Belleville News-Democrat - Jobless Aid Could Help 60,000

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Belleville News-Democrat - Jobless Aid Could Help 60,000

About 60,000 Illinois residents on unemployment could be eligible for a 13-week extension of the benefit.

The extension went into effect Monday, according to Gov. Rod Blagojevich's office.

On June 30, President Bush authorized the legislation that extends the unemployment. The Illinois Department of Employment Security will administer the extension and notify potentially eligible individuals by mail.

"In this economy, we need to make sure we are giving Illinoisans the support they need to put food on the table, pay their rising gas and utility bills and afford their other basic necessities. I am pleased that the U.S. Congress and President Bush have recognized the importance of providing job seekers with extended unemployment assistance," Blagojevich said. "This extension of benefits will provide financial relief right now for people who need it most. I thank our delegation for making sure we can help Illinoisans through this difficult time."

The extension provides for up to 13 weeks' worth of additional, federally funded unemployment benefits for those who have exhausted their rights to regular state unemployment benefits and are not eligible for other state or federal unemployment benefit programs.

Eligible individuals are Illinois claimants whose regular benefit claims expired on or after May 1, 2007, and who have been paid wages for the equivalent of 20 weeks of full time employment, based on a formula set forth in the law.

"With the unemployment rate in Illinois jumping to 6.4 percent in May from 5.4 percent in April, which was the largest one-month increase in the state in more than 20 years, the time is right for Congress to extend unemployment benefits for an additional 13 weeks. That's what Congress has just done," said Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. "For displaced workers who are struggling to find new jobs in a sagging economy, this extension of benefits provides crucial financial support to help families cope with these tough times."

For more information regarding Illinois' unemployment benefits extension and to check on eligibility, call IDES at 312-793-5700.

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