NM approved to waive some unemployment overpayments

Stephen Hamway, Albuquerque Journal, N.M.
·2 min read

Mar. 5—ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Some unemployed New Mexicans who have been accidentally overpaid may soon have a way out of their predicament.

The New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions announced it will begin sending out information later this month on how New Mexico unemployment claimants may request a waiver if they've been overpaid through the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program. This will allow the department to waive some or all of the benefits due to be repaid.

DWS spokeswoman Stacy Johnston told the Journal the agency is still developing details about the waiver, but said eligible claimants will receive a notice and questionnaire about their overpayment during the week of March 22.

Overpayments, which occur when someone receiving unemployment benefits is informed that they've received more benefits than they're eligible for, have been a persistent problem since the pandemic began.

In February, a Journal investigation revealed the state workforce department sent out 24,872 letters from the middle of March through the end of 2020 informing unemployment recipients that they've been overpaid.

Common reasons for overpayments include failing to report gross earnings or other deductible income correctly, continuing to receive benefits after returning to work, failing to report all earnings from work while claiming benefits, and being paid and then disqualified from receiving benefits, according to DWS.

However, the U.S. Department of Labor has now given states authority to waive PUA overpayments when the individual is not at fault for the payment and repayment would be a financial hardship, according to a news release from DWS.

The notice and questionnaire form to be considered for the waiver will be sent by the claimants' preferred correspondence method.

Claimants must respond with the waiver request to be eligible for a waiver, according to the department.

If overpayments occurred due to fraud, the balance must be repaid in full and cannot be offset by future benefits, according to the department.