Unemployment Insurance Recipients to Get Benefits Through Direct Deposit
Unemployment insurance recipients will receive their weekly benefits through direct deposit, rather than debit cards, beginning in April, Labor Secretary Tiffany P. Robinson announced on Tuesday.
The change means out-of-work Marylanders who are eligible for benefits will gain access to their weekly payments sooner, she said.
Jobless residents and members of the General Assembly have been urging the department to use direct deposit, particularly since last fall, when changes instituted by U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, a Trump appointee, led to delays in mail delivery.
The department said it was able to make the change from Bank of America debit cards as a result of a new contract with Wells Fargo.
Recipients will receive transition instructions in March, the agency said in a news release.
The Maryland Department of Labor struggled with a historic surge in applications for jobless benefits last year when the COVID-19 pandemic led to widespread layoffs.
Bruce DePuyt
Reporter
Bruce DePuyt is a contributor to Maryland Matters, where he was a full-time reporter until December 2022. Previously, DePuyt spent nearly three decades on local television, including 14 years as producer and host of “NewsTalk” on NewsChannel 8 in the Washington, D.C., region. He was a reporter and anchor on “News 21” in Montgomery, where he also served as producer and host of “21 This Week.” He then became a reporter and anchor at NBC affiliate WVIR in Charlottesville, Va. He appears occasionally on WTOP (103.5 FM), WAMU (88.5 FM) and MPT.
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