Texas Workforce Commission Overspent and Wants Their Money Back
Erin Douglas of the Houston Chronicle reports that the Texas Workforce Commission is trying to get back $32 million from about 46,000 jobless workers that got more than they should have in unemployment benefits.
T.W.C. is seeking repayment from those that received benefits and as you can imagine, it's going to be hard to collect.
Roughly 3 million Texans were suddenly unemployed when the pandemic hit in mid to late March. TWC has a team that audits claims to make sure that those who are applying for benefits are eligible to receive them.
TWC spokesman Cisco Gamez said the organization sometimes receives new information that changes the outcome of a claim, which can result in overpayment.
The TWC's Overpayment of Unemployment Benefits page provides more details on how this can happen.
Gamez also pointed out that Texas law prohibits individuals from receiving benefits when receiving certain types of severance. “You must report any severance pay,” Gamez wrote in a statement. “We make a decision on whether the severance pay affects the claimant’s benefits.”
In some cases, people were paid a severance and should not have gotten the full unemployment benefit. TWC has sent out notices of reimbursements to those that owe back some money.
TWC will not deduct over-payments from those who are collecting benefits but have been notified that they owe some of it back. But they will have to repay the state back even if it was the states fault to begin with.
If you have received a notice to pay back some money you received for unemployment, you can appeal. In fact, experts are advising you to do so.
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