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House Approves Unemployment Benefits

WASHINGTON – First District Congressman Paul Ryan today voted for legislation that would help people affected by the December 28, 2002 expiration date for federal extended unemployment benefits, while offering new extended benefits to eligible workers who have most recently become unemployed. The bill passed in the U.S. Senate yesterday, and today the U.S. House of Representatives passed this unemployment benefits measure by a vote of 416-4.

"Many people in our area are still going through tough times," Ryan said. "That’s why this benefits extension is so important. But I don’t think we should be satisfied with simply offering more temporary relief for people who have lost their jobs. We need to get our economy growing more strongly so businesses can expand and hire more people and new businesses can start up and take root. That will get unemployed workers what they are really looking for – a job."

"I think the President is on the right track with the tax relief and expensing changes he proposed yesterday, and I look forward to working with my colleagues in Congress over the months ahead to push for these and other steps that will boost the economy and spark job growth."

This legislation builds upon a law Congress passed last March that delivered extended unemployment benefits. The March 2002 temporary extended unemployment compensation law (P.L. 107-147) provided up to 13 weeks of federal extended benefits in every state for those who exhausted up to 26 weeks of regular state benefits. The March 2002 law also provided up to 13 added weeks of federal extended benefits in "high unemployment" states, including Wisconsin, for a total of up to 26 weeks of extended benefits and 52 weeks of overall benefits. The program provided benefits through the week ending December 28, 2002.

Today’s legislation (S. 23) helps those hurt by the December 28^th cut-off date and provides for new assistance for individuals who exhaust their regular state unemployment benefits in the coming months. The measure extends the March 2002 program for five months (i.e. through May 2003), with a three-month phase out, allowing those who become eligible by the end of May 2003 to receive federal extended unemployment benefits through August 2003.

Under this legislation (S. 23):

• Workers affected by the December 28, 2002 expiration date for federal extended benefits would receive the balance of their benefits.

• Workers who exhaust 26 weeks of regular state unemployment benefits in the coming months would become eligible for up to 13 weeks of federal extended benefits in all states and up to 26 weeks in high unemployment states. (Note: Three states qualified as "high unemployment" states as of December 28, 2002: Alaska, Oregon, and Washington.)

Estimates are that this unemployment benefits extension would aid 1.9 million new recipients, as well as nearly 800,000 continuing recipients possibly affected by the December 28 cut-off, for a total of 2.7 million workers receiving assistance.

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