PHOENIX – On Monday, the Arizona House Military Affairs and Public Safety Committee passed HB 2805, which will raise the state’s maximum weekly unemployment insurance benefit from $240 to $300.
The bill, sponsored by Rep. David Cook, received unanimous support from Committee members.
“Arizona is currently 49th in the U.S. for maximum weekly benefits,” said Cook. “If HB 2805 becomes law, unemployed Arizonans would be eligible for a higher benefit – and that can make a meaningful difference in the lives of people who are struggling to get by. I truly appreciate each of my colleagues who are supporting this effort. Right now, Arizona isn’t in line with its neighboring states. We have a good opportunity to correct that – and I hope that we do.”
The increase would not begin until January 2022.
Currently, the weekly benefit amount of a person is equal to one-twenty-fifth of the person’s total wages for insured work paid during that quarter of a person’s base period in which the total wages were the highest.