Newsroom

Paul Toomey Examines Unemployment Fraud Prevention in Forbes Business Council Article

Wed, 14 Jan 2026 17:31:11 GMT

The pandemic not only changed the way we work but also exposed deep fractures in our aging government technology infrastructure. This raises a critical question: Are state unemployment systems ready for the next crisis?

In a recent Forbes Business Council article, Geographic Solutions’ President and Founder, Paul Toomey, examines this issue and explores the post-pandemic push for system modernization. He also delves into how states are transforming fraud risks into opportunities to build a smarter, more secure infrastructure.

Follow the link here to read more!

In The News: Arizona Launches New CACTUS Portal to Streamline Unemployment Benefits

Wed, 10 Sep 2025 20:22:44 GMT

Article first appeared at ABC 15 Arizona

PHOENIX — Arizonans who rely on unemployment benefits now have a new way to manage their claims: the Comprehensive Arizona Claims Tracking Unemployment Insurance System (CACTUS). The Arizona Department of Economic Security (DES) launched the CACTUS portal on Sunday, September 7.

The online system is designed to make it easier to file for unemployment insurance, track payments, and upload required documents online. DES data shows that, on average, nearly 19,600 people in the state of Arizona receive unemployment benefits weekly.

Geographic Solutions’ New Unemployment System for Iowa Highlighted in News Article

Thu, 29 May 2025 14:47:00 GMT

A recent article from the Des Moines Business Record spotlights the upcoming launch of Iowa’s unemployment system, which Geographic Solutions developed in partnership with Iowa Workforce Development.

The article highlights Geographic Solutions’ involvement in helping the State of Iowa modernize its decades-old unemployment system. It also details the system’s benefits and how it will enhance the experience for individuals and employers.

Follow the link here to read the full story!

Geographic Solutions Announces Hire Of New Director Of UI Development

Mon, 26 Apr 2021 20:34:00 GMT

PALM HARBOR, FL (April 26, 2021) – Geographic Solutions, the nation’s leading provider of software solutions for workforce development, unemployment processing and labor market information, has named Evan Stevens as its Director of UI Development. He brings 18 years of software development, architecture, analysis, project management, and technical integration in Enterprise applications to the company.

“Evan will provide leadership and guidance in best practices, process development, and conversion activities for unemployment and workforce projects,” said Paul Toomey, president and founder of Geographic Solutions.

Before joining Geographic Solutions, Stevens served as the Vice President of Technology at Chargebacks911 where he led a large team of developers working with worldwide merchants and financial banking institutions to build chargeback management solutions. Prior to that, Stevens was the Director of Client Systems Engineering for Visa Inc., responsible for a team of developers and contractors developing applications aimed at strengthening relationships between Visa and its financial partners.

“I’m excited to be a part of an organization that facilitates assistance for millions of Americans affected by unemployment, especially during the pandemic,” said Stevens. “Geographic Solutions has a demonstrated legacy of providing award-winning solutions for State and Federal workforce programs. I’m honored to be joining the team.”

Stevens earned a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Brigham Young University, and holds several IT certifications from Aspect Security and Adobe.
Geographic Solutions is excited to welcome Evan Stevens to the team and is committed to supporting unemployment and reemployment solutions across the country.

Geographic Solutions Announces Hire Of New Business Development Executive For Unemployment Insurance

Mon, 25 Jan 2021 18:14:00 GMT

PALM HARBOR, FL (January 22, 2021) – Geographic Solutions is pleased to announce the recent hiring of Magnus D. Hines III, the organization’s newest Business Development Executive for Unemployment Insurance. Hines earned a Juris Doctorate from the Florida State University College of Law in Tallahassee, FL, and he is a member in good standing of the Florida State Bar. He brings a wealth of experience to the company’s Marketing Department, including an extensive background in the workforce and unemployment sectors within Florida’s state government.

Prior to joining Geographic Solutions, Hines worked with the Department of Economic Opportunity’s Office of Reemployment Assistance as Deputy Director where he managed a $90 million budget and 700 employees statewide. In that role, he increased performance in key federal measures by 50%. Hines has a breadth of knowledge and real-world experience navigating the workforce and unemployment domains.

