State Extended Benefits FAQs

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• What is the State Extended Benefits Program?
  
  • The State Extended Benefits Program is designed to provide additional assistance to unemployed Kansans during periods of high unemployment. The program becomes effective once the state's average seasonally adjusted unemployment rate reaches 6.5 percent or higher for three consecutive months. Under the program, individuals who exhaust their regular unemployment benefits and, in this case, any benefits through the federal Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) program, may qualify for up to 13 additional weeks of benefits.
    
  
  
• Am I eligible for state extended benefits?
  
  • To be eligible for state extended benefits, you must meet the following criteria:
    
        • Exhausted regular state unemployment insurance benefits;
        • Exhausted original EUC benefits;
        • Exhausted Tier II EUC benefits;
        • Not eligible for a new state unemployment insurance claim in any       state or in Canada;
        • Currently unemployed or working less than full time.
    
  
  
• How are eligible applicants determined?
  
  • The Kansas Department of Labor (KDOL) reviews all unemployment claims that meet the eligibility criteria to determine if the claimant is eligible to apply for state extended UI benefits. If so, the claimant is mailed a notice and an application.
    
  
  
• How will I know if I'm eligible for state extended benefits?
  
  • All potentially eligible claimants will be contacted by the Kansas Department of Labor. Watch your mail for this information.
    
  
  
• Once I've submitted my application, how will I be notified if I qualify for EB benefits?
  
  • Once a determination of your eligibility has been made, you will receive a monetary determination letter in the mail. If you are eligible for EB, your total benefit amount will be included in the letter.
    
    
  • Because determining eligibility for EB benefits requires confirming that you are not eligible for a new regular benefits claim (meaning your initial benefit year has expired and you can file a new regular benefits claim for the new benefit year), you may receive two separate monetary determination letters. The first letter will indicate whether you qualify for a new regular state unemployment claim. If you do, you will not be eligible for EB. If you do not qualify for a new regular unemployment claim, a second letter will be mailed to you two or three days after the first letter advising you of whether you qualify for EB.
    
  
  
• Once I'm determined to be eligible for state extended benefits, do I have to meet any special criteria to remain eligible for benefits?
  
  • Yes. All individuals receiving state extended benefits are required to participate in work-search activities to maintain their eligibility for benefits. The frequency of those activities depends upon whether your prospects for finding employment within a reasonably short period of time have been determined to be "good"or "not good." This determination will be made by the state based on information you provide.
    
    
  • If it is determined that your prospects for finding employment are good, you will be subject to the same work-search requirements as individuals receiving regular unemployment benefits. If it is determined that your prospects for finding employment are not good, you will be required to maintain a "systematic and sustained" work-search effort. That means that your work search must include any job you're capable of performing, regardless of whether it is within your normal occupation or pay range.
    
    
  • A "systematic and sustained" work search requires documentation of work-search activities each day of the week (Monday through Friday) during weeks that you are claiming benefits. At least one contact with an employer, the local workforce center or a placement union hall if applicable, must be made each week to retain eligibility. Documentation of these activities must be provided each week with your weekly claim.
    
  
  
• What happens if I'm unable to document a "systematic and sustained" work-search effort for a given week?
  
  • If you are notified that it has been determined your prospects for finding employment in a reasonable period of time are not good, the "systematic and sustained" work-search requirements will go into effect the week following that notification. The "systematic and sustained" work-search requirements do not apply to weeks claimed retroactive to the notification.
    
    
  • If you make a weekly claim for benefits and cannot document a "systematic and sustained" work-search effort for that week, you will be disqualified from receiving EB benefits. The disqualification will continue until you have worked for an employer paying unemployment insurance taxes for at least four weeks and have earned at least four times your weekly benefit amount.
  
  
• What kind of documentation of my work-search effort will I be required to provide?
  
  • You must provide information that includes the following:
    
        • The actions you took to look for work each day, Monday through Friday;
        • The methods you used to apply for work;
        • The types of work you looked for;
        • The dates and places where you looked for work;
        • The name of the employer or person contacted regarding work;
        • The outcome of the contact.
  
  
• If I know I won't be able to provide documentation of a "systematic and sustained" work-search effort for a particular week, do I have to make a claim for benefits that week? Will my claim become inactive if I skip a week?
  
  • For any weeks you cannot document a "systematic and sustained" work-search effort you may choose not to claim the week so that you can avoid disqualification. Your claim will remain active for up to 17 days. If there is no activity on your claim after 17 days, you will need to re-open your state extended benefits claim in order to file weekly benefits again.
    
