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Congressional Research IService
Informing the legislitive debate since 1914
October 30, 2024
Unemployment Benefits for Workers Impacted by Hurricanes
Helene and Milton
Workers who become unemployed for reasons directly
attributable to a major disaster, such as Hurricanes Helene
and Milton in 2024, may be eligible for income support
based on their work history through Unemployment
Compensation (UC) or Disaster Unemployment Assistance
(DUA). For many disaster-affected unemployed workers,
regular state UC benefits will provide weekly income
support. Unemployed workers who are ineligible for UC
benefits because they are self-employed, were injured on
account of the disaster, or have exhausted eligibility for UC
may be eligible for weekly income support through DUA
benefits.
This In Focus provides background on UC and DUA
eligibility and benefits. It also discusses the temporary UC
and DUA maximum benefit increases in effect in North
Carolina in response to Hurricane Helene, and provides
information on applying for UC and DUA benefits in states.
Unemployment Compensaton
The UC program pays weekly cash benefits to workers who
become involuntarily unemployed for economic reasons
and meet state-established eligibility rules. Although there
are broad requirements under federal law regarding UC
benefits and financing, the specifics are set out under each
state's laws. States administer UC benefits with U.S.
Department of Labor (DOL) oversight, resulting in 53
different UC programs operated in the states, the District of
Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. (After
UC benefits are exhausted, the Extended Benefit [EB]
program may provide up to an additional 13 or 20 weeks of
benefits, depending on worker eligibility, state law, and
economic conditions in the state. As of October 2024, EB
was not available in any state.) State unemployment taxes
finance the UC benefits.
For additional information on UC (and EB), see CRS In
Focus IF10336, The Fundamentals of Unemployment
Compensation.
UC Eligibity
In general, to receive UC benefits claimants must (1) have
enough recent earnings in employment in UC covered jobs
(distributed over a specified base period) to meet their
state's earnings requirements; and (2) be able, available,
and actively searching for work. The UC program generally
does not provide UC benefits to the self-employed, those
who are unable to work, or those who do not have a recent
earnings history. States usually disqualify claimants who
lost their jobs because of inability to work, voluntarily quit
without good cause, were discharged for job-related
misconduct, or refused suitable work without good cause.
UC Amount and Duration
UC benefit calculations are generally based on wages for
UC covered work over the base period. Most state benefit
formulas replace half of a claimant's average weekly wages
up to a weekly maximum. There is considerable variation
by state in the maximum weekly UC benefit amount-
ranging from $235 to $1,033 as of July 2024. The
maximum weekly benefit amounts in states affected by
Hurricanes Helene and Milton are listed in Table 1.
Table I. UC Maximum Weekly Benefit Amounts in
States Impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton
(As of July 2024)
State Maximum Weekly Benefit Amount
Florida $275
Georgia $365
North Carolina Temporarily $600a (otherwise $350)
South Carolina $326
Tennessee $325
Virginia $378
Source: DOL, Significant Provisions of State Unemployment
Insurance Laws, Effective July 2024, https://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/
content/sigpros/2020-2029/July2024.pdf.
a. On October 16, 2024, through Executive Order 332, the
governor of North Carolina temporarily increased the state's
maximum weekly benefit to $600, retroactive to September 29,
2024.
Under current state laws, the maximum duration of UC
benefits ranges from up to 12 weeks to up to 30 weeks, with
most states providing up to 26 weeks. The maximum weeks
available in states affected by Hurricanes Helene and
Milton are 12 in Florida, North Carolina, and Tennessee; 14
in Georgia; 20 in South Carolina; and 26 in Virginia.
(These maximums are based on each state's economic
conditions and state laws as of October 2024)
UC beneficiaries who are unemployed due to a qualifying
disaster but have exhausted their weeks of UC entitlement,
may be eligible for additional weeks of benefits based on
eligibility for DUA (e.g., in North Carolina, if an individual
exhausts their 12 weeks of regular UC but then qualifies for
DUA, under federal law they could receive up to 14 weeks
in DUA benefits [26 weeks minus 12 weeks = 14 weeks]).](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.crs/goverdm0001&div=1&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
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