Funding for a federal program providing an additional $300 a week in unemployment benefits for eligible, out-of-work Tenneseeans has run out.
The state’s Department of Labor says the week ending September 5 is the last one the extra money covers, although it will take weeks for retroactive payments to reach individuals due to processing.
The federal government began offering the $300 supplement at the beginning of August after an initial enhanced benefit of $600 a week came to an end in July.
The most recent, six-week round of federal support was paid for through a $44 billion grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Congress has yet to agree to further extend federal aid to the unemployed.
Eligible Tennessee residents already received a lump sum of $900 for the federal portion of their unemployment benefit for the first three week of August, according to the Department of Labor.
To qualify for the additional federal help, individuals must be out of work due to COVID-19 and already meet criteria for at least $100 per week in unemployment benefits.
Last week the number of Tennesseans on unemployment dipped by about 10,000 from the week before. About a quarter of the state’s claims are from Shelby County.