State Rep. Amy Grant | Contributed photo
State Rep. Amy Grant | Contributed photo
State Rep. Amy Grant (R-Wheaton) thinks there should be a price to pay for all the dysfunction the Illinois Department of Employment Security has suffered from through the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
“As Gov. (J.B.) Pritzker prepared to issue COVID-19-related executive orders that closed or restricted the majority of businesses in our state, he had to know that his actions would put an incredibly large number of people out of work,” Grant said. “He had a responsibility to make sure his Department of Employment Security was ready for the massive influx of filings that would be coming. He completely failed.”
Grant is now calling for a complete and independent audit of the system after countless out-of-work residents have been unable able to smoothly file for benefits over the last two months because of faults with the system.
“Every time the governor is asked about the failings at IDES, he points to the unprecedented number of claims being filed and says he has taken steps to address the issues,” Grant added. “He has poured money into solutions that have not worked. We are two months into this and my office still hears from dozens of frustrated and angry Illinoisans each week that cannot get their unemployment benefits.”
Other problems with the system emerged when the names, addresses and full Social Security numbers of countless individuals who filed for benefits were made public on the IDES web site.
“At this point, my Republican colleagues and I have no choice other than to demand a deep audit into IDES,” Grant said. “We must get to the bottom of why they have failed at every turn during this health pandemic.”
For all the failures, Grant noted that at least $22 million has been spent by the Pritzker administration to update and improve IDES.
“For $22 million, Illinoisans should have received prompt and professional processing and certification of unemployment claims,” she said. “With dissatisfaction with IDES customer service still extremely high, it appears that money was a complete waste of taxpayer resources.”
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