Senator Bob Singer and other state Republicans are calling on Gov. Phil Murphy to implement the 11-week extension of unemployment benefits enacted by Congress in December as soon as possible. Claimants who exhausted benefits before Dec. 26 have not received any payments since that time.
“It is completely unacceptable that the Labor Department has not been able to put a program into place to pay these claimants or tell them when to expect payments,” the lawmakers said in a joint statement. “Our offices are inundated with heartbreaking emails and calls from people who have no money coming in, cannot speak with an agent or have no idea when the funds will be available. If the department needs outside help to manage these programs efficiently and get people their benefits, then let’s make changes.”
“This delay comes on top of the myriad of other issues plaguing unemployment which has left scores of our constituents unable to access their benefits. We urge the governor to take action and improve the department so that more claimants are paid on time, issues can be easily resolved, and people can actually speak to agents who can fix issues.”