WASHINGTON _ At least 30 states have been accepted for President Donald Trump's unemployment benefits program, but it could take several weeks for money to reach residents.
After talks on the second coronavirus bill reached an impasse, Trump signed four executive orders on Aug. 8, including one that seeks to provide up to $400 in weekly unemployment benefits.
Under Trump's action, states have to enter an agreement with the federal government and cover 25% _ $100 per week _ of the unemployment benefit, CNN reported.
Only Kentucky, Montana and West Virginia plan on paying the extra $100, according to Marketplace on Monday. That means the majority of people will receive $300 in benefits.
About 30 states have been approved for Trump's Lost Wages Assistance program, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which has allotted $44 billion for the payments.
Here's where some states stand:
_ Arizona and Texas are already paying the unemployment benefit, Fortune reported Tuesday.
_ Missouri says it "hopes to start paying by this weekend," according the publication.
_ Louisiana officials said on Aug. 19 that benefits would be distributed "within the next week."
_ Colorado hopes to have payments out by mid-September.
_ Utah and New Mexico say it could be a few weeks until checks go out.
_ Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves said on Thursday that money would be available "within three to four weeks."
It could take up to six weeks to get payments out in some states, John Pallasch, assistant secretary in the Department of Labor, told CNN. The average time will be three weeks from Aug. 8, according to the agency.
FEMA will send payments for three weeks and then continue until the $44 billion runs out, according to CNN. The funds are expected to last for four to five weeks, Keith Turi, FEMA's assistant administrator for recovery, told the network.
"So it looks like states are trying to get this money out the door," Michele Evermore, senior policy analyst at the National Employment Law Project, told Marketplace. "But for the most part, I think it's going to take states quite a while to get this up and running."
Trump signed the original $2.2 trillion bipartisan coronavirus bill, called the CARES Act, into law in March. The CARES Act included $600 a week for unemployment, a benefit that expired July 31.
The HEALS Act proposed by Senate Republicans would replace 70% of what someone made before losing their job instead of the $600 from the first package.
Democrats in the House pushed for continuing the $600 weekly unemployment benefits in the HEROES Act, but Rep. Nancy Pelosi has signaled some room for compromise depending on the unemployment rate, Business Insider reported.
The unemployment rate was 10.2% in July, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, after peaking at 14.7% in April, surpassing the level of unemployment during the Great Recession.
