Today, October 18, 2022, Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Office will be disbursing $1,019,695.60 refund checks to 630 claimants for deductions made on their Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) and FPUC benefits, according to the announcement issued by the WIOA Office last week.
The second and final refund disbursement will be issued on Wednesday, October 26, 2022. The amount of the second disbursement will be announced later.
According to the WIOA Office, the United States Department of Labor (US DOL) has approved using the remaining balance from the $18 million received in October of 2021 for the PUA/FPUC assistance to refund the deductions taken from the benefit payments of claimants between June 23, 2020, and December 31, 2020.
From June 2020 to December 2020, SS contributions, Health Insurance, and Income Taxes were deducted from the CARES Act claimants’ pandemic unemployment assistance. After December 31, 2020, it was determined that deductions should not have been made, and the US government demanded that deductions be refunded back to the claimants.
The income tax withheld was refunded back, but SSA and HCF deductions were problematic due to the nature of the programs.
The announcement noted that not all claimants of the CARES Act would be receiving refunds because not all had deductions on their PUA/FPUC benefits.
WIOA Office asks that CARES Act claimants wait to be called rather than calling the office to see if he/she is on the list of recipients of refunds.