Although every American is entitled to receive unemployment benefits, the number of weeks they can receive benefits depends on the state they live in.
Workers in most states are eligible for up to 26 weeks of benefits from the regular state-funded unemployment compensation program. And under the CARES Act, enacted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, most states provide 13 additional weeks of federally funded Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Assistance benefits to Americans who are out of work. Senior Researcher and Policy Analyst
“After the great recession, 10 states reduced the maximum benefit duration below 26 weeks,” says Michele Evermore, senior researcher and policy analyst for the National Employment Law Project. “However, since the pandemic started four of those 10 states went back to 26 weeks – Idaho, Michigan, Georgia, and Kansas.”
The handful of states continuing to offer less than 26 weeks are Missouri, South Carolina, Arkansas, Florida, North Carolina and Alabama, she says.
Unemployed Americans are also eligible for an extra $600 a week. But states will pay the extra $600 only through the week ending July 25 or 26, a significant blow to unemployed workers counting on that money to bolster state benefits that average just $370 a week.
The additional benefits are part of the CARES Act, a $1.8-trillion package Congress passed to help the nation weather the economic storm brought by the coronavirus pandemic, which shuttered businesses, slowed spending and erased a staggering 22 million jobs in just two months.
Alabama: 21 weeks
Alaska: 46 weeks
Arizona: 39 weeks
Arkansas: 30 weeks
California: 39 weeks
Colorado: 39 weeks
Connecticut: 39 weeks
Delaware: 39 weeks
District of Columbia: 39 weeks
Florida: 18 weeks
Georgia: 46 weeks
Hawaii: 39 weeks
Idaho: 39 weeks
Illinois: 39 weeks
Indiana: 39 weeks
Iowa: 39 weeks
Kansas: 46 weeks
Kentucky: 39 weeks
Louisiana: 39 weeks
Maine: 39 weeks
Maryland: 39 weeks
Massachusetts: 39 weeks
Michigan: 39 weeks
Minnesota: 39 weeks
Mississippi: 39 weeks
Missouri: 30 weeks
Montana: 41 weeks
Nebraska: 39 weeks
Nevada: 39 weeks
New Hampshire: 46 weeks
New Jersey: 46 weeks
New Mexico: 39 weeks
New York: 46 weeks
North Carolina: 21.6 weeks
North Dakota: 39 weeks
Ohio: 46 weeks
Oklahoma: 39 weeks
Oregon: 46 weeks
Pennsylvania: 39 weeks
Puerto Rico: 39 weeks
Rhode Island: 46 weeks
South Carolina: 36 weeks
South Dakota: 26 weeks
Tennessee: 39 weeks
Texas: 46 weeks
Utah: 39 weeks
Vermont: 46 weeks
Virgin Islands: 39 weeks
Virginia: 39 weeks
Washington: 46 weeks
West Virginia: 39 weeks
Wisconsin: 39 weeks
Wyoming: 39 weeks
