The Colorado Sun — tamara@coloradosun.com
Tech+Business+Economy
What’s Working: Forgivable loans for the unemployed, the end of pandemic jobless benefits is next week
Get back on the roller coaster that is Unemployed Colorado, which heads into the last week of federal unemployment benefits. What’s next plus: Dashboards, fraud updates and more!
Colorado’s smallest small businesses can now get larger federal coronavirus loans
Many sole proprietors opted for unemployment last year. This time around, even tiny businesses that lost money are eligible for larger Payroll Protection Program loans.
International fraud rings with “local nexus” are attacking Colorado’s unemployment system, investigators suspect
The state has flagged 1.1 million unemployment claims as possible fraud since the pandemic began. No charges have been filed, but AG Phil Weiser has created a task force to find the culprits.
In Colorado’s uneven coronavirus economic recovery, some thrive while others can’t make ends meet
Economic indicators look pretty good a year into the COVID economy, but does that make sense, especially if you can’t pay rent?
Coronavirus crushed Colorado’s economy. But working women paid the highest price.
About 20,000 fewer women were working in Colorado by the end of 2020 than when the pandemic began. Moms were most likely to leave or lose their jobs.
What’s Working: Colorado’s unemployment system is … working? Some readers say “yes.”
And there’s more: The state continues to respond to unemployment issues with fixes; a new dashboard; and two more chances to publicly ask the Department of Labor staff questions.
Colorado sees record $55 million in rent assistance requests in past month — more than all of 2020
The Colorado Department of Local Affairs is working through a months-long backlog of rent requests to provide payment to tenants and landlords
135,000 unemployed Coloradans get benefits after months of waiting. But thousands of others face glitches and denials.
“I WILL NOT have a stroke,” writes one frustrated, unemployed Coloradan. More fixes are being addressed this week by the Colorado Department of Labor.
Colorado AG leads push to use federal internet discounts to help students get online at home — not just at school
The E-rate effort comes nearly five years after the Boulder Valley School District first petitioned the Federal Communications Commission for the exact same thing to close the homework gap
What’s Working: Lessons learned and tips for Coloradans as federal unemployment benefits start (hopefully) Saturday
Plus: Why did it take eight weeks to add 11 weeks of pandemic benefits? Also, unemployment updates, $19.90/hour jobs at the state’s call center and more!
After eight weeks of waiting, nearly 300,000 Coloradans can reopen their unemployment accounts Saturday
The delay was blamed on federal lawmakers passing a new coronavirus relief measure one day after CARES Act aid expired. But more delays are expected for the next round of assistance if Congress doesn’t pass a new package soon.
What’s Working: As exhausted Coloradans on unemployment wait for benefits, the next federal plan must pass soon to avoid delays
Plus: Tips for using identity verification, what every business needs to know about missing emails, and why Congress needs to pass the new relief plan next week.
Colorado unemployment claims spike as federal benefits restart. But fraud is distorting the picture.
More than 75,000 Coloradans reopened their unemployment claim in order to collect new aid from Congress.
How scammers targeted Colorado’s unemployment system — and what the state is doing about it
The fallout of fraudulent claims for pandemic unemployment continues into 2021 as Colorado victims, employers and legitimate people on unemployment deal with impostors.
Coloradans brave the cold to put a face on who’s been waiting more than six weeks for federal unemployment
About two dozen people showed up at the Department of Labor to show their frustration over the delay in federal unemployment benefits. The state continues to resolve problems as it works to roll out benefits to more people on Feb. 22.
Colorado sets Feb. 22 for start of second phase of new federal unemployment benefits
Out-of work Coloradans who had exhausted their pandemic benefits last year have been waiting since Dec. 26 for the additional money to become available.
What’s Working: What we learned after a week of Colorado paying pandemic unemployment benefits
One week down, countless more to go as Colorado's unemployment office fixes Phase 1 problems on the fly while people still waiting on Phase 2 benefits lose hope. Plus, the Paycheck Protection loan program isn’t perfect, either.
It could be weeks before Coloradans waiting for Phase 2 of federal unemployment see any benefits
Many are now receiving the $300 weekly bonus, but problems caused staff to expand support, and address payment holds, denials, overpayments and ID verification.
Unexpected issues continue to plague Colorado’s unemployment system
The pandemic unemployed continue to get put through the wringer, with payment denials and other new issues cropping up daily.
The restart of Colorado’s federal unemployment benefits has been uneven as thousands wait for their turn
At least 62,000 Coloradans on pandemic jobless benefits reopened their claims on Monday. But countless others must wait for Phase 2 to restart, on which an update that may come “by the end of week,” labor officials say.
