Demonstrators rally near the Capitol Hill residence of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to call for the extension of unemployment benefits on July 22. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call Inc via Getty Images A new report from the Minneapolis Fed looks at how long it took states to put out unemployment. In August 2020, only half of states were making over half of their payments promptly. While the situation has improved somewhat, it shows continued strain on UI systems. Throughout the pandemic, unemployment insurance and its pandemic-era expansions helped jobless workers pay their bills during a crisis – that is, if they received their funds in time.