Disaster Unemployment Assistance is now available to businesses and residents in Sarasota County whose employment or self-employment was lost or interrupted as a direct result of Hurricane Debby and are not eligible for regular state or federal Reemployment Assistance benefits.
The benefits, announced by the Florida Department of Commerce, are for eligible Floridians whose employment or self-employment was lost or interrupted as a direct result of Hurricane Debby. Those eligible are encouraged to submit a claim at FloridaJobs.org.
Besides Sarasota County, the Florida Department of Commerce is also accepting applications for DUA from residents and businesses in Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Lafayette, Levy, Manatee, Suwannee, and Taylor Counties, the FEMA-designated disaster impacted area as of August 1.
DUA is available to those who are not eligible to receive federal or state Reemployment Assistance benefits and meet one of the following requirements:
- Is unemployed as a direct result of the disaster;
- Are not able to work or perform services because of physical damage or destruction to the place of employment as a direct result of the disaster;
- Can prove that the work or self-employment they can no longer perform as a direct result of the disaster was their principal source of income;
- Were unable to reach their job or self-employment location because they must travel through the affected area and are prevented from doing so as a direct result of the disaster;
- Cannot perform work or self-employment because they were injured as a direct result of the disaster; or
- Became the breadwinner or major supporter of a household because the head of the household died as a direct result of the disaster.
DUA is available for weeks of unemployment beginning August 4, 2024, until February 08, 2025, as long as the individual’s unemployment continues to be a result of the disaster in a designated-disaster area.
The deadline to submit a claim for DUA benefits is no later than 11:59 p.m. on October 15, 2024, for businesses and residents in Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Lafayette, Levy, Manatee, Sarasota, Suwannee, and Taylor Counties.
Applications filed after the deadline will be considered untimely, and DUA benefits may be denied unless the individual provides good cause. Applicants must submit their Social Security number, check stubs, and documentation to show that they were working or self-employed when the disaster occurred. In some cases, additional documentation may be required. To receive DUA benefits, all required documentation must be submitted within 21 days from the date the DUA application is filed.
To file a DUA claim, visit FloridaJobs.org or call 1-800-385-3920. For DUA claims information, call 1-833-FL-APPLY (1-833-352-7759) to speak to a customer service representative.
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