PHOENIX — A new federal report shows that Arizona, like many states, struggled to get money into the hands of unemployed Arizonans during the worst of the pandemic.
Arizona appears to have experienced more difficulties than most states at the outset, and it left many people with late bills, cars repossessed and unstable housing.
Arizona fared worse than most states
The Department of Labor report suggests DES did worse than 40 states with an initial wait time of at least 45 days. The two slowest states were Nevada and Kansas, taking 60 and 61 days.
The fastest states were Kentucky, New York and New Hampshire who distributed PUA funds in under 11 days.
DES tells 12 News through a statement, “Unlike many other states… Arizona did not have a pre-existing disaster unemployment assistance system which it could modify for the new program.”
More than 13,000 Arizonans waiting for resolutions
DES reports more than 2 million Arizonans were receiving some sort of jobless benefits as of last week. But the system is far from perfect.
As of last month, More than 13,000 unemployment cases remained in adjudication for one reason or another, according to DES.
Multiple Arizonans contact 12 News every week about their frustrations with the system. They report having their unemployment benefits inexplicably halted, receiving contradicting messages from DES operators and not being able to get straight answers about their cases for weeks.
DES Director won’t provide an interview
12 News has requested to speak to DES Director Michael Wisehart about the integrity of the system. Wisehart has declined interviews and the last time he spoke with 12 News was nearly a year ago.
One family advocate says the public deserves transparency from the state’s top unemployment chief.
“Any taxpayer-funded agency needs to be transparent because it’s our dollars they are spending,” said Michelle Campuzano. “If you aren’t willing to have those conversations then you are not being transparent.”
DES won’t say why Wisehart isn’t willing to answer questions on-camera.
DES: We’ve made improvements
Regarding the Department of Labor report, the statement also says, “After the initial launch of the CARES Act programs, DES has been either the first or one of the first to implement subsequent programs following additional federal legislation and guidance.”
The statement adds that the state is using fraud detection tools which have impacted the speed at which some benefits are provided.
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