Someone please explain EB & HUP EB from the following PA DOLI statement

This is from the DOLI website:
"HUP" EB

The Pennsylvania UC Law was recently amended to increase the maximum amount of EB a claimant may receive if Pennsylvania enters a "high unemployment period," or HUP. A HUP occurs when Pennsylvania's total unemployment rate reaches 8 percent. The Commonwealth's total unemployment rate has risen to the level necessary to create a HUP.

As a result of the HUP, if you were financially eligible for 13 weeks of regular EB, your financial eligibility is increased to 20 weeks. If you were financially eligible for 8 weeks of regular EB, your financial eligibility is increased to 12.8 weeks.

This increased amount of EB, called HUP EB, applies only to weeks within the HUP. The first week for which HUP EB was payable was the week ending August 8, 2009.

Claims for HUP EB are filed in the same way as claims for regular EB."

Now, if regular EB switches off in May, that means forget HUP EB as well, right?
It's just that HUP EB is based on a monthly u/e %, not an average, as it states above. So, technically, if PAs u/e went up to 8% for April (reported in May), wouldn't that mean people could get 7 weeks of HUP EB?

This is so confusing. I don't understand anything about the 3-mo avg for regular EB being thrown out and now it's a 2 year look-back (is this true?). And when I read the above, it sounds like anyone can get HUP EB if the employment rate is 8% or above.

Thanks in advance for any clarification.

I just rolled over to hup today. I know i'll get my 7 wks because it will stop june 11th if gov. doesn't act because when the numbers come out next month we will be below 8%.

agnes35111 wrote:I just rolled over to hup today. I know i'll get my 7 wks because it will stop june 11th if gov. doesn't act because when the numbers come out next month we will be below 8%.

Can you (or someone) please explain why this is so? And let me know if I'm eligible for HUP EB based on the below:

I justed mailed my 13th week of EB today.

Could someone be so kind enough to tell me if I'm eligible for 7 weeks of HUP EB, or not? Do I have to wait for the unemployment rate for April to come out on May 20th in order to find out?

I would really appreciate some help on this. I'm so confused about all this PA stuff going on (2 yr lookback, 3 yr lookback, 8% unempl. req. for HUP EB, etc).

Bottom line--right now am I eligible for HUP EB, 5/15? And what could change that to the opposite when the rate comes out on 5/20 (if anything would change it, which I'm too confused to figure out--so sorry!).

Thanks to all of you so much!

(I'm trying to learn what I can about the lookback but I need a PA 101 course. I've been following the fed stuff, and not watching the PA stuff, until a few weeks ago, thanks to Desp in RI, and Daze & Confused's posts.)

I am currently receiving PA HUP EB (the final 7 weeks). Mine ends in a couple of weeks. Since you just sent in your last mail claim for the initial 13 weeks, you will automatically move to HUP. However, unless the State of PA passes State Bill 994, HUP will end for everyone in PA on June 11th, due to the "improving unemployment rate." The good news is that they have recently been making progress on SB 994 in the General Assembly in Harrisburg. However, they are on vacation until May 23rd, so who knows when they will get this bill passed.

I am hopeful and have been in contact with Gov. Corbett's office. I actually received a response from the Gov on Friday. He says he is "committed to assisting Pennsylvanians who are enduring professional hardship during this difficult economic period," and that he "will monitor this bill's progress as discussions continue."

So, to answer your question, you WILL get HUP EB until June 11th. It will be up to our leaders in Harrisburg to continue it after that date. If you want to keep up to date and track the progress of SB 994, you can do so by visiting: www.legis.state.pa.us.

Also, please be aware that many of us in PA who have transitioned from EB to HUP EB have experienced delays in the time it takes for them to deposit the funds. Do not be surprised if your final EB payment and your first HUP EB payment arrives at least one week late.

I hope this has helped you to better understand PA HUP. Believe me, I completely understand your confusion and I know how stressful all of these Tier, EB, and HUP transitions have been. You are not alone, and you will find much help and support on this forum.

All the best to you!

PamelaJo wrote:I am currently receiving PA HUP EB (the final 7 weeks). Mine ends in a couple of weeks. Since you just sent in your last mail claim for the initial 13 weeks, you will automatically move to HUP. However, unless the State of PA passes State Bill 994, HUP will end for everyone in PA on June 11th, due to the "improving unemployment rate." The good news is that they have recently been making progress on SB 994 in the General Assembly in Harrisburg. However, they are on vacation until May 23rd, so who knows when they will get this bill passed.

So, to answer your question, you WILL get HUP EB until June 11th. It will be up to our leaders in Harrisburg to continue it after that date. If you want to keep up to date and track the progress of SB 994, you can do so by visiting: www.legis.state.pa.us.

