Changes coming for Arizona’s unemployment insurance program

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Thousands of Arizonans have fallen victim to identity theft during the pandemic, resulting in delayed or denied payments and financial devastation.

One expert says that a simple modernization and security upgrade to Arizona’s decades-old unemployment insurance program could have saved victims the trouble and also saved the state billions of dollars, according to the Arizona Daily Star.

A plan to do that is underway.

The state Department of Economic Security will begin accepting proposals this month for a contract to one or multiple companies to modernize the unemployment insurance benefits system.

With an unprecedented number of Arizonans experiencing unemployment during the pandemic, people were forced to rely on the state’s unemployment insurance, the then-new Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program and other forms of state and federal assistance.

The DES collaborated with federal, state and local partners during the pandemic to provide support to people impacted by job loss and other COVID-related issues and made improvements to existing programs to meet the surge in demand for services and that work will continue, the Star reported.

The department will use funding from the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 and a “small surplus in a UI administration fund” to pay for the technology upgrade, a decision resulting from the pandemic-related demand, DES Director Michael Wisehart said.

The state will seek additional funding in the 2023 fiscal year budget to close any potential gaps in funding the overall project.