Unemployment checks in D.C., Maryland and Virginia are about to get bigger.
When Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, it included an additional $600 per week for each person approved for unemployment benefits. Most states have been slow to process the change.
D.C. unemployment recipients will get the extra $600 per week by next week, Mayor Muriel Bowser said Thursday morning.
People approved for unemployment in Maryland and Virginia also will start seeing the extra $600 per week soon, representatives for the states’ departments of labor said.
The extra funds will be retroactive.
In D.C., more than 66,000 people have filed claims for unemployment. As of last week, only about a third of claims had been processed. Officials said they are struggling to handle an unprecedented number of claims.
Also Thursday, D.C.’s mayor urged voters to request mail-in ballots and fill out their census forms.
The D.C. primary is June 2. There will be in-person early voting at 20 locations, but mail-in voting is strongly encouraged. The deadline to request a mail-in ballot is May 26. Go here to request a ballot.
