A new working paper from researchers at Duke University, the U.S. Treasury Department, the Federal Reserve, and the University of Chicago pushes back on one of the most repeated economic claims of the last few years: that COVID-era stimulus checks were the main driver of the inflation spike that followed. What the study actually found […]
The Canada Child Benefit is going up for the 2026-27 payment year, and the federal government chose New Brunswick — where nearly 81,000 families rely on the program — to make the announcement. How much more families will get Starting this month, the Canada Child Benefit (CCB) provides up to $8,157 per child under age […]
There is no federal $2,000 or $3,000 stimulus check scheduled for this month. No legislation authorizing a universal payment has passed Congress, and neither the Treasury Department nor the IRS has announced a payment schedule — despite the claim circulating widely online. Where the rumor started The $2,000 stimulus buzz traces back to a Truth […]
A lawful permanent resident has pleaded guilty in Washington, D.C. federal court to conspiring in a scheme that used stolen identities to pull more than $550,000 out of the unemployment insurance system, with prosecutors tying $1 million in total losses to the conspiracy. The scheme, in plain terms Karin L. Contreras, 45, a Dominican Republic […]
A former Iowa Workforce Development contract employee has been sentenced to federal prison for using her position to submit dozens of fraudulent unemployment claims — a case that shows how insider access, not just outside scammers, can drain benefit programs. Who did it, and how Victoria Green, 29, of Des Moines, worked as a contract […]
Reform proposals now circulating in Washington describe what would be the most sweeping overhaul of unemployment insurance since the program was created in 1935 — and a big piece of it is aimed at a problem that sounds narrow but hits hard: people who get overpaid through no fault of their own and then have […]
Missouri could owe the federal government roughly $150 million starting in 2027 — not because of a new tax or a budget cut, but because of how accurately the state pays out food assistance benefits. The number behind the number Missouri’s SNAP payment error rate for federal fiscal year 2025 came in at 8.67%. That’s […]
The USDA’s newly released FY 2025 error rate report shows states paid out $10.1 billion in incorrect SNAP benefits last year — and starting in 2027, states will have to start covering part of that bill themselves. The national number: 10.62% The national SNAP payment error rate for fiscal year 2025 came in at 10.62%, […]
Virginia’s maximum weekly unemployment benefit jumped from $430 to $478 starting July 5, 2026, under new legislation signed by Governor Abigail Spanberger. The minimum weekly benefit rose too, from $112 to $160 — but there’s a catch that trips up a lot of claimants: the higher amount only applies to brand-new claims, not existing ones. […]
Arizona’s unemployment rate rose to 4.9% in June 2026, up from 4.8% in May — the highest level the state has seen in five years. That divergence stands out because it moved in the opposite direction of the national trend: the U.S. unemployment rate actually fell over the same month, dropping to 4.2% from 4.3%. […]