  
  
• Are there any situations in which I would not be required to document a "systematic and sustained" work-search effort to remain eligible for state extended benefits?
  
  • Yes. The "systematic and sustained" work-search requirements can be suspended under the following circumstances:
    
        • Your prospects for finding employment within a reasonably short time are       determined to be "good";
        • You are in an approved training program;
        • Severe weather or another calamity (excluding high unemployment)       forces the suspension of work-search activities for most members of the       community;
        • You are on jury duty;
        • You are hospitalized for treatment of an emergency or life-threatening       condition.
    
  
  
• How can I apply for state extended benefits if I no longer have an active claim?
  
  • All eligible claimants who have already exhausted their Emergency Unemployment Compensation Tier I and Tier II benefits will receive a notice and application in the mail. Completing and returning the application you receive will reactivate your claim.
    
  
  
• I am still receiving EUC08 benefits - will I be eligible for state extended benefits? Will I automatically receive these additional benefits or do I have to apply?
  
  • You may be eligible for state extended benefits once you have exhausted all of your Emergency Unemployment Compensation Tier I and Tier II benefits. You must submit your completed paper application to be determined eligible. State Extended Benefits will not be automatically sent to you.
    
    
  • Extended Benefits are payable only during an Extended Benefits period. If Kansas triggers "off" Extended Benefits due to a drop in the unemployment rate, no new Extended Benefits claims can be filed.
    
  
  
• My EUC08 benefits are about to run out. What should I do?
  
  • Continue filing your weekly claims, even after your EUC08 benefits have been exhausted. This will reduce the amount of time it will take to pay your benefits once your eligibility for state extended benefits has been determined.
    
  
  
• Can I apply for state extended benefits online or over the phone?
  
  • No. Applications for this special program must be submitted on the provided paper application and cannot be filed through the Kansas Unemployment Contact Center or on our Web site.
    
  
  
• Can I file weekly claims for state extended benefits online or over the phone?
  
  • You must submit a paper application for state extended benefits in order to determine your eligibility. The first week state extended benefits can be paid is the week ending July 11, 2009. Your weekly claim for benefits can be filed online or over the phone, however if you are required to demonstrate a "systematic and sustained" work search effort you will need to submit a paper weekly claim supplement to show your work search activities. The weekly claim supplement will be sent to you when your application is processed if it is determined that you must meet the "systematic and sustained" work search requirements.
    
  
  
• If I'm eligible, how soon can I start receiving payment?
  
  • At this time, we expect to begin making payments the week of September 20, 2009.
    
  
  
• I think I'm eligible - what should I do?
  
  • In an effort to avoid long wait times at our Unemployment Insurance Contact Center, we are asking all individuals who think they may be eligible for state extended benefits to wait to receive an application from the Kansas Department of Labor. Applications are being mailed August 27, 2009. If you have not received an application in the mail by September 10, 2009, please call the UI Contact Center.
    
  
  
• How much will I receive under the emergency UI program?
  
  • Your total benefit amount through the state extended benefits program will be either 50 percent of the total benefit amount of your regular unemployment benefit or 13 times the weekly benefit amount of your regular unemployment benefit, whichever is less.
    
  
  
• Can I still get the extra $25 weekly benefit if I'm receiving state extended benefits?
  
  • Yes, you are still eligible for the additional $25 weekly benefit provided through the Recovery Act if you are receiving state extended benefits.
  
  
• How many more weeks of benefits will I get with state extended benefits?
  
  • If you are determined to be eligible for state extended benefits, you could receive up to 13 additional weeks of benefits.
    
  
  
• I'm an employer who pays unemployment taxes. Will I be charged more because of the state extended benefits?
  
  • Typically, state extended benefits are paid partially from federal funds and partially from the state's UI Trust Fund. The portion expended from the trust fund can impact employers' UI tax rate. This year, however, as a provision of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, benefits paid through calendar year 2009 in the state extended benefits program will be funded 100 percent through federal funds in most cases. That means they will not impact the UI trust fund or employers' UI tax rate. The exception is that state and local government, federally-recognized Indian tribes, federal agencies and the military, which are required to reimburse the UI Trust Fund for 100 percent of their pro-rata share of Extended Benefits paid.
    
  
  
• Is there a deadline to apply for state extended benefits?
  
  • Applications for Extended Benefits can only be filed during an Extended Benefits period. When a state triggers "on" to Extended Benefits it will remain in an Extended Benefits period for at least 13 weeks. Kansas will remain in an Extended Benefits period at least through Sept. 27, 2009. The state will trigger "off" Extended Benefits when the state's total seasonally adjusted unemployment rate drops below 6.5 percent.