stimulus – Boost My Dream: Entrepreneurship | Self Improvement | Money | Tax Tips and more https://boostmydream.com Change to the New You! Sun, 14 Mar 2021 06:06:37 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.4 Tens of thousands of Illinoisans will see their unemployment benefits suspended in March https://boostmydream.com/tens-of-thousands-of-illinoisans-will-see-their-unemployment-benefits-suspended-in-march/ Fri, 12 Mar 2021 22:36:08 +0000 https://boostmydream.com/?p=425 I had to write about this as I do not see any other channels covering it. Illinois” unemployment department (IDES) ran into many issues since the pandemic began. The issues ranged anywhere from the unemployed waiting to receive benefits for weeks and sometimes months, to waiting for a “callback” to speak with a live agent many of whom were undertrained and therefore often unhelpful…leading to financially painful benefits’ documentation issues for struggling Americans.

This has been going on for months, and although most residents understand that it has not been an easy task for Illinois to implement some of the federal programs (PUA and PEUC), it seems as though that the people on top have not done much to prepare themselves for an impending benefit distribution disaster.


Many currently unemployed started receiving their payments back in March 2020 shortly after the pandemic began. As unemployment entitlement benefits last exactly a year, many of those currently unemployed would see their benefits stop exactly after their benefit year-end date. If you are unsure what your benefit year end-date is, log on to your IDES account and pull up any payment history. On top of the page, you will see your Claimant ID and your benefit year end date. That date is crucial because that is the last day for which most of you you will receive benefits.

Credit: Radoan Tanvir

However, technically, since President Biden signed the new relief bill last week, your benefit extensions should remain active until the first week of September 2021. This makes many people believe in case they are unable to secure a new employment anytime soon, they would keep receiving benefits without interruption, right? Wrong! This is exactly where the problem begins!

If you have not worked at all since last year when you started receiving unemployment, you will have to CALL and physcally speak to an agent before those new “extensions” can resume. Most unemployed Americans did not work at all since last March. Therefore, this warning goes to hundreds of thousands of people. This also means that you will have to put yourself on a callback list soon, and hope that someone calls you back only a few days after your benefit year ends. Remember, if you have not worked since last year, regardless of whether you have a balance in your unemployment account, you will NOT receive benefits unless you speak to someone. Only a live person can put you on a transitional claim (PUA/PEUC/EB). Unless you do that, you’d receive nothing. No $300 boost, no regular payment….zilch!

There will not be any automatic continuation of the extension. At this point when Americans are struggling to make ends meet, you’d think that our state government would be on top of their game, and that they would do everything they can to help Illinois residents. You’d expect they would make these extensions automatic as long as the claimants are certifying for benefits as “still unemployed”. You’d hope that someone in the government would know about this very well, and bring up this issue with Governor Pritzker and the IDES.

This may not apply to you IF you’ve worked part-time [and have made 3x your Weekly Benefit Amount) or were unemployed on and off since you first started receiving unemployment. But, the percentage of those people is low.

You might be asking what you can possibly do right now. First: check that benefit year end-date in your payment history. If you have not worked since you started receiving unemployment, you can be sure that your benefits would stop after that date. Second: Put yourself on a callback list right away if you are not on one already. Third: if you receive a call after your benefit year ends, request the agent to put you on a “transitional claim” based on whatever extensions are available for you (PUA or PEUC depending on the type of your initial claim). Keep certifying if you can even if your benefits stop.

Reminder: the agent can put you on an extension ONLY AFTER that benefit year-end date. Not a day before! There is no way for them to “push it through”.

You can also write to the Governor’s office and share this if you’d like. Nobody in this country should have to wait to receive unemployment benefits in the middle of a pandemic while their income has been slashed to almost nothing due to no fault of their own. People have endured enough since last year. They do not need any more financial stress.

