Gov. Jared Polis announces $375 direct payments for more than 400,000 Coloradans
Hundreds of thousands of Coloradans will receive $375 each in one-time, direct payments that come out of untapped funds, Gov. Jared Polis announced Wednesday.
According to an executive order signed by Polis, eligibility for this money will be limited to those earning under $52,000 who have filed for unemployment at least once between March 15 and Oct. 24 of this year, and who met state eligibility requirements for a weekly benefit amount between $25 and $500 during that same period.
The Polis administration estimates that more than 400,000 Coloradans will receive payments, for a total of $168 million to be distributed statewide. Polis told The Denver Post the money would hit bank accounts by Dec. 1, and that people will not have to apply for the money.
Multiple members of a household can receive the payments.
The governor collaborated with state lawmakers in finding the money, said state Rep. Daneya Esgar, a Pueblo Democrat who chairs the legislature’s Joint Budget Committee. The excess Medicaid money was a result of lower than expected caseloads and a higher than expected federal match, she said.
“This would have reverted to the general fund, but we are instead reallocating the resources back to hard-working Coloradans who need them,” Esgar said. “The governor has the authority to do this, and we were happy to work with him to provide this badly needed assistance.”
The governor said he considered making the move earlier in October but was waiting to see if there would be another round of federal coronavirus relief payments.
The announcement comes less than a week before Election Day. One of the Democratic lawmakers mentioned in the press release, stateSen. Dominick Moreno of Commerce City, said he doesn’t think Coloradans should “read too much into the timing.”
https://www.denverpost.com/2020/10/28/colorado-375-payment-unemployed-jared-polis/