Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed a bill to allow Michigan residents who qualify for unemployment to earn an extra $300 per week as the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues.
The bill appropriates $2.8 billion in supplemental funding from revenues awarded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
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The $300 payments will continue until the relief funding has been exhausted. It’s unclear how many weeks will be covered by existing funds, officials said.
“This is good news for the thousands of Michiganders who are still without work as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it’s still a short-term band-aid that falls short of what’s needed,” Whitmer said. “We need the president, Mitch McConnell, and Congress to put partisanship aside and pass a bipartisan recovery package that will help us save lives and get people back on their feet. Michigan families, frontline workers, and small business owners are counting on the federal government to do the right thing and work together on their behalf.”
Residents who have been deemed eligible to collect unemployment payments don’t have to do anything to receive the additional $300.
The bill also includes $8 million toward the Brandon Road Lock and Dam in Illinois, a barrier to prevent invasive carp from entering Lake Michigan. It also provides match funding for disaster flood cleanup in Midland and Gladwin counties, as well as funding to cover costs for flood response and mitigation efforts in Detroit.