ATLANTA – Members of the Georgia House Democratic Caucus (GHDC) Subcommittee on COVID-19 are calling on the Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) to establish a call center to improve communications regarding Unemployment Insurance (UI) requests. These state legislators will hold a virtual press conference to discuss their concerns TOMORROW, Friday, December 4, 2020, at 11:15 a.m. via Zoom. Zoom meeting access will be private and reserved for the press; to request access, please contact State Representative Sandra Scott (D-Rex) at sandra.scott@house.ga.gov.
“The lack of communication from the Georgia Department of Labor is unacceptable, and it must find a way to help people get paid before the Christmas holiday,” said Rep. Scott. “My colleagues and I are in disbelief that we are still hearing from the same people we heard from in April and May.”
“More disturbing is the amount of time claimants are waiting for their appeals claims to be resolved,” said members of the GHDC Subcommittee on COVID-19. “Their cases will spill over into 2021 with no closure. We are disappointed with Commissioner Butler’s lack of leadership, inadequate processing systems and empathy toward people who have lost their job through no fault of their own. Commissioner Mark Butler should be ashamed that people are waiting seven to nine months to receive UI benefits on valid claims; this should be criminal.”
These legislators are concerned that constituents who have not received valid UI benefits will have to wait for a response from the GDOL, as well as wait long periods of time for their UI appeals to be resolved. On October 29, GDOL Commissioner Mark Butler issued a press release highlighting a pilot program for an online appointment scheduler, which is designed to allow claimants to request an appointment with a claims representative to ask questions regarding their claim. However, these state legislators continue to receive constituent complaints about a lack of response after using the scheduler.
These legislators are also concerned about the high volume of phone call and email complaints from constituents stating that they have not received their UI benefits despite receiving notice from the GDOL of having a valid claim. These GHDC members have also received constituent complaints about payments being issued from one to three weeks and then stop without notice. Furthermore, these legislators received reports that Georgians who request an appeal may wait three to four months before scheduling their hearing; these legislators believe that a failure to schedule a hearing in a timely manner is unacceptable.
The GHDC Subcommittee on COVID-19 considers the UI benefit claims and appeal process backlog a state of public emergency. As a result, these legislators seek to assist the GDOL in their efforts to eliminate the unemployment insurance claims backlog and increase the processing of appeal claims. These legislators believe the following actions would eliminate such issues:
- Establish and fully staff a GDOL call center to answer questions and concerns of citizens and implement the use of virtual meetings to address claims;
- Hire and train additional GDOL staff to investigate and resolve claims and address the appeals process over 30 days;
- Extend the Georgia Public Service Commission’s moratorium on cut-off of utilities, such as lights, gas and water;
- Issue a GDOL report on the processing and full payment of valid claims to evaluate the timeliness of the payments.
The GHDC Subcommittee on COVID-19 members include House Minority Leader James Beverly (D-Macon), as well as State Representatives Debra Bazemore (D-South Fulton), Rhonda Burnough (D-Riverdale), Viola Davis (D-Stone Mountain), Shelly Hutchinson (D-Snellville), Donna McLeod (D-Lawrenceville), Mary Robichaux (D-Roswell), Sandra Scott (D-Rex), Kim Schofield (D-Atlanta) and William Boddie (D-East Point).
Representative James Beverly represents the citizens of District 143, which includes portions of Bibb County. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 2011 and currently serves as House Minority Leader. He also serves on the Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation and on the Ethics, Health & Human Services, Retirement, Rules, Small Business Development and Special Rules committees.
Representative Debra Bazemore represents the citizens of District 63, which includes portions of Clayton, Fayette and Fulton counties. She was elected to the House of Representatives in 2016 and currently serves as the House Minority Chief Deputy Whip. She also serves on the Human Relations & Aging, Intragovernmental Coordination, Natural Resources & Environment and State Planning & Community Affairs committees.
Representative Rhonda Burnough represents the citizens of District 77, which includes portions of Clayton County. She was elected to the House of Representatives in 2016 and currently serves on the Economic Development & Tourism, Governmental Affairs, Higher Education and Small Business Development committees.
Representative Viola Davis represents the citizens of District 87, which includes portions of DeKalb County. She was elected to the House of Representatives in 2018 and currently serves on the Insurance, Interstate Cooperation and Science and Technology committees.
Representative Shelly Hutchinson represents the citizens of District 107, which includes portions of Gwinnett County. She was elected to the House of Representatives in 2018 and currently serves on the Budget and Fiscal Affairs Oversight, Health & Human Services and Juvenile Justice committees.
Representative Kim Schofield represents the citizens of District 60, which includes portions of Clayton and Fulton counties. She was elected to the House of Representatives in 2017 and currently serves on the Health & Human Services, Interstate Cooperation and Small Business Development committees.
Representative Sandra Scott represents the citizens of District 76, which includes portions of Clayton and Henry counties. She was first elected to the House Representatives in 2010 and currently serves on the Defense & Veterans Affairs, Human Relations & Aging, Legislative & Congressional Reapportionment, Science and Technology and Special Rules committees.
Representative Mary Robichaux represents the citizens of District 48, which includes portions of Fulton County. She was elected to the House of Representatives in 2018 and currently serves as the House Minority Caucus Treasurer. She also serves on the Human Relations & Aging, Small Business Development and Special Rules committees.
Representative Donna McLeod represents the citizens of District 105, which includes portions of Gwinnett County. She was elected to the House of Representatives in 2018 and currently serves on the Code Revision, Human Relations & Aging, Interstate Cooperation and Science and Technology committees.
Representative William Boddie represents the citizens of District 62, which includes portions of Douglas and Fulton counties. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 2016 and currently serves on the Budget and Fiscal Affairs Oversight, Judiciary Non-Civil and Small Business Development committees. He also serves as an Ex-Officio members on the House Rules Committee.
###