The Labor Department (DoL) went public with its latest plans to modernize unemployment insurance (UI) programs that it operates with state government partners, and requested that Congress do its part by funding the plan.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is estimating that unemployment insurance fraud during the COVID-19 pandemic reached a range of $100 billion to $135 billion – way up from the $60 billion the watchdog agency previously estimated earlier this year.

House Republicans introduced legislation on Feb. 24 that aims to help recover billions of dollars of unemployment insurance (UI) benefits estimated to have been stolen by fraudsters during the pandemic.

The Department of Labor (DOL) – which provides funding and assistance to states to run their unemployment insurance (UI) programs – remains in need of a better strategy to help prevent UI fraud in light of large-scale fraud in the program during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

The Department of Labor’s (DoL) Office of Inspector General (OIG) determined that the agency – along with state workforce agencies – has paid more than $45 billion in unemployment insurance (UI) pandemic benefits to fraudsters, according to an alert memorandum published on Sept. 21.

President Biden’s budget request for fiscal year (FY) 2023 is seeking $3.4 billion for the Labor Department (DoL) to help modernize unemployment insurance (UI) systems run by states and territories – many of which were overwhelmed with demand during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Department of Labor (DoL) has announced up to $15 million in grants to states and territories to ensure that Americans eligible for unemployment insurance (UI) can apply and receive their benefits.