Self-employed workers in eight Florida Panhandle counties who lost income to Hurricane Isaias have until Dec. 28, 2026 to apply for Disaster Unemployment Assistance. FloridaCommerce announced the federal-state program for the counties of Bay, Escambia, Gulf, Holmes, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Walton and Washington. The aid covers weeks of lost work beginning Oct. 11, 2026.
Disaster Unemployment Assistance, or DUA, is meant for people regular unemployment does not cover. That includes the self-employed, such as contractors, fishing guides, hair stylists, rental hosts and gig drivers, whose work stopped or shrank because of the storm. The state’s announcement does not quote a named official, and it does not give a weekly benefit amount…