Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine is appealing a judge’s ruling ordering him to dole out $900 million in federal COVID-19 unemployment money.
Opponents, however, want the governor to abandon his appeal.
The money was part of the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program, in which the federal government provided an additional $300 per week on top of what states allocated.
It was slated to end in September 2021. However, the Republican governor opted to end the state’s participation in the program 10 weeks early.
“The July 2021 to September 2021 time period referenced was after the pandemic emergency had ended,” WKYC-TV quoted Dan Tierney, a DeWine spokesman, as saying previously. “…In recent years, including those in question, Ohio has had more open jobs than workers to fill them. Providing emergency supplemental benefits well after the conditions necessitating them had ended was sending the wrong message when Ohio was open for business.”
Congress allocated the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation money in 2020 as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. After DeWine opted to end the program, more than 300,000 Ohioans have joined a class action lawsuit to force the governor to distribute the federal tax dollars.
“The heart of the lawsuit is simple: Was it lawful and just for Ohio to cut off federal unemployment benefits to about 300,000 Ohioans before their scheduled end?” state Rep. Sean Patrick Brennan, D-Parma, wrote in an op-ed for Cleveland.com.
“The courts have ruled that the state had an obligation to maximize economic aid for its citizens under Ohio law,” Brennan added. “Yet, instead of accepting this judgment and recognizing the profound struggles many Ohioans faced, DeWine and [Ohio Attorney General Dave] Yost recently chose to appeal, prolonging uncertainty and disregarding the economic realities confronting thousands.”
In February, Ohio Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Judge Michael Holbrook ordered DeWine to reinstate Ohio’s participation in the program immediately.
“Judge Holbrook ruled that Governor DeWine had a clear legal duty to continue Ohio’s participation in the federal unemployment benefits program and that he violated his statutory obligation when he refused to obtain $900 million of federal money for thousands of eligible Ohio citizens who were out of work and could not pay their bills during the COVID pandemic,” attorney Thomas A. Zimmerman Jr., who represents the plaintiffs in this matter, said in a release at the time.
“The federal money is still available from the DOL,” the attorney added. “All Governor DeWine has to do is ask for it and distribute it to his constituents who desperately need financial assistance.”
However, Holbrook put his decision on hold pending the appeal.
“Though the emergency of the pandemic has ended and funds should have been received back in 2021, these funds can still provide meaningful support for Ohio families,” House Democrats wrote in a letter.
“Distribution today means extra money available to Ohioans to weather the high cost of living, rising inflation, and the slowing job market,” they added. “Such additional household spending will also aid local communities and Ohio’s economy.”
Proponents say Ohio’s portion of the money is still available from the U.S. Department of Labor. However, according to the Ohio Capital Journal, the case’s plaintiffs are worried that the feds could claw back the money amid Ohio’s appeal.
“Because there is a likelihood that the (unemployment) benefits defendants are ordered to obtain from the U.S. Department of Labor will not be available for the duration of this appeal,” the plaintiffs argued in their filing. “defendants need to act now to secure the unused (unemployment) funds before those funds are recalled and used for other purposes.”
