New York Asks Feds for $4 Billion Loan for Unemployment Benefits

New York state has asked the federal government for a $4 billion no-interest loan to help cover unemployment benefits for the over 1 million people jobless as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

The state labor department has paid out about $2.2 billion in unemployment insurance benefits to 1.1 million New Yorkers since the beginning of the pandemic in March, the department announced Monday.

The department had been working with Alphabet Inc.‘s Google to upgrade its filing system after an influx of unemployment calls had caused the system to crash. The state launched a new, streamlined application Monday and has ...