Labor & Employment Law

Unemployment Insurance Extended, But States Face UI Disaster

By Tula Connell

In the “good news, bad news” category:

President Obama on Saturday signed an extension of unemployment insurance (UI) benefits that were set to expire Dec. 31. The two-month extension of the emergency UI also extends health insurance subsidies so that individuals now have 15 months to pay the reduced premiums related to the COBRA extension.

The only reason the bill made it to his desk without being blocked by anti-worker (i.e., the majority of) Senate Republicans is because the extensions were included in the fiscal year 2010 defense appropriations bill.

Now the bad news:

The recession’s jobless toll is draining unemployment-compensation funds so fast that according to federal projections, 40 state programs will go broke within two years and need $90 billion in loans to keep issuing the benefit checks.

Currently, 25 states have run out of unemployment money and have borrowed $24 billion from the federal government to cover the gaps. By 2011, according to Department of Labor estimates, 40 state funds will have been emptied by the jobless tsunami.

• Rebuild America?s schools, roads and energy systems.
• Increase aid to state and local governments to maintain vital services. 
• Put people to work doing work that needs to be done. 
• Put TARP funds to work for Main Street.

Congress and the White House may need a holiday break. But they should not forget the working families who will get no break from financial distress and disaster until those who represent them take action.

Full post as published by AFL-CIO NOW BLOG on December 22, 2009 (boomark / email).