PAYMENT PROGRESS

• As of January 4, DEO has paid 2,167,398 claimants nearly $19.9 billion ($19,853,732,863). Nearly 4.7 million (4,738,398) unique claims have been processed, representing 99.1 percent of unique claims submitted. 
• 98.3 percent of all eligible benefits requested prior to December 18, 2020, for state Reemployment Assistance, Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC), or Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) have been paid to claimants. Additionally, 99.9 percent of all eligible benefits requested by claimants for weeks of unemployment prior to July 25, 2020, have also received their corresponding Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) benefits for that week.
• If a claimant has not received benefits or all of the benefits they believe they are entitled to, they should:
  • Check that they have requested benefits;
  • Check that the weeks they are requesting are eligible weeks; and 
  • Check that their account information in CONNECT is up-to-date and accurate.
• If a claimant needs additional assistance, they should call the Reemployment Assistance Customer Service Center at 1-833-FL-APPLY.
• The Department continues to work to modify claim effective dates as appropriate. The requests for these benefits are not included in this data. 
• The Department would like to remind claimants that it is important to continue requesting benefits to receive payment. This video and guide may be helpful. 

UPDATES:

State Reemployment Assistance

• Any new state Reemployment Assistance claims filed January 1, 2021, and forward are eligible for up to 19 weeks of benefits instead of 12 weeks of benefits.

Continued Assistance Act

• The Department has provided additional weeks for nearly 1 million claimants who have not previously exhausted their federal benefits before December 26, 2020. These individuals will receive notification from the Department to log-in to their CONNECT account to request benefits for those additional weeks. The Department is working diligently to release weeks for additional claimants regarding the Continued Assistance Act.
• DEO is working diligently to implement the new Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) and Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program extensions for individuals who have exhausted their eligible benefits under the CARES Act.
• The Department is making the necessary program adjustments to make these additional weeks of benefits available quickly, and will continue communicating as weeks become available.
• Claimants who have exhausted their eligible weeks of benefits under the CARES Act and are unemployed or partially unemployed after December 27, 2020, will be able to request benefit payments soon.
• Claimants who are unemployed or partially unemployed after December 27, 2020, and have not exhausted their eligible benefits should continue requesting benefit payments in order to continue receiving PEUC or PUA benefits.
  • Claimants who are on PEUC or PUA can view this step-by-step guide to learn how to request weekly benefits.

Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation

• The Continued Assistance Act also extended and modified the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) program, which expired July 31, 2020.
• Starting with the week ending January 2, 2021, claimants who are eligible for at least $1 of their underlying unemployment benefit amount, will be eligible to receive a $300 supplemental FPUC payment in addition to their weekly benefit amount. No additional action is required to receive the FPUC payment, but claimants should continue to request their weekly benefits to receive any benefit payments. These supplemental FPUC payments will be available to eligible claimants soon.
• The FPUC program expires on March 14, 2021. This means the last payable week for FPUC is the week ending March 13, 2021.

Waivers

• Governor Ron DeSantis has directed DEO to continue waiving the waiting week requirements, and work search and work registration requirements through February 27, 2021. 
  
  

CONNECT Hours

• DEO will be conducting nightly maintenance to the CONNECT system to process claims and payments. CONNECT will be available from 8 a.m. to 7:59 p.m. daily, Monday - Friday.
• On Saturday, January 9, through Sunday, January 10, CONNECT will be available 8:00 a.m. – 4:59 p.m.
• This schedule does not affect individuals who wish to file a new claim. Individuals can file a new claim 24 hours a day, seven days per week at www.FloridaJobs.org and select "File a Claim."     

Customer Service Centers

• Reemployment Assistance Customer Service Centers are available this week Monday - Friday from 7:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m. for all account inquiries and questions. On Saturday, January 9, through Sunday, January 10, staff resources will be dedicated to processing claims and payments. The Reemployment Assistance Customer Service Center will reopen Monday, January 11, at 7:30 a.m.

Claimant Communication

• In the coming weeks, the Department will be sending important emails to claimants, including actions that may need to be taken on their CONNECT account. The Department sends emails from Do-Not-Reply email addresses, these are official notifications from the Department.

Job Opportunities

• The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity is hiring across the state. To view a list of vacant opportunities, visit here.

Employer Updates

• The Department has developed additional guides for employers to better understand how to navigate the CONNECT system. To view these guides, click here.

About DEO

The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity combines the state’s economic, workforce and community development efforts, expediting economic development projects to fuel job creation in competitive communities and promote economic resiliency. For more information, including valuable resources for employers and job seekers, please visit www.FloridaJobs.org.

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