ORLANDO, Fla. — As Florida Department of Economic Opportunity processes what it is says is an “unprecedented” volume of claims, outdated letters sent to applicants are now causing further confusion.
What You Need To Know
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- FLORIDA UNEMPLOYMENT: Your Questions Answered
- Contact Your State Lawmakers: Florida Government Guide
Dozens of people have shared with Spectrum News snapshots of letters they’ve recently received. In each case, the letter is dated nearly a month prior to receiving the letter. In some cases, the letters are arriving after a prescribed appeal date.
Examples include:
- Letter dated April 27; mailed May 12
- Letter dated May 5; mailed June 1
- Letter dated April 18; mailed June 8
“This is a gigantic puzzle. It has been a puzzle since the beginning,” said Terri Cousins, a Floridian who recently received a letter with a date from weeks ago. “Just when you think you have one piece put in place, DEO throws you another one, and if you are not completely on top of what’s going on, your claim can be completely scrambled.”
Other residents have told Spectrum News that they missed the appeal deadline because of when they received the letter from DEO.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Postal Service said the markings on the envelopes are not postmarks, but rather “meters” placed by DEO or a third party mailing provider. USPS also said they have no reports of mailing issues.
A spokesperson for DEO hasn't yet explained why the letters are going out much later than the dates on the letters, but a spokesperson did say the date would not adversely affect a claimant’s case.
“As you know, the Department’s number one priority is getting Floridians paid,” DEO told Spectrum News. “The department will continue to be flexible in situations such as these, where individuals may have received letters that were sent later than intended, as our main focus was on getting people paid. In a circumstance such as this, an individual would be able to present the delayed receipt of the letter during their appeal.”
For people like Cousins, delayed letters are just another layer of obstacles in their effort to get paid. Cousins is a licensed exercise therapist. As a small business owner, she has not received any income since the state ordered businesses closed in March because of the coronavirus.
Cousins said she has been told to apply multiple times and since March has received only a few payments -- all less than what she is owed.
Her claims have been zeroed out.
“It shows I made zero money in 2019,” Cousins said, adding she has provided every record and document to DEO that’s been requested.
Zeroed-out claims continue to be a common complaint among applicants who have reached out to Spectrum News, frustrated with the inability of being able to get through to call centers or agents able to adjust their claims.
Many applicants whose claims were deemed “ineligible” have also reached out saying they were wrongly deemed ineligible. Florida Department of Economic Opportunity’s dashboard shows as of June 11, there were more than 476,000 “ineligible claims.”
The agency hasn't answered how it is proceeding in giving those claims follow-up reviews because of widespread complaints of erroneous ineligibility determination.
Gov. Ron DeSantis nor Florida Department of Management Services Secretary Jonathan Satter, who is overseeing the unemployment system, have addressed the ongoing unemployment crisis in recent days. But on Thursday afternoon, DeSantis extended the waiver on work-search requirements for those filing for unemployment benefits. The mandate, which normally requires a person filing for unemployement to provide proof they're looking for work, is now waived through July 4.
“The only way we as claimants have gotten information is by talking to each other via social media, sharing where our headaches and problems and glitches are,” Cousins said. “We’re helping one another. It’s not coming from DEO.”
Cousins said what claimants most want are payments, clear answers, and for the problems to be fixed.
“We’re business owners. We know how to make things happen. We want to work. We want to make a living. This was not by choice, but you’re taking somebody’s livelihood and taking it away,” Cousins said.