Skip to main content

News Briefs

Date Posted: June 13 2008

New options for getting jobless $
LANSING - The State of Michigan has begun offering unemployed workers two new electronic options for receiving their unemployment benefits. The new options are debit cards and direct deposit.

"These new payment options will improve service to unemployed workers in the state, and help us to better manage costs," Keith W. Cooley, director of Michigan's Department of Labor & Economic Growth, said.

The Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA) expects most workers will opt to collect their unemployment benefits electronically, though they may still elect to receive payments by mail. Unemployed workers may apply for benefits by telephone, 1-866-500-0017, or through the Internet (www.michigan.gov/uia).

"The debit card and direct deposit options will be faster and more secure and cost efficient than the current practice of mailing paper checks," Acting UIA Director Chris Peretto said. "But for those who prefer paper unemployment checks, we'll continue to offer them by mail for a period of time."

Unemployment benefits will be added to workers' debit cards or deposited into their savings or checking account within two or three days following the workers' bi-weekly certification of eligibility through the agency's automated MARVIN system. In most cases, Peretto said, the benefits will be available to workers more quickly than if paid by paper check.

He added that the new payment options will also save the state money. "Last year, UIA issued nearly 3.4 million unemployment checks, and we project these electronic options will save the agency about $1.6 million annually in postage and paper costs," Peretto explained.

The Michigan UI debit card can be used for purchases at any merchant that accepts Visa. The card can also be used to receive cash back from automated teller machines (ATMs) and at Visa-member banks and credit unions. Cardholders may encounter some fees, depending on how and where they use the card.

Workers currently receiving jobless benefits should call the above number if they want to change their payment option, by selecting option No. 2 after they call. Starting June 2, if a worker files a claim but does not select a benefit payment method, he/she will automatically receive a debit card. Workers can change their payment option whenever they choose.

Lansing proposes $1 billion coal fired power plant
On May 27 the Lansing Board of Water & Light announced planning for a $1 billion coal fired electrical generating station next to an existing BWL facility in Delta Twp.

The 250-megawatt facility is to burn low-sulfur coal as well as biomass products, such as crop waste, paper, and wood. A series of 30-year and 40-year bonds is to be issued to finance construction.

According to BWL officials, applications for permits to build the plant are to be filed with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality by the end of this year. If no obstacles are encountered, ground could be broken sometime in 2010.

The new facility is to replace the BWL's Eckert Station, a 325-megawatt plant the BWL is expected to phase out sometime between 2017 and 2025. Parts of that plant date back to the 1920s.

Currently the Michigan DEQ is considering applications for five coal powered electrical generation stations scattered across the state. (From Michigan Construction News.com)