Also, please be aware that many of us in PA who have transitioned from EB to HUP EB have experienced delays in the time it takes for them to deposit the funds. Do not be surprised if your final EB payment and your first HUP EB payment arrives at least one week late.

All the best to you!

Thanks for replying, PamelaJo!

You gave me info I didn't know. Now I know I'll get something through week ending June11th--I didn't know that. That will give me 4 more weeks if I don't get a job b4 then. Your post is a much unexpected pleasant surprise!

And thanks, too, for the heads-up about the potential delay in my final EB and first HUP EB pmts.

I've been reading the thread that's titled "If you live in PA...." and have been contacting PA official as directed. Hopefully, the bill will eventually pass, and hopefully for 99ers, federal HR 589 will pass at some point as well.

EDIT: Is reference to June 11th on the PA DOLI website? Because I don't remember seeing it.

Thanks again. You've been a great help.
<--this kitty is too cute---it puts a smile on my face, maybe it will for other people too

I like this one too, Jane!

Happy to hear you got an answer and good news regarding your EB!

DesperateInRI wrote:I like this one too, Jane!

Happy to hear you got an answer and good news regarding your EB!

Thanks, Desperate! (Can I call you something other than "Desperate"?---want to be positive....!!)

P.S. Do you know why the termination date of June 11th doesn't show up on PA's Unemployment site? I can't find it anywhere, and I'd like to be able to see it in writing (no offense to PameloJo--I believe you, but I'm one of those people who have to be 110% sure...)

Thanks, Desp.! (better than Desperate. Hope you don't mind)
<--another cute kitty-----I'm wanting one soooo bad.

Jane0218,

Sorry I did not reply to you earlier...we've been having severe storms and I shut down my computer right after I answered you. Now I can't sleep, so thought I would respond before the next round of storms moves through.

There is no info on the PA L&I website about the cutoff date of June 11th, but I found it listed on several national news websites and also on the National Employment Law Project (NELP) website:

http://www.unemployedworkers.org/sites/unemployedworkers/index.php

No offense taken regarding wanting proof of the date. Personally, I have seen so much confusing info and it often seems to be extremely contradictory. I double check all the info, too. I do feel certain that June 11th is the correct date, though. I've seen that date listed many times in many places.

I have no idea why the L&I website does not say a word about it. The way they word things on their official site has confused and confounded me ever since I first signed up for benefits so long ago. I wonder if all State UC sites are as confusing? I don't know the answer to that.

I do know that if SB 994 passes, you will receive the entire 7 weeks of HUP. I hope it passes quickly for your sake. No matter what, it won't do anything to help me, as I exhaust all benefits at the end of May. There seem to be fewer jobs listed in my area every day, so I am hanging onto hope that those in Washington pass HR 589. I will soon be a "99er" and it is frightening. I pray for all of us. I've also been contacting many, many politicians. Hopefully, between praying and pushing those on Capitol Hill for attention to our plight, we might see some kind of extension. Who knows how long it will take, though. The entire unemployment benefit process has been nothing but frustrating and confusing, in my opinion.

By the way, I just LOVE the cats! So cute. I have one cat, Molly, and many days she is the only thing which keeps me going...and she always puts a smile on my face! Both of you have added another smile by posting those photos. Thank you!

Hoping things work out positively for all of us!

HUP EB in Pa is contingent on the state having an 8% UE average over 3 consecutive months. FEB was 8.0 and MAR7.8%. Unless April is 8.2% or above HUP EB will trigger off. Regular EB needs Bill 1030 to pass to extend the lookback period for 3 years. That should pass and 13 weeks should be safe as the necessary UE rate is 6.5%.

Update regarding the link I posted to keep track of SB 994. For some reason, the link is not working. If you want to learn more about SB 994:

Type www.legis.state.pa.us directly into the address bar. When you get to the General Assembly homepage, look at the top right of the page to find a box which says "Find Legislation By" and then click on Bill # and then enter SB 994. That will take you to a page with info about the Bill. If you wish to view the text of the bill, under "Text" at the bottom of the page, click on the program you want to use to open the Bill text.

SB 994 relates to amending the two-year look back now in place to a three-year look back which is what needs to pass in order for all PA EB and HUP EB to be extended beyond June 11th. Hope this gives you a bit more insight into the "look back" issue.

Thanks for posting that info PamelaJo.

FYI- Thought you might like to see the entire content of the email which I received from PA's Gov. Tom Corbett on Friday, May 13th:

Dear Friend:

Thank you for your recent letter expressing support for SB 994, which would extend unemployment compensation benefits currently available under the Extended Benefits program. Please know that my Administration remains committed to assisting Pennsylvanians who are enduring professional hardship during this difficult economic period.

