Minnesota State Wire

Minnesota has applied for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Lost Wages Assistance program, Gov. Tim Walz said. 

The Lost Wages Assistance program will give $300 more each week to Minnesota residents receiving unemployment benefits, according to a press release from Minnesota Employment and Economic Development. 

“When the additional federal $600 weekly benefit ended in late July, hundreds of thousands of Minnesotans who remain out of work were affected,” Walz said in the press release. “Without additional federal benefits, families are struggling to pay for basic necessities. We must use every resource at our disposal to help Minnesotans through this pandemic.”

Funds will be given to the state once Minnesota is approved for the program. 

“The Lost Wages Assistance program provides much-needed emergency help, but it is not part of a comprehensive package to help workers and businesses struggling as the pandemic continues,” Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan said in the press release. “We hope that our federal partners will be able to come together to provide the well-planned and thorough relief Minnesotans and other Americans need.”