Gov. Larry Hogan (R) announced yesterday that Maryland has applied for federal aid under President Trump’s recent order to increase unemployment benefits, meaning that workers who lost jobs because of the coronavirus pandemic could see a boost in their weekly aid checks, the Washington Post reported. Hogan said that Maryland has applied for the lost-wage assistance grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which would provide an additional $300 a week to out-of-work residents. During the first months of the pandemic, the federal government provided $600 a week for unemployed workers, in addition to state benefits. But those payments stopped at the end of July. With Congress and the White House deadlocked over a new relief package, Trump called for a $400 weekly boost in payments, with states covering 25 percent of the cost ($100 per person each week) and FEMA providing the rest. The plan was tweaked to allow states to use existing unemployment payments to cover their share after a bipartisan group of governors — whose states are facing massive budget shortfalls due to the pandemic — said they couldn’t afford any additional payments. Under that option, claimants would receive an additional $300 per week.
