FEMA funding provides unemployment insurance for those who lost work as a result of the storms and are not already receiving benefits through the federally-funded CARES Act programs.

COLUMBIA, S.C. – S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce Executive Director Dan Ellzey announced that residents in Aiken, Barnwell, Berkeley, Colleton, Hampton, Marlboro, Oconee, Orangeburg and Pickens counties are eligible for Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) funds through the unemployment insurance benefits system. Residents in these nine counties are eligible for DUA due to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) decision to amend the federal disaster declaration to include individual assistance eligibility in those counties.

The DUA program makes funds available to assist people who became unemployed as a direct result of the severe storms, tornadoes and straight-line winds experienced in these counties on April 12, 2020 and April 13, 2020. If an individual is determined to be eligible for DUA, it would be for the maximum of 26 weeks.

The Department has initiated an outreach initiative to advise perspective claimants in the affected counties, who are in the unemployment insurance system, of the availability of DUA funds as of July 16, 2020.

If your job has been affected by the April 12-13, 2020 storms, and you are not currently receiving Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) through the CARES Act, you will file an unemployment insurance claim and choose Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) as your reason for unemployment. The agency has programmed the benefits system to accommodate this new federal DUA program. The deadline to apply will be 30 calendar days from the launch date of July 16, 2020.

Applications filed after the deadline will be considered untimely, and DUA benefits may be denied. Applicants may be asked to submit information about their employment and other documentation to support the claim that they were working or self-employed when the disaster occurred. You will have the ability to upload any additional documents required in your portal under the documents tab.

Workers or business owners meeting the following criteria may be eligible for DUA benefits:

• Individuals who are unemployed due to the disaster, and do not qualify for regular unemployment insurance benefits.
• Self-employed individuals and small business owners who lost income due to the disaster.
• Individuals who were prevented from working due to an injury caused by the disaster.
• Individuals who have become the major supplier of household income due to the disaster-related death or injury of the previous major supplier of household income.
• Individuals who are unable to reach their job or self-employment location because they must travel through the affected area and are prevented from doing so by the disaster
• Individuals who were to commence employment or self-employment but were prevented by the disaster.

How is DUA different than PUA?

Pandemic Unemployment Assistance or PUA is available through the federally-funded CARES Act as a response to the COVID-19 crisis. Disaster Unemployment Assistance or DUA is available through FEMA to those who have a job loss through no fault of their own from the April 12-April 13 storms in Aiken, Barnwell, Berkeley, Colleton, Hampton, Marlboro, Oconee, Orangeburg and Pickens counties.

About the S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce

The S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce is putting South Carolinians to work. The agency has four missions: (1) workforce development; (2) free job match employment services; (3) unemployment insurance; and (4) labor market information. All four missions contribute to workforce development. The agency is dedicated to advancing South Carolina through services and programs that meet the needs of our businesses, jobseekers and those looking to advance their careers.