ICYMI: Unemployment agency balances legal duty with support for claimants

UIA Director Jason Palmer's column published today by The Detroit News.

At the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA), we know how important unemployment benefits are to the families who rely on them. We also know how difficult it is when someone is told they must repay benefits they should not have received.

Let me explain why some claimants have recently been reminded of overpayments and are being asked to repay them.

First, it is not unusual for UIA to collect overpayments. We do it all the time, supported by state law and federal rules that require us to get the money back. Indeed, a principle of unemployment insurance is balancing timely payments to people in need with maintaining program integrity.

What is unusual about today is that UIA has been unable to recoup overpayments for more than three years. That’s because UIA was part of a 2022 lawsuit in which a plaintiff’s attorney asked a judge to freeze repayments on claims dating back to March 2020. We opposed the move, but the judge approved it. As a result, it was only after the final settlement in the case this summer that we were able to fulfill our legal obligation to resume collections.

Last month, after the lawsuit was settled, we started reaching out to claimants, reminding them of their balances and asking them to repay any benefits they should not have received. Not requesting repayment since 2022 has confused claimants, delayed employer credits, jeopardized our federal funding, and impacted the stability of the UI Trust Fund, the pool of money that ensures benefits are there for the next worker in need.

These are all reasons why we objected to the pause in the first place.

Before resuming collections, we waived many overpayments from the often-confusing mix of state and federal pandemic-era unemployment programs. The overpayments that remain today are mainly those involving claimants who:

• Did not provide the requested or required proof of employment or income.
• Started a job or returned to work, but continued to certify for benefits as if they were unemployed.
• Did not report earnings as required when certifying for benefits.
• Did not satisfy the required work search activities.

In these situations, we have a legal and fiduciary duty to recover the funds. The unemployment trust fund is taxpayer money, and we must be responsible stewards of it.

Even so, claimants affected by these collections are not without options. They may still apply for a financial hardship waiver if repayment would cause undue burden. They can also request a waiver if they believe their overpayment was caused by a UIA error or a claimant wage error. Each of these applications will be carefully reviewed and considered on a case-by-case basis.

Collections are resuming alongside a wide range of reforms designed to make the UIA more responsive, more transparent, and more customer-centered:

• We are streamlining our appeals process to be faster and more accurate.
• We are redesigning our forms and letters in plain language to avoid overwhelming and confusing our customers.
• We are expanding our Advocacy Program to give claimants and employers no-cost help navigating the system.
• We are launching a new, user-friendly computer system in summer 2026 to deliver even more improvements.

These reforms all share a common goal of balancing legal and program requirements with support for claimants. The UIA must protect the trust fund, and we must also never lose sight of the fact that behind every claim is a person, a family, and a story.

That’s the kind of agency Michigan deserves, and that’s the kind of agency I am determined to lead.

Jason Palmer is the director of the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency.

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