disposal to speed up the process by which unemployment insurance claimants can receive their benefits,” the senator added.

The new law extends the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation program for the long-term unemployed, the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program for self-employed and gig workers, and the newly created Mixed Earner Unemployment Compensation benefit for workers with mixed sources of income.

Warner noted in his letter that some of these benefits were originally set to expire on Dec 26.

“I worked with a bipartisan and bicameral group of lawmakers in the U.S. Congress to pass a relief package shortly before Christmas because it was understood that loss of benefits at this time of the year would be particularly cruel,” Warner said. “Now, several months later, I hope you can agree that for constituents still experiencing delays the lack of pandemic unemployment insurance is unconscionable.”

In his letter to Northam, Warner referenced three items he would like the Virginia Employment Commission to report back on:

• What changes are being administered to ensure seamless disbursement of current PEUC/PUA funds and a seamless transition into this new PEUC/PUA extension into September 6th?
• What are the current plans to improve the communications between VEC and Virginians?
• What are the current plans to improve communications between VEC and employers to quickly determine worker eligibility for UI benefits and approve claims?

Warner said he recognizes that some of the issues experienced in Virginia have been a direct result of the "burden inherited from a patchwork unemployment insurance system that has not been updated since its inception." But the senator still believes the Northam administration could be doing more.

To address communications issues and provide clarity for Virginians, Warner said in his letter that he wants the VEC to implement these changes:

• Provide detailed status updates on CARES Act related unemployment insurance benefits via vec.virginia.gov and getgov2go.com and through press releases, in order to reassure people that they will receive back pay for the weeks they have certified. Official and concrete communications will allow Virginians to better communicate with landlords, utility companies, and others.
• Establish a more robust phone system and customer service protocol. VEC should allow individuals who do not connect immediately with a representative to register on a “waitlist” or receive an approximation of when a representative will call them back. In addition, such an automated system would provide information such as the phone number that will call them and what materials should be readily available to ensure a more efficient conversation. The phone system should have two simple options for those who call in regarding claims and benefit questions versus technical, web-based questions regarding web.getgov2go.com. These measures would also help VEC prioritize phone tasks more efficiently.
• Provide updates across all VEC websites as well as web.getgov2go.com. Automatically sign up those with getgov2go.com profiles to receive update emails. Create a visible notice specifically on the getgov2go website, reminding individuals to check their email spam settings and their getgov2go messages in order to mitigate constituents missing out on important information.
• If people must file a new claim, allow the new claimant to use the previous PIN in order to prevent a further lag in weekly benefits due to an unreliable USPS. Recommend that VEC establish an online functionality to retrieve one’s PIN if lost or forgotten using corroborating information such as a recent utility bill or picture of an identification card before establishing the sole recourse of requesting one’s PIN via mail. Prepare the web.getgov2go.com website for the new extension of PUA, PEUC, and MEUC into Sept. 6.
• Work with the Virginia Commission on Unemployment Compensation to collaborate on ways that the Virginia General Assembly can improve benefits delivery to constituents.
• Partner with a nonprofit, non-partisan entity such as the U.S. Digital Response or 18F, an office within the U.S. General Services Administration’s Technology Transformation Services to address practical, low-cost ways to modernize technology and streamline the payment process. Other states, such as Wisconsin, have gone this route with immediate success.