Tag Archives: benefits

TWC’s Lost Wage Assistance Program ($300 extra)

UPDATE: TWC Has reported that the last week that will pay the LWA $300 extra is the workweek ending Sept 5th. The Funds had to be requested weekly from FEMA and after 6 weeks FEMA denied Texas’s request.

The following was sent via email to claimants 8/22 to clarify the Lost Wage Assistance Program benefit Texas is enacting due to the presidential executive order round of funding. Especially note that if your reason for loss of work on your original application was not noted as COVID-19, your next payment request should give you an opportunity to change/correct that.

The FAQ at this time does not estimate how many weeks this extra benefit will exist. Press and other sources are estimating 3-5 weeks.

Understanding the Lost Wage Assistance Program

On August 20, 2020, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott authorized TWC  to submit the application for the additional $300 made available under President Trump’s Lost Wage Assistance Executive Order. TWC is working to implement this change as quickly as possible. 

To help you understand how this program may impact your benefits, we’ve compiled frequently asked questions on the Lost Wage Assistance Program.

What is the LWA program?
President Trump signed four Presidential Memorandums on Aug. 8, 2020, including one to offer enhanced unemployment insurance benefits of $300 per week. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) continue to provide guidance to each state for the proper administration of the benefit. The Department of Workforce Services will continue to communicate the guidelines of the program as they are finalized by these federal agencies.

Who is eligible to receive the $300?
To be eligible for LWA benefits:

  1. Your weekly benefit amount must be $100 or more.
  2. You must receive at least $1 of benefits from one of the following programs:
    • Regular unemployment insurance
    • Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE)
    • Unemployment Compensation for Ex-Servicemembers (UCX)
    • Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC)
    • Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA)
    • Extended Benefits (EB)
    • Shared Work
    • Trade Readjustment Allowances (TRA)
  3. You must certify that you are unemployed, partially unemployed, or unable or unavailable to work due to disruptions caused by COVID-19.

LWA is not payable to individuals collecting Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA).

I did not certify that my claim was COVID-19 related when I first applied, can I do so now?
If you have not previously certified that your claim is COVID-19 related you will be given the opportunity to do so on your next payment request.

I’m on a shared work program, how do I certify that my reduced hours are COVID-19 related?
If you are on a shared work program, TWC will reach out to clarify if your reduction of hours is COVID-19 related.

How do I apply for the additional $300?
If you are already receiving benefits, no application is required. Continue requesting payments as normal. Our team is updating the system. Eligible claimants should receive the additional $300 a week on their first payment request on or after 8/23/2020.

Will the additional $300 be backdated?
Yes, the President’s Executive Order allows for additional $300 a week to be backdate to the week of August 1, 2020.

Will the additional $300 appear on my account?
Like the previous additional benefits, this amount will not be added to the weekly benefit amount visible on your account but will be added when deposited.

Why is it an additional $300?
This is the amount set forth in the Presidents Executive Order and agreed upon by the State of Texas.

If my weekly benefit amount is less than $100, do I receive the additional $300?
If you receive less than $100 a week of unemployment benefits you are not eligible to receive the additional $300.

Is the additional $300 paid per week?
Yes. Since TWC deposits payments every two weeks, eligible claimants will receive an extra $600 every two weeks.

I returned to work between 8/1 and 8/23, do I qualify for backdated payments?
Yes, if someone returned to work between 8/1/2020 and 8/23/2020 they may be eligible. We will review those claims and if needed reach out to those individuals.

Deadlines, Claims, and COBRA from the IATSE-NBF

The following is from an email notice via the IATSE National Benefits Fund Office.

Important Information Regarding Extensions of Deadlines Related to Benefit Claims and Appeals, Special Enrollment and COBRA

Due to the various challenges that individuals are facing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S Department of Labor (DOL) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) jointly issued rules that extend certain deadlines for individuals who participate in employee benefit plans. These rules apply to the IATSE National Benefit Funds. 

In accordance with the DOL/IRS rules, the “outbreak period” will not be counted when the Funds (or their claims administrators and benefit providers) calculate certain deadlines. The “outbreak period” is defined as the period from March 1, 2020 until 60 days after the COVID-19 National Emergency ends as determined by the federal government (or such other date as the DOL/IRS announce, which may be specific to different states or geographic regions).

The following deadlines are extended by the rules:  

  1. The Funds’ deadlines for filing a benefit claim or an appeal of a denied claim (or other adverse benefit determination), and the period for requesting an external review (or perfecting a request for external review) of a health benefit claim.
                                                         
  2. The 60-day period to request special enrollment in the Health & Welfare Fund after acquiring a new dependent due to birth, marriage, adoption or placement for adoption, or after losing other health coverage (or becoming eligible for health coverage assistance under Medicaid or CHIP). 
  3. The 60-day COBRA election period and the 60-day period for notifying the Health Fund of a COBRA qualifying event or Social Security disability determination.
  4. The 45-day and 30-day deadlines for paying initial and monthly COBRA premiums.

For example, if the National Emergency ends on June 29, then the outbreak period would end on August 28 (60 days later), and the period from March 1 through August 28 would not count toward any of the above periods that would ordinarily expire between March 1 and August 28. Those periods would re-start on August 29, with the remaining days left in the applicable period. Please refer to the Summary Plan Descriptions and the Funds’ website for additional details regarding the various plan deadlines, and email  if you have any questions regarding how these rules may apply to you. Please note that only the four deadlines listed above are extended. Any other deadlines under the Plans (such as the due date for making any required CAPP payments) remain in place.

Please also note that, in conjunction with the above relief, the DOL stated that it recognizes that employee benefit plans (like the Funds) also face challenges and disruptions that make it difficult to communicate with participants by the usual methods and in as timely a manner during the outbreak period. In addition, the DOL/IRS rules specifically provide for the outbreak period to be disregarded in calculating the deadline for the Fund Office to provide COBRA election notices to qualified beneficiaries