Also, please share this with anyone you know who’s currently unemployed in Illinois so they are aware. I do not make money from you sharing this. There is no ad here. This post is not designed to the bash the IDES as I understand implementing some of these changes into a set algorithm is difficult. However, something could be done so this does not happen. I am just a citizen journalist trying to help my fellow Americans!

Be kind to each other!

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There won’t be a second stimulus. Here’s why… https://boostmydream.com/there-wont-be-a-second-stimulus-heres-why/ Thu, 10 Sep 2020 01:05:18 +0000 https://boostmydream.com/?p=383 There will not be a second stimulus check. You heard it here first!

I felt compelled to write about this because many of my fellow Americans are being used as a bait by both political parties at this point. We are too close to November 3rd, and I’m not here to bash any particular party as both parties seem to have forgotten about the People.
We tend to focus on headlines, with many of us becoming victims of pure clickbaits both from new channels, blogs and YouTube videos.

The rise of so-called “stimulus experts” on YouTube has been astronomical. Most of these people would say anything to get that “click”, and would say anything for you to keep watching their videos…because it makes them money. They would rather flat-out lie to you as opposed to telling the truth…because without (even a fake!) news on stimulus that creates some “hope” in people, they themselves would lose adverttising revenues from YouTube. This practice is not only appalling but takes away millions of potentially productive hours from the American public…which they can use to learn a new skill, or do something to create new income source.

Photo Credit: Tiffany Tertipes

I am not here to give you false hope, because that would mean an insult to millions of struggling Americans…

So, instead of going back to the CARES Act which you know has already expired, I’d rather focus on what’s going on right now.

There’s no talks scheduled on the next relief bill at this point. None. The GOP has a $1.2T proposal for the Democrats which the latter refused because it did not include some of the provisions that the Democrats wanted. Specially, provisions to fund State and local governments, and a few things unrelated to the pandemic. However, they both agreed on sending direct payments to the American people, in addition to extended unemployment beneifts…even though the Republicans proposed $300 extra weekly benefits and the Dems wanted to see a higher number.

However, the Democrats refused to pass parts of the bill which both sides agreed on. Because they know passing parts of the bill will lead them to losing leverage on future negotiations if any. Besides, if 30 million Americans keep struggling, that would help both sides polarize the population needed to sway votes…

Therefore, it is not just convenient but important for them to keep the stimulus debate incomplete until the election is over. The reality is…the Senate just can’t pass a bill without the House voting on it, and vice versa. The President does have executive powers, but at this point…he did most of what he could have done…by creating the Lost Wage Assistance (LWA) program to provide an additional $300 to unemployed Americans. But, the funds for that are limited and will likely get wiped out before the election even begins, which will then become a talking point for the opposition. States such as Texas, Missouri, Tennessee and Montana have already run out of funds to continue providing LWA, with most of them having only paid 3 and 5 weeks on average.

Creating chaos and discontent is exactly what works for elections. If you have chaotic situation in place, all you have to do is control the narrative and blame the “other side” for the problem. These politicians are not looking for a solution, nor do they want to do anything constructive for the American people. Doing something good for the People would be “untimely”! These little “bills” peddled by politicians from both sides are simply meant to calm down their constituents. They do not want to be seen or perceived as “doing nothing”…like that, they will get re-elected.

I am just being the messenger here. I love this country and its people. I do not care which political party you support. I find it awful that some “journalists” and YouTubers would rather clickbait you into reading and listening to their nonsense as opposed to telling it like it is…

I will repeat, there will not be a stimulus package. Both sides recently agreed to prevent government shutdown before the election. But, they kept stimulus negotiations stalled. They did it for a reason. Shutting down government affects THEM…it would be their own admins and clerks in DC without a paycheck. It would be THEM without a paycheck….How is that helpful for either party before the election?

Hurting the American people does not hurt them. If anything, it helps them. But, there is something you can do, flood your Congressmen and Senators will calls and emails. Tell them their party will lose your vote if nothing is passed asap. Do this regardless of your party affiliation. THAT is the only hope you have!!