In his new role with Geographic Solutions, Hines will focus on developing new relationships with labor agencies across the United States while nurturing current clients and marketing the Geographic Solutions Unemployment System (GUS) solution, a Custom-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) solution that encourages rapid reemployment, helps reduce the depletion rate for the UI trust funds, and assists in decreasing tax rates.

"It is exciting to work for Geographic Solutions after seeing the great work they do to assist the Florida workforce system from the perspective of the state government for so many years,” says Hines. “I'm happy to be able to extend those high quality values to other states with the Geographic Solutions Unemployment System."

Geographic Solutions is excited to welcome Magnus D. Hines III to the team and is committed to supporting unemployment and reemployment solutions across the country with our information and technology.

For more information, please contact: Deane Toler, Director of Sales and Marketing for Geographic Solutions, Inc. at DToler@geosolinc.com or at (727)-786-7955. To reach Magnus D. Hines III directly to discuss unemployment solutions, please call (727)-786-7955 or email mhines@geosolinc.com.

At Least 5 States Start Paying $300 Unemployment Boost

Fri, 28 Aug 2020 20:10:00 GMT

At least five states have begun paying out a federal boost to weekly unemployment benefits. Others have signaled they’ll do so within days.

Arizona, Louisiana, Missouri, Tennessee and Texas are the first states to disburse the aid, a $300-a-week increase in jobless benefits. (States could choose to kick in an additional $100 a week, but most have opted against it.)

It’s been nearly three weeks since President Trump signed an executive measure creating the Lost Wages Assistance program.

Read the full article at www.cnbc.com.

Geographic Solutions’ Unemployment Insurance Software Reaches Record High Of $30 Billion Year-To-Date Payments

Mon, 17 Aug 2020 20:42:00 GMT

PALM HARBOR, FL (August 4, 2020) – As the world changes in ways never anticipated, Geographic Solutions, a software development firm who specializes in large-scale workforce development and unemployment insurance systems, has stayed in sync with the rapidly shifting needs of the modern world. As of August 5, 2020, the company has processed and distributed a combined, historic $30.1 billion and counting (year to date) in unemployment compensation payments for clients across eleven states and U.S. territories.

The record peak in payments is comprised of traditional unemployment claims, expanded Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) Insurance claims, and $600 stimulus stipends, which ended on July 25, 2020, distributed as part of the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) program. Batch compensations are uploaded nightly as an Automated Clearing House (ACH) file transfer to be paid out in the form of bank direct deposits, debit cards, and printed checks. The most widely-used method of payment for claimants is direct deposit.

Weekly certification claims are accepted seven days a week on all of Geographic Solutions’ unemployment compensation systems, however most individuals who file their certifications do so on Sunday or Monday of each week – with the number of claims steadily decreasing as the week progresses. Payment transfers are processed each night. So for example, individuals who enter their weekly certifications on Sunday should receive a processed payment by Monday night. For more information regarding filing initial and weekly claims, check out our Frequently Asked Questions.

As the nation tries to stabilize the public health crisis, many companies large and small were forced to close, furlough workers, or eliminate positions all together. As a result, many states and territories struggled to alleviate traffic bottlenecks on unemployment insurance websites, handle the intake of Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) claims, and the distribute benefits in a timely manner. Guided by Geographic Solutions’ around-the-clock support, our clients have been able to handle the new workload, highlighting their systems’ flexibility, resilience, and reliability.

For media inquiries or more information email news@geosolinc.com.

Geographic Solutions is the leading provider of integrated software for state and local workforce agencies in over 30 states and U.S. territories. The company’s custom online solutions manage all federally-funded workforce and unemployment programs and have been designed specifically to meet the diverse needs of American Job Centers, unemployment insurance and economic development agencies, corrections facilities, and educational institutions. For more information, visit www.geographicsolutions.com.

Guam's Governor Announces Unemployment Programs Open For Applications

Tue, 02 Jun 2020 19:26:00 GMT

This story originally appears on www.postguam.com.

Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero announced Guam's federally funded unemployment aid programs have been launched.

Those residents financially effected by the pandemic are now able to file for unemployment benefits.

