Jobless Tennesseans began receiving an extra $600 a week in unemployment benefits Tuesday as the state began to distribute the extra federal assistance under the $2.1 trillion stimulus package approved by Congress last month.
The state of Tennessee started paying unemployment claimants their first installment of the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation benefit, which adds $600 of benefits to what the state is paying for those laid off because of the coronavirus.
Tennessee distributed nearly $94 million to financial institutions for about 110,000 unemployed Tennesseans on Tuesday. Most claimants will receive their directly-deposited payment on Wednesday and Tennessee expects to pay more than 150,000 persons by the end of the week.
Georgia’ Department of Labor began paying the extra $600 benefits to jobless claimants on Monday.
The extra federal benefits more than triple what jobless Tennesseans are paid through the state unemployment insurance program, which pays anywhere from $30 to $275 in Tennessee, depending upon the previous income and work history of those getting the unemployment benefit. In Georgia, jobless claimants are paid from $55 to $365 a week in state benefits, not counting the extra $600 weekly federal benefit.