Idaho workers sue Gov. Brad Little over end of extra COVID-era unemployment benefits
Idaho Gov. Brad Little was one of dozens of Republican governors who announced in May that he would reject the continuation of enhanced federal unemployment benefits during the coronavirus pandemic. Now, he’s one of several Republican governors facing a lawsuit over that decision.
Idaho Legal Aid Services on Friday filed a suit on behalf of two unnamed workers against Little and the Idaho Department of Labor over the governor’s decision to end the additional benefits. Both plaintiffs have underlying health conditions and were laid off during the pandemic, according to the complaint.
The Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program ended in Idaho on June 19 and would have provided unemployed Idaho residents with an additional $300 a week through the CARES Act. The lawsuit, filed in the 4th Judicial District of the State of Idaho, aims to continue Idaho’s participation in the program.
Howard Belodoff, an Idaho Legal Aid Services attorney representing the plaintiffs, said 14,000 Idaho residents relied on the additional money. The plaintiffs are especially vulnerable as the COVID-19 pandemic surges again, he said.
“As bad as it is, I don’t understand why you make it worse for 14,000 people in Idaho and their families,” Belodoff told the Idaho Statesman on Tuesday. “Now is not the time to be cutting people off, especially vulnerable people like my clients.”
The Idaho Attorney General’s Office, which is representing the Department of Labor, declined to comment on pending litigation. Little’s spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
One plaintiff, referred to as “A.E.” in the lawsuit, is a 38-year-old diabetic construction worker in Salmon who was laid off during the pandemic. The second plaintiff, “K.S.,” is a 35-year-old Meridian resident who has Crohn’s disease and was laid off from an Eagle-based company in March 2020, according to the complaint.
Idaho Legal Aid Services attorney says Idaho workers have a strong case
Cases have mounted in Republican states where governors cut off the enhanced benefits. State courts in Maryland and Indiana have ruled against their governors’ decisions and ordered the states to restart the pandemic benefits. Belodoff said he believes he has an even stronger case in Idaho.
The complaint filed on Friday alleges that the state violated Idaho code “to maximize unemployment insurance benefits available to eligible Idaho residents who lost their employment through no fault of their own.”
Idaho’s employment security law states that Idaho must cooperate with the U.S. Department of Labor and should “take such action as may be necessary ... to Idaho all advantages under federal laws” in unemployment insurance and workforce resources.
“The state’s unlawful action has unnecessarily and prematurely severed the lifeline of thousands of struggling Idahoans and risks plunging thousands of Idaho residents into housing instability as well as severe emotional and economic crisis,” the complaint states.
Belodoff said Tuesday that his two plaintiffs were not on any assistance programs before they stopped receiving the enhanced federal unemployment aid. They applied for Medicaid and other state-run aid because they could no longer pay their bills, he said, ultimately costing the state more money.
Little announced in May that he would end Idaho’s participation in the federal unemployment program due to employers’ recruitment challenges. Those benefits included programs for the self-employed, who don’t normally qualify for unemployment, and a program that provided an additional $100 a week to mixed-income earners.
“It’s time to get back to work,” Little said in a statement on May 11. “My decision is based on a fundamental conservative principle — we do not want people on unemployment. We want people working. A strong economy cannot exist without workers returning to a job.”
Belodoff said state officials failed to provide a solid reason to deny the federal benefits. Both his plaintiffs wanted to work and followed the process to receive unemployment benefits. The Salmon construction worker was offered only one job, which begins in October, Belodoff said. The Meridian resident with Crohn’s has been unable to find work, Belodoff said.
“The idea that these people don’t want to work, the idea that these people would rather collect unemployment, it’s a myth,” Belodoff said. “It’s just not true.”
This story was originally published August 24, 2021 at 6:01 PM.
