Today on AirTalk, we discuss listeners' concerns and questions on filing for unemployment. Also on the show, we discuss plans for future potential stimulus packages; how baseball might move forward with a season; and more.
Federal And State Efforts To Get Additional Economic Relief To Small Businesses, Undocumented Californians
Small business owners got some tough news on Thursday morning when the Small Business Administration announced its the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) was maxed out and that it wouldn't be able to accept more claims right now. After going through $349 billion in just two weeks, President Trump is seeking $250 billion in additional relief for small business owners, but Democrats want any new legislation like this to ensure that things like hospitals, state and local governments and food assistance organizations are getting a share of the money as well. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Congressional Democrats are expected to meet on Thursday to try and reach an agreement on how to replenish the money in the lending program.
Meanwhile, in California, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a plan to provide $125 million in relief for the state’s nearly 150,000 residents who are undocumented. He also detailed longer hours for unemployment call centers and for faster delivery of benefits to independent contractors.
On the individual level, some Californians who logged into their bank accounts yesterday might have noticed a $1200 infusion from Uncle Sam, or maybe even more if you have dependent children. But others will have to wait. Many who filed their taxes last year with online preparation companies such as H&R Block and TurboTax did not immediately get their stimulus money because those companies didn’t have direct deposit information on file, according to The Washington Post. The U.S. Treasury will issue additional rounds of checks in the coming weeks to people who weren’t in the first round, including those who still get paper paychecks and others who do not have previous tax return information on file with the IRS.
Today on AirTalk, we’ll get an overview of how things are going with economic relief efforts at both the federal and state levels.
Click here to go to the IRS website where you can check on the status of your economic impact payment and provide the necessary information if you have yet to receive your payment. If you do not normally file a tax return, you may still be eligible to receive the payment. Click here to be taken to the IRS page for non-filers.
Guests:
Caitlin Emma, budget and appropriations reporter for Politico; she tweets
Scott Shafer, politics editor at KQED, the NPR affiliate in San Francisco; co-host of the station’s “Political Breakdown” podcast; tweets
COVID-19: What It Looks Like At One L.A. County Hospital
Yesterday, L.A. County reported 472 new coronavirus cases and 42 new deaths, the highest in a single day so far. The total number of cases in L.A. county is now 10,496. The total number of deaths is now 402, bringing the fatality rate up to 3.8%.
In an interview with KPCC's Nick Roman on Wednesday, Barbara Ferrer, the director of L.A. County's Public Health Department, said people should not be discouraged by the rising numbers: "We've always predicted that as soon as we saw more testing we were going to see more cases, and we actually think our cases will probably get up to about 1,000 a day for at least a week or two weeks while we ramp up testing and before we actually are able to get to the other side of the pandemic."
What do these numbers translate into for one hospital in L.A. County? Dr. Anish Mahajan is the chief medical officer at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, a safety-net hospital operated by L.A. County. The hospital has been working on ramping up its capacity and ensuring that staff is equipped with the proper personal protective gear.
Guest:
Anish Mahajan, M.D., chief medical officer at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, a safety-net hospital operated by L.A. County; tweets
Triple Play: Baseball In Arizona, Without An Audience? Really?
COVID-19 has created a lot of uncertainty, including in the field of baseball.
With Major League Baseball on hold, might it restart any time soon? 27 of the MLB’s teams are taking part in a COVID-19 antibody detection study, potentially pointing to the league’s hopes and plans for a comeback. Meanwhile, the MLB has floated a potential Arizona plan, with games continuing with no fans in the bleachers.
We dive into what we know now, as well as how COVID-19 might change baseball this year, and perhaps in years to come.
Guests:
Nick Roman, host of “All Things Considered” on KPCC; he tweets
A Martinez, host of KPCC’s “Take Two”; he tweets
What Questions, Concerns, Challenges Are You Facing While Filing For Unemployment Benefits?
The wave of layoffs that has engulfed the U.S. economy since the coronavirus struck forced 5.2 million more people to seek unemployment benefits last week, the government reported Thursday.
Roughly 22 million have now sought jobless benefits in the past month — easily the worst stretch of U.S. job losses on record. It means that roughly one in seven workers have lost their jobs in that time.
The grim figures point to an economy that is tumbling into what appears to be a calamitous recession, the worst in decades.
An unprecedented number of Californians are now filing for jobless benefits. Recent federal legislation opened up unemployment insurance to the self-employed, but many frustrated freelancers are still waiting to even be able to file. In normal times, gig workers, freelancers, and other self-employed people would not be eligible for jobless benefits, because they typically don't pay into the state's unemployment insurance system like employees who file their taxes with a W-2 form. The federal coronavirus aid package changed that. But the process won’t be rolled out for at least a couple weeks. The governor also announced this week that the state’s Employment Development Department will expand call-in hours to seven days a week, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Are you navigating through the confusing and often frustrating process of unemployment claims? We want to hear from you today. Call 8660893-5722 to tell us about your experience and ask your questions.
Resources:
You can find the EDD’s FAQ sheet here.
You can find NELP’s fact sheet here.
If you want to talk to somebody about your specific situation, you can call Legal Aid at Work at 415-404-9093 to schedule an appointment with the Workers’ Rights Clinics, which operate around the state, virtually. You can also find resources on their website: legalaidatwork.org/unemployment
You can also find more information from the U.S Department of Labor here.
With files from the Associated Press and LAist. Read the full LAist story from David Wagner here.
Guests:
Maurice Emsellem, program director at the National Employment Law Project in Berkeley; he tweets
George Warner, attorney in the Wage Protection Program at Legal Aid at Work, a San Francisco based nonprofit law firm that assists low-income, working families throughout California; he tweets
David Wagner, KPCC business and economy reporter; he tweets