There were 23,100 first-time claims for unemployment benefits in Texas last week, according to the latest data from the Labor Department. Nearly 3.9 million initial jobless claims have been filed since mid-March.
This marks a 38% drop in weekly unemployment claims, and the insured unemployment rate has dropped below 3%.
While unemployment claims have dropped in Texas and nationally, the GAO has recently called into question the weekly totals of first-time filings due to backlogs and “other data issues.”
As Texas is seeing record high daily case counts, the pressure on Congress to pass a relief bill continues to rise. On Wednesday, Democratic leadership in the House and Senate as well as President-elect Joe Biden backed a $908B relief package from Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Susan Collins, R-Maine.
According to NPR, the legislation includes “$300 in weekly federal unemployment benefits for 18 weeks, $288 billion in fresh funding for the Paycheck Protection small business loan program and $16 billion for testing and vaccine distribution.”
If you are newly unemployed, it is important that you apply for benefits as soon as possible because eligibility begins the week you apply. You will not be paid benefits for weeks before you apply.
Apply for benefits in one of two ways:
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