Guam Labor Director David Dell'Isolla counsels patience as the more than 22,000 residents file jobless claims. Residents without a computer with an internet connection may visit their mayoral offices for assistance in filing.

Guam Labor contracted Florida-based Geographic Solutions for the computer system that runs the unemployment benefits program, which is integrated in www.hireguam.com. The software is key to the local rollout of the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance and the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation programs.

The U.S. Department of Labor released an initial allotment of $276 million to Guam Labor.

Geographic Solutions’ Unemployment Insurance Software Reaches Record High of $1.284 Billion Year-to-Date Payments

Mon, 27 Apr 2020 14:48:00 GMT

PALM HARBOR, FL (April 27, 2020) – As the COVID-19 pandemic unfolds, our economy is experiencing an unprecedented record number of Americans filing first-time jobless claims. Geographic Solutions, a software development firm who specializes in large-scale workforce development and unemployment insurance systems, has processed and distributed a combined, historic $1.284 billion and counting (year to date) in unemployment compensation payments for clients in Louisiana, Tennessee, and Nebraska.

Prior to the pandemic, the Louisiana HiRE unemployment insurance system would process $1.4 Million in claims on an average Monday. To put the influx of compensation payments into perspective, on Monday, April 20, Louisiana’s system processed $205.6 million in claims – providing assistance to close to 220,000 out-of-work individuals. Throughout the remainder of the week, the system processed another $424.3 Million in claims for nearly 778,000 individuals. In total for the business week of April 20-24, the system handled $630, 009,746 in payments to 997,403 individuals.

In comparison, the JOBS4TN system processed $550,164,678 in claim payments, offering assistance to 821,191 individuals during the week of April 20-24. Nebraska’s NEworks system followed suit in third place, processing $103,894,609 during that same week for 147,518 claimants.

The record peak in payments across the three states is comprised of traditional unemployment claims, expanded Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) Insurance claims, and $600 stimulus stipends distributed as part of the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) program. Batch compensations are uploaded nightly as an Automated Clearing House (ACH) file transfer to be paid out in the form of bank direct deposits, debit cards, and printed checks. The most widely-used method of payment for claimants is direct deposit.

With the nation unable to stabilize the public health crisis, many companies large and small have no option but to temporarily close, furlough workers, or eliminate positions all together. As a result, many states across the country struggle to alleviate traffic bottlenecks on unemployment insurance websites, handle the intake of Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) claims, and the distribution of benefits in a timely manner. Guided by Geographic Solutions’ around-the-clock support, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Nebraska have been able to handle the upswing in traffic, highlighting their systems’ flexibility, resilience, and reliability.

VIDEO: How To File For Unemployment Insurance In Louisiana Amid The COVID-19 Crisis

Wed, 25 Mar 2020 16:38:00 GMT

This story first appeared at WDSU.com.

NEW ORLEANS - The Louisiana Workforce Commission has released a video that will help residents navigate the process of filing for unemployment amid the COVID-19 health crisis.

Businesses across the state, including those who employ the service industry, have either had to cut their workforce or close their doors because of efforts by Louisiana to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Schools have been shut down, bars and clubs have been shuttered, and restaurants are restricted to only serving takeout or delivery orders. The service industry has been significantly impacted with these shutdowns because employers can no longer rely on the tourism industry to keep their businesses going.

Please view this five-minute-long video to find out how you can file for unemployment insurance in Louisiana. The video outlines how to create an account, and enter personal and employment information.

Louisiana Ranks Number One In The Nation For Handling Higher Authority Appeals

Tue, 28 May 2019 12:41:00 GMT

Geographic Solutions congratulates the Louisiana Workforce Commission for ranking number one in the nation for the Federal Unemployment Insurance performance measure of "Average Age of Pending Higher Authority Appeals" for the second quarter in a row. Louisiana's Average for "Age of Pending Higher Authority Appeals" is 3.4 days, whereas the national average is 37.6 days.

For more information on the Geographic Solutions Unemployment System and the product's appeals management functionality, visit: https://www.geographicsolutions.com/GUS

Source for data: https://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/ranking.asp