The window for pandemic frontline workers to seek cash from Minnesota's hero pay program closed Friday, and officials will soon start winnowing the vast list of applicants.
The state received nearly 1.1 million applications as of Wednesday. Minnesotans had until Friday afternoon to submit their requests, and a Department of Labor and Industry spokesperson expected application submissions to climb in the final days.
Legislators estimated each person would get around $750 if 667,000 people qualify for the payments. That amount could be significantly smaller if a large portion of the people who sent in applications are eligible.
It likely won't be clear until this fall just how much each eligible Minnesotan will receive from the $500 million legislators approved this spring. The sum will be divvied up equally among those workers.
A coalition of labor, faith and community groups on Thursday reiterated their demand for lawmakers to approve another $500 million, which Democrats had pushed for during the last legislative session.
"The incredible number of applicants shows just how important our collective efforts are, and why we need to do more to support frontline workers on the job," Minnesota Nurses Association President Mary Turner said in a statement.
With the application period closed, state workers now start sorting through the applications and verifying whether people qualify. Applicants will receive an e-mail either letting them know that no further action is required of them or that the state has denied their request.
There are five potential reasons for a denial:
- The person submitted duplicate applications.
- The person's identity could not be verified.
- The person's employment eligibility could not be verified. Workers must have been employed in one or more frontline positions for at least 120 hours between March 15, 2020, and June 30, 2021.
- The person received an unemployment insurance benefit for more than 20 weeks during a certain time period set in state law.
- The person's annual adjusted gross income was higher than the established thresholds. People who had direct COVID-19 patient care responsibilities must have made less than $350,000 for married taxpayers filing jointly or $175,000 for all other filers. Those who did not do direct patient care cannot earn more than $185,000 for married joint filers or $85,000 for others.
If a request is denied, an applicant can submit an appeal during a 15-day period, which is expected to run Aug. 16-31. To appeal a denial, workers must submit the online forms that correspond with the reasons their application was denied.
The Department of Labor and Industry, which has the final say on appeals, will let people know via e-mail if their appeal is successful.
The payments are expected to go out this fall and will be sent via direct deposit or a prepaid debit card, depending on the applicant's preference.
