12/07/2021
Action Memo
Summary
- The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021 signed into law on March 11, 2021 amended the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act which provided an extension of unemployment assistance.
- The Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) is no longer issuing payments funded by the CARES Act. Unemployment insurance benefits (UIB) information is still available on the Automatic Wage Verification System (AWVS) and will remain on record to view.
- Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) and the $300 Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) payments expired September 07, 2021.
- Workers should verify the final UIB payment issued under the extension using clearances in IES as the timeframe to disburse these payments has expired.
American Rescue Plan Act of 2021
The ARPA of 2021 that was signed into law on March 11, 2021 amended the CARES Act. This Act amended certain provisions that provided an extension of unemployment assistance due to the Covid pandemic. This extension expired September 07, 2021.
Illinois Department of Employment Security
IDES issued final payments funded by the CARES Act and extended by ARPA to eligible individuals on September 04, 2021. The payments can be identified by The Payment End Date in the AWVS clearance on the AWVS Details Screen.
Expiration of Federal Payments
PUA, PEUC and the $300 FPUC payments extended by ARPA expired September 07, 2021. The expiration of the federal benefits authorized by the CARES Act does not affect the IDES regular program for issuing UIB to qualified individuals.
FCRC Responsibilities
When processing applications, workers should run all appropriate clearances in IES to verify eligibility factors, including AWVS to determine receipt or expiration of UIB payments. A separate Maximum Benefit Amount field identifying the CARES Act balances may still display in the AWVS clearance; the ability to issue these payments has expired.
Historical information regarding the federally funded UIB payments authorized under the CARES Act can be located in policy memo Treatment of Payments Under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act dated May 13, 2020.
IES
- Workers should follow the logical unit of work for the task being processed.
- The AWVS clearance is available in Data Collection on the following screens:
- Clearance Results
- Employment Details; and
- Self-Employment Details
- Clearances including AWVS can also be accessed independently in IES using the Data Exchanges located in the Resource Management Module via left navigation.
- The AWVS clearance provides current and historical wage information including UIB payments on the AWVS Details screen in the Unemployment Benefits Details section.
Note: If any federal UIB payments covered in this memo are currently budgeted in the eligibility determination and the payments have ceased, the appropriate income record should be ended with the last date a payment was received.
[signed copy on file]
Grace B. Hou
Secretary, Illinois Department of Human Services