The only other possibility is if President Trump himself finds a way to send direct payments to Americans…

Focus your time on reading a book, or do something that you like…Those “stimulus” videos and those hopeful thumbnails on YouTube are meant to trick you. You are listening to utter bs, and making a stranger advertising $$$!

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Illinois, and the $300 unemployment boost via Trump’s Executive Order https://boostmydream.com/whats-happening-with-illinois-and-the-300-unemployment-boost-via-trumps-executive-order/ Sun, 23 Aug 2020 03:46:24 +0000 https://boostmydream.com/?p=362

With over 11% unemployment, and more than 20,000 new applications for the week of August 10, Illinois’ jobless woes are far from over. The $600 federal boost expired on the week ending July 25, leaving hundreds of thousands of families struggling to make ends meet.
This post is not meant to be political, but as a journalist at heart, I can’t help but notice the blatant incompetency of the Illinois government.
Since no other channel is covering this I feel compelled to do so. This post is intended to inform my fellow Illinoisans, and clear up some confusion that I feel still exists around this much-needed aid.

President Trump signed an executive order on August 8, which allows for all 50 states to apply for a FEMA grant to help the unemployed. The cash available for this Lost Wage Assistance program is limited, because it’s taken from our Disaster Relief Funds…something intended for emergencies such as a hurricane, etc. The program is not funded by the states, but the federal government.
Initially, the mainstream media was all over the story as to how this was unconstitutional, and that the money would never actually reach the American people. Some “experts” touted that this was a pure political stunt by the President, and that nobody would actually “see it”.
However, most of those speculations proved to be false in the last few days. While it is understood that the funds allocated for this program are not unlimited, most states including the previously skeptical and “refusing” California and New York already applied for the grant. Arizona got the grant approved in about 2 days, and has already started disbursing those funds to its residents. Many other states have been approved within less than 48 hours from filing their application.
However, Governor JB Pritzker of Illinois has remained silent on this issue, leaving over a million Illinoisans in the dark. If you follow Twitter, you’d realize that thousands of people asked him why it is that Illinois has not even applied for the grant. He has not answered!
Our Governor comes on TV almost every day telling us how deeply he cares for his fellow Illinoisans, while denying them the vital lifeline that’s available to them thanks to the President’s Executive Order.

IDES

I understand that this post may trigger some emotions. But the reality remains that $300 for even a few weeks is better than $0. Let’s put our partisan beliefs aside for a moment, and reflect on something that concerns many of us and our friends. Let’s reflect on a question that is currently asked my thousands of Illinois residents who are just waiting for “something to happen”.

Today, Saturday, the House voted to pass a bill to fund billions of dollars to revive the USPS, but any bill to send direct help to millions of Americans was not on the table. Again, $400, $300 or even $200 weekly is better than $0, which is precisely the amount of unemployment boost that Americans are currently receiving. $0. Nada!

Let’s not forget whether our Governor acts sooner or later, he is a multi-billionaire, with a “B”, and still receives $177,000 yearly salary. Our Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi receives an annual salary of $223,000. They are not affected by this pandemic! They are not worried about putting food on the table or making basic payments. They are, thanks to our votes and tax-payer dollars, “employed” and well.

When exactly will Illinois apply for the grant is up in the air. Maybe our Governor will apply when the limited funds for this program is almost gone? Or, maybe, he won’t bother to apply at all, and try to make Illinois residents believe it’s “Trump’s fault”?

You can say what you want about the President, but he did do at least something to help the people, our Governor did not. All that he had to do is apply, but maybe his personal feud with the President, mixed with his pride is preventing him from doing the job that he was hired to do.

Whether or not you’re directly affected by this situation, I believe the least we can do to change the course of things is voice our opinion here. This simple act might help a fellow citizen in these troubled times…

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