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Applications for unemployment have hit the two million mark after more than 86,000 more people applied on Wednesday.

Many of the nearly quarter million who were denied payments may have been told no simply because of a quirk in state law.

The Department of Economic Opportunity is confirming that many of the 248,000 people whose claim was recently denied was simply because their claim was filed in March.

State law requires applicants to apply every quarter.

“That sounds a bit screwy to me. Curious why April fourth was chosen for you to reapply. Which is really really an inconvenience,” said state Senator Linda Stewart.

Unemployed IT tech Scott Read applied in early April.

He got a check late last week, but Scott’s wife wasn’t so lucky.

She was just denied.

“No explanation. Unfortunately that is the kind of ugly part. She was denied but no explanation why she was denied,” said Read.

In a letter to the Department, Senator Stewart is calling for every rejected claim to get a second look.

“Forty percent. No, they’re not getting the money in their pocket and they are being asked to wait longer and go through a system that you still can’t get on,” said Stewart.

Florida’s official unemployment rate is at 4.3 percent, but that’s based on mid March data.

Our calculations, show it’s closer to 11 percent.

State law requires the number of benefit weeks to increase from the 12 allowed after unemployment hits 5 percent, but because it’s based on a three month average it will likely be June before more weeks are added.

Long after many have lost their eligibility.

Once the three month unemployment average hits 10.5 percent, applicants are eligible for a total of 23 weeks of benefits.