Deadline approaching for wildfire disaster aid applications
BY LAURIE WINSLOW World Staff Writer
Thursday, September 20, 2012
9/20/12 at 4:42 AM
The Oklahoma Employment Security Commission wants to remind workers affected by wildfires this summer in Creek County that they have until the close of business on Wednesday to apply for Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA).
The assistance is available to workers in Creek County who lost work or earnings because of the wildfire from Aug. 3 through Aug. 14.
To be eligible, individuals must have worked or been scheduled to work in the disaster area, but because of the disaster no longer have a job or a place to work, or could not get to work because of damage.
They also are eligible if an injury or illness caused by the disaster has prevented them from working.
To claim DUA, individuals must be unemployed because the disaster caused physical damage or destruction to their workplace, or physical inaccessibility because the government closed the site.
They also may be eligible if they are unemployed because of lack of work or revenue loss if the majority of their revenue or income came from an entity in the major disaster area that was damaged, destroyed or closed by the government.
Self-employed individuals who have lost all or part of their livelihood also may be eligible for benefits.
Self-employed workers must provide federal income tax forms (Schedule SE and either Schedule C or Schedule F) to receive disaster unemployment benefits.
Individuals must provide documentation within 21 days from the day the claim was filed indicating an employment record at the time of the disaster or verification of the weeks they were scheduled to work.
When calling to apply for benefits, individuals should try to have their Social Security number and the name and address of their last employer or prospective employer.
More information is available from the OESC at 800-555-1554 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Original Print Headline: Fire aid deadline nears
