Bill would unify agency computer systems

Legislation recently introduced in the state House would potentially cut down on the delays associated with receiving jobless benefits.

Under the bill, General Assembly legislative staff would have access to the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance and the Unemployment Compensation (UC) computer systems. This would expedite the process of identifying and resolving issues that are affecting individual claims, reducing delays.

Currently, only certain Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry (L&I) employees have access to these systems.

“We came up with this proposal because of the inability of Gov. (Tom) Wolf and L&I to efficiently process the UC claims of thousands of hard-working Pennsylvanians who were impacted by the governor’s business shutdown orders,” Rep. Doyle Heffley (R-Carbon), who co-introduced the bill, said. “Too many claimants have had to wait weeks to receive their first benefit check, and some have still not gotten a dime. This is simply unacceptable, and our bill aims to fix it.”

“The goal is to address the issues regarding the program,” Rep Jerry Knowles (R-Berks/Carbon/Schuylkill), who co-introduced the bill, said. “The current system is ineffective and mismanaged, and this legislation would be a solution to the problem. I want those people who have signed up for unemployment compensation to receive the money that they are owed.”