HAWAII
TO RECEIVE $20.4 MILLION FOR
EXTENDED UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE
August
11, 2009
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WASHINGTON-Hawaii
will receive $20.4 million to help pay for unemployment benefits and other services
for workers affected by the recent economic downturn, U.S. Senator Daniel K.
Inouye announced today.
“During
these turbulent economic times, many Hawaii workers and their families are
suffering as businesses downsize and wages decrease,” said Senator Inouye.
“This grant will help those who have borne the brunt of this recession sustain
themselves while they look for more work.”
The
U.S. Department of Labor released $20,351,150 in unemployment insurance (UI) modernization
incentive funds to Hawaii as part of a grant allowed by the American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act after Hawaii updated its unemployment insurance law to
include certain family-friendly provisions.
The
Hawaii Department of Labor and Industrial Relations can use the funds to pay
unemployment benefits or, if appropriated by the legislature, for administering
its unemployment insurance program or delivering employment services.
“Hawaii
previously received part of its share of UI modernization funds for its
longstanding policy of helping unemployed workers with recent work experience
receive the assistance they need and deserve,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L.
Solis. “To qualify for the remainder of the state’s funding, Hawaii
now has updated its law to make it easier for workers seeking part-time work
and workers who become unemployed for compelling family reasons to be eligible
for benefits. These are the right things to do for workers and are good
for the state’s economic recovery.”
The Recovery Act made a total of $7 billion available
in UI modernization incentive payments to states that include certain
eligibility provisions in their UI programs.
Each state can qualify for a share of those funds by
showing that its law includes those provisions. Hawaii’s approved application
will be posted at the department’s Employment and Training Administration Web
site at http://www.doleta.gov/recovery.