SB 994 is one of the many bills being considered as part of the discussions on how to assist currently unemployed Pennsylvanians and improve the system for those who may face similar challenges in the future. Be assured that my staff and I will monitor this bill’s progress as discussions continue.

In addition, since this bill is currently in the General Assembly, I suggest you contact your State Representative and State Senator to notify them of your position. Nonetheless, should this bill be presented for my signature, I will certainly keep your concerns and suggestions in mind.

In the meantime, you can track the progress of this proposed legislation by visiting www.legis.state.pa.us.

Sincerely,

TOM CORBETT
Governor

bth13 wrote:HUP EB in Pa is contingent on the state having an 8% UE average over 3 consecutive months. FEB was 8.0 and MAR7.8%. Unless April is 8.2% or above HUP EB will trigger off. Regular EB needs Bill 1030 to pass to extend the lookback period for 3 years. That should pass and 13 weeks should be safe as the necessary UE rate is 6.5%.

Hi bth13,

This is directly from the PA DOLI site. It doesn't say anything about an average over 3 months. It just says it triggers at 8%. I know the regular EB is based upon a 3-mo average, but I don't think HUP EB is:

This is from the DOLI website:
"HUP" EB

The Pennsylvania UC Law was recently amended to increase the maximum amount of EB a claimant may receive if Pennsylvania enters a "high unemployment period," or HUP. A HUP occurs when Pennsylvania's total unemployment rate reaches 8 percent. The Commonwealth's total unemployment rate has risen to the level necessary to create a HUP.

As a result of the HUP, if you were financially eligible for 13 weeks of regular EB, your financial eligibility is increased to 20 weeks. If you were financially eligible for 8 weeks of regular EB, your financial eligibility is increased to 12.8 weeks.

This increased amount of EB, called HUP EB, applies only to weeks within the HUP. The first week for which HUP EB was payable was the week ending August 8, 2009.

Claims for HUP EB are filed in the same way as claims for regular EB."

Oh Jeez, you know there has to be something in there besides being 8%. We are always the last to know Joan. So we have to get up to 8% from 7.8 without an 3 month average TUR, idk. Tricky one there, I wouldn't be surprised if it was just 8% though. I got screwed for my first 3 weeks of EB, they sent me the wrong forms. For three weeks I did not get any money because "we sent you the federal forms." "EB is State but they are all the same." Help me please, these people are so confused. Can't count on PA being correct about much.

How are you gal. Come on, I wanna see them there Penguins, getting crosschecked hard, they deserve it after all the faith you put in them, and "it's crying time again.".

Talk later.

I made a mistake in my post about EB being based on an average. From what I understand, EB goes into effect if the unemployment rate reaches 6% (or 6.5%). I read that in the law posted online. Then HUP EB triggers at 8%, according to what I posted from PA DOLI.

But, when the rate goes under 8%, HUP EB is supposed to stop immediately. But that hasn't happened for PamelaJo, so I'm still confused as to whether I'll get HUP EB if the rate stays under 8% come May 20.

If the DOLI site isn't up to date, I don't know how else to find out what the current law is for PA.

It is very confusing. The more I look into it on the L&I site, the more confused I become. I can tell you that I just got my deposit today, as usual, and I still have 2 mail claims to send for the next two weeks. I also received a letter from the UC office telling me that I would receive the entire HUP EB which I was expecting and should continue to mail my claim forms as usual. It has everything to do with the "look back" law, but don't ask me what that really means. I can't figure it out, either.

Again, I continue to see the date of June 11th listed as the final date for HUP EB in PA, unless they pass the 3 year look back law. They are working on that in Harrisburg, but are on vacation this week. Is it just me, or do others notice that all the politicians seem to go on vacation just when a critical vote is due?

It's all so complicated and I still think there must be a better way to handle the unemployment extensions. Because of my layoff date, I've always made the next tier just by one day every time they have voted for the extensions in Congress. I've been uncertain and stressed by all of that for nearly 2 years, as I never knew what would happen until the very last minute.

I hope you receive all of your benefits. I know how upsetting it is not to be certain about what's going on. If I see anything else online which would make things clear, I'll pass it along!

In my recent post, I forgot to add that I received the letter informing me I would receive all of the HUP benefits 1 1/2 weeks after the unemployment rate fell below 8%. The letter was postmarked in Harrisburg after the rate fell, too. So it was sent after the drop from 8%. I hope that helps, for what it's worth, but I still can't explain it.

