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Rep. Lee Hosts COVID-19 Facebook Live with DETR

July 29, 2020

CLICK HERE TO WATCH ON FACEBOOK

Las Vegas, Nev. - U.S. Rep. Susie Lee (Nev.-03) hosted a Facebook Live discussion with Nevada Department of Employment, Training, and Rehabilitation (DETR) Administrator for the Employment Security Division Kimberly Gaa. During the discussion, Rep. Lee asked Administrator Gaa various questions related to unemployment insurance and Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA). These were the same unemployment-related questions that constituents have been asking Rep. Lee's office during the pandemic.

"Getting unemployment and PUA benefits into the hands of displaced workers is critical during this unprecedented crisis," said Rep. Lee. "DETR has been completely overwhelmed with applications, totaling nearly one million claims so far this year. Given the delays resulting from DETR's antiquated IT system, unclear guidance from the Trump administration about how to process PUA claims, and the need to set up brand new systems to approve PUA claims and prevent fraud, many Nevadans have been understandably frustrated. I thank Administrator Gaa for taking the time to join me in this important Facebook Live discussion to answer frequent unemployment insurance and PUA questions that my office has received over the past months. This pandemic is nowhere near over and I'm committed to continue working with DETR and my constituents to ensure that together we make it through this."

BACKGROUND: Rep. Lee's office has helped more than 2,200 Nevadans during the COVID-19 pandemic, most of whom contacted her office about their unemployment benefits. On July 14, 2020, Rep. Lee joined Reps. Dina Titus (Nev.-01), Nydia Velazquez (N.Y.-07), and Jahana Hayes (Conn.-05) in sending a letter to Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia urging the U.S. Department of Labor to better assist state workforce agencies, like DETR, in processing unemployment claims.

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