Unemployment benefits running out as Nevada awaits help restarting system

As more and more Nevadans exhaust regular and emergency unemployment program benefits, the increases in initial and continued claims has shifted to the State Extended Benefits program.

Initial regular claims fell again in the week ending Dec. 26 to just 7,209 and continued claims decreased more than 7,600 to 78,374. That is the 19^th decrease in continued claims in the past 21 weeks.

The Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation program that provides benefits after claimants exhaust their regular benefits, decreased 4,035 claims over the week to 95,439.

When the jobless exhaust that program’s 13 weeks of benefits, they fall to the State Extended Benefits program. That program has experienced a steady increase in claims over the past few weeks — 23,973 last week, an increase of 3,362.

Employment Security officials are still awaiting guidance from the Labor Department on how to restart and extend all those programs now that the new stimulus package has been signed into law.

Also awaiting guidance is the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program that provides benefits to the self-employed. That program also saw a decline in initial claims for the week ended Dec. 26. There were 5,046 new claims, a 62 percent, 8,452 claims compared to the week before. Continued PUA claims fell 5,102 to 78,804.

Labor Department officials said they hoped to have guidance to the state within two weeks of the stimulus passage. Nevada officials have promised to restore the benefits as soon as they have that guidance.