PamelaJo wrote:In my recent post, I forgot to add that I received the letter informing me I would receive all of the HUP benefits 1 1/2 weeks after the unemployment rate fell below 8%. The letter was postmarked in Harrisburg after the rate fell, too. So it was sent after the drop from 8%. I hope that helps, for what it's worth, but I still can't explain it.

That's interesting...

I know for sure that if someone starts on regular EB and are due 13 weeks, they must get 13 weeks, even if the unemployment rate drops below that 6 or 6.5%. Maybe it's the same for HUP EB. If thats the case, then I wouldn't be eligible for HUP EB because I should start this past 5/15 and the rate was at 7.8%.
I think I'll just have to wait and see, even though it seems unfair to not be able to find out what my future holds for me re: EB.

Thanks for the posts, PamelaJo!

The whole rating system is off in PA. They have significantly dropped in the last month and yet the hiring is not there. My suggestion to all is to contact the 888 number. I have always found them to be helpful and they will explain it to you. Also, ask for confirmation to be sent by letter if you are triggered off. You will need it for any kind of social service assistance that you qualify for such as food stamps, medicaid etc. They want to have that letter.

MaryKay wrote:The whole rating system is off in PA. They have significantly dropped in the last month and yet the hiring is not there. My suggestion to all is to contact the 888 number. I have always found them to be helpful and they will explain it to you. Also, ask for confirmation to be sent by letter if you are triggered off. You will need it for any kind of social service assistance that you qualify for such as food stamps, medicaid etc. They want to have that letter.

Which 888 number? 888-313-7284? They are very nice there, but I called them and they said they don't know if I'm eligible or not. They said the only way they'll know if I'm eligible for HUP EB is if my balance increases after it goes down to zero from using up regular EB. Other than that, they couldn't help me.

Jane0218,

You are correct. When Tier 4 dissapeared it caught them off guard. There was no advanced notice. They now are hesitant to commit to letting you know if you will qualify for other extentions.

888-313-7284. I called this morning. Once you have exhausted UC and all four tiers, if PA is still in a High Unemployment Period (HUP), you should qualify. If they are not, you may not qualify, they are actually working on that right now. It has to do with a bill they are working on right now and there are variables to who will and won't be able to collect.

I really cannot stress this enough. Please all members, as difficult as this all is, you have to contact your UC Service Centers with these questions. Many states are changing their UC systems and claim processes as I am writing this. Extended Benefits and EUC Benefits are changing as well. With states triggering off the High Unemployment Periods (HUP), some are doing away with it. Any experiences some of us have had do not matter anymore. We all want to help, but you MUST contact you UC Service Centers for your personal situations.

I can tell you that if you still have weeks left on a claim, they cannot answer questions as to what could happen after that. Much of this legislation they are working on has to do with that as does the rate of unemployment in each state which they cannot predict a month or six weeks from now. Those things also factor in to whether they continue the HUP-UC.

Please contact 888-313-7284, you don't want to count on additional funds that may or may not be available to you. You don't want to get into situations that could impact future benefits. Please check with them.

MaryKay wrote:888-313-7284. I called this morning. Once you have exhausted UC and all four tiers, if PA is still in a High Unemployment Period (HUP), you should qualify. If they are not, you may not qualify, they are actually working on that right now. It has to do with a bill they are working on right now and there are variables to who will and won't be able to collect.

Please contact 888-313-7284, you don't want to count on additional funds that may or may not be available to you. You don't want to get into situations that could impact future benefits. Please check with them.

Thanks for the post MaryKay.

I guess I'm not getting my question across. PA DOLI website states HUP EB (7 weeks for me) triggers at 8% unemployment rate(UR). PA's UR went down to 7.8% for the month of March, posted in mid-April. According to the DOLI website, HUP EB should have triggered off and there shouldn't be any question if someone is eligible. The answer should be no, because the rate went under 8%.

April's UR (posted by BLS 5/19) is 7.5%, so that should lead us to even be more certain that HUP EB stops immediately, according to the PA DOLI website. Yet people are still getting HUP EB from when it went under 8% last month. That's the confusing part.

If the trigger for HUP EB has changed, I wish DOLI would amend their website. Whether or not legislation goes through, it should be clear if HUP EB is triggered on or off. By all indications on their web site, it should be off as of last month.

I called again today, and they said again they can't help me. They have to wait until I reach -0- for regular EB, then see if my account is funded for HUP EB. Then a letter will be sent out.

I think it's negligent on PA's part to allow people like me not know if I'm eligible this week for HUP EB. They should be able to tell me, no matter what legislation we're waiting for to go through. Today is today, and there are laws in place today that should govern whether or not I'm eligible. Apparently that 8% trigger has been changed but the website hasn't I guess, if there are people getting HUP EB now.

It's very frustrating not knowing...