04/16/2021
CT Dept Of Labor Launches Mixed Earner Unemployment Compensation Program
Agency Has Received Close to 1.5 Million Unemployment Applications
(WETHERSFIELD, CT) – Connecticut Department of Labor (CTDOL) Commissioner Kurt Westby today announced that the agency will begin enrollment for the new federal Mixed Earner Unemployment Compensation program starting on Tuesday, April 20, 2021. The program, established under CARES Act II, provides an additional $100 per week for eligible filers with self-employment earnings and W2 income.
Commissioner Westby said, “The MEUC program will help generate additional economic activity and provide needed income to thousands of filers who are self-employed and, prior to COVID, were holding down other jobs as well. I want to thank Department of Revenue Services Commissioner Mark Boughton and his team for their partnership on this project. Like all federal unemployment programs, this one is complex and it requires our two agencies to work closely to verify information and income. This new collaboration is made possible by Commissioner Boughton’s leadership and the expertise of the DRS staff.”
MIXED EARNER UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION
The Mixed Earner Unemployment Compensation (MEUC) program is a federal resource for residents who have both self-employment earnings as well as W2 earnings. Eligibility requires claimants to have at least $5,000 in self-employment net income and receive state unemployment benefits; extended benefits; or Pandemic Extended Unemployment Compensation (PEUC). The law excludes Pandemic Unemployment Assistance filers and filers with less than $5,000 in self-employment net income.
About the MEUC program:
- Filers with eligible underlying claims will receive an additional $100 per week until the program expires on September 4, 2021. Payments are retroactive to the week ending January 2, 2021 if filers are eligible.
- Eligibility requirements include at least $5,000 in self-employment net earnings in the most recent completed taxable year.
- Claimants should only apply for the program if they meet the $5,000 net earning threshold.
- The program is 100% federally funded; employers are not liable for MEUC payments.
- Mixed Earner Unemployment Compensation is income and could impact Medicaid and CHIP eligibility.
Claimants may begin applying for the Mixed Earner program on April 20, 2021 when the application launches online. The law requires extensive documentation; CTDOL is urging potential MEUC claimants to read the instructions carefully and prepare documents in advance of starting an application. CTDOL is working with the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services on claimant documentation and income verification. Application details and additional information is on the agency’s federal programs page. Additionally, CTDOL has begun notifying claimants who may be eligible to apply.
AMERICAN JOB CENTERS
Connecticut’s American Job Centers and career service centers are open to the public by appointment and continue to provide virtual assistance to job seekers and employers by appointment.
UNEMPLOYMENT APPLICATIONS UPDATE
Since March 13, 2020, CTDOL has received nearly 1.5 million state, federal, and extended benefits applications. This volume represents about 10 years of applications received over the past year.
Currently, Connecticut has ~190,000 weekly unemployment filers, nearly five times as many claims per week as in a non-pandemic year.
TRUST FUND
- The Trust Fund balance is currently zero.
- To date, the state has borrowed $712M for the Trust Fund.
- Since March 13, 2020, CTDOL has disbursed $7.9 billion in unemployment benefits:
- $366 million in Lost Wages Assistance,
- $3.86 billion in Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC), and
- $3.7 billion in unemployment benefits as follows:
- $2.4 billion in state unemployment benefits;
- $519 million in Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA);
- $675 million Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC); and
- $123 million in federal extended benefits.
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For Immediate Release: April 16, 2021
Media Contact: CTDOL Communications Unit
Media Contact:
CTDOL Communications Unit
200 Folly Brook Boulevard, Wethersfield, CT 06109-1114
Email: CTDOL.SocialMedia@ct.gov | http://www.ct.gov/dol