In Support of Continuing Emergency Unemployment Compensation Benefits

Statement

Mr. Speaker, unemployment benefits are a critical lifeline for our citizens and our economy. Although our economy is gradually improving from one of the worst economic recessions in its history, the economic crisis remains a daily reality for 11.3 million unemployed workers and for the millions of Americans experiencing record levels of food insecurity, poverty, and foreclosure.

Now is not the time to cut unemployment. Our economy continues to need federal unemployment benefits to support its growth. Jobs still remain hard to get with 2 million fewer jobs now than at the beginning of the recession. We continue to experience historic levels of long-term unemployment with over one-third of unemployed workers having been out of work longer than six months. Further, unemployment remains high in many areas of our country, like in my home state of Illinois where the unemployment rate is 9%. The non-partisan Economic Policy Institute estimates that failing to extend emergency unemployment benefits another year will damage our fragile recovery, reducing economic growth by 0.4 percentage points in the first quarter of 2014 and costing 310,000 much-needed jobs next year.

Now is not the time to cut unemployment. Millions of Americans rely on unemployment assistance to survive. In Illinois, approximately 389,000 people relied on unemployment benefits during 2013. The insistence of the Republican Leadership on slashing federal emergency assistance will impose incredible hardship on approximately 3.2 million Americans, with 1.3 million cruelly stripped of benefits just after Christmas and another 1.9 million losing benefits in the first six months of next year. The failure of the Republican Leadership to extend this critical lifeline would impose incredible hardship on over 153,000 Illinoisans. These Americans lost their jobs through no fault of their own, they tirelessly try to find work when the jobs are few and far between, and they struggle to cover basic food, housing, and transportation costs for their families on an average of $290 a week, a pittance which typically replaces only half of the average family's expenses. Failing to help these citizens is unacceptable.

Government leaders have a responsibility to protect our citizens and our country, especially during times of national crisis. Failure to continue emergency unemployment benefits will harm our economic recovery and harm Americans who already are hardest hit by the economic crisis--including older Americans, low-income Americans, Americans from racial and ethnic minority groups, and Americans without a high school diploma. Congress must quickly act to support our citizens and our economic recovery by continuing emergency unemployment benefits.

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