House renews jobless benefits, but checks still may be delayed
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The U.S. House of Representatives passed an eleventh-hour extension of jobless benefits Friday afternoon, but thousands of Californians could still see a delay in their checks because the Senate probably won’t act until it returns from recess in June. The House bill passed Friday also eliminates extensions of COBRA subsidies for unemployed workers, making some advocates worry about the future of unemployment benefits.
States such as California provide 26 weeks of regular benefits, but federal extensions have added an extra 53 weeks. In late 2009, a third extension of 20 weeks brought the total to 99 weeks. Those extensions will begin to expire May 31, probably before the Senate takes up the bill.
The last time benefits were extended, in April, delays in Congress also caused gaps in checks for the unemployed. The delays are leaving states such as California to scramble to keep up with the latest changes and extensions in the law.
‘It’s a nightmare for states to administer,’ said Loree Levy, a spokeswoman for the Employment Development Department. ‘We’re trying to get a sense if there’s going to be a gap, which it’s starting to look like there is.’
If the measure is eventually approved, the unemployed will get retroactive checks to cover the weeks they missed, Levy said.
There are currently 2.3 million people out of work in California.
The debate over the bill and the fact that the House stripped away some provisions of the measure make people like Maurice Emsellem, policy co-director of the National Employment Law Project, concerned that support for unemployment benefits is waning in Congress. Taking away benefits could cripple the fledgling recovery, he said.
‘The more anxiety you create around the economy by undermining these benefits, the more you’re driving the economy into the ground,’ he said.
Already, some in Congress have been talking about cutting back on benefits in the 23 states such as California whose high unemployment rates qualify them for extensions, Emsellem said. Stripping the bill of COBRA provisions is another sign that Congress is starting to chip away at the benefits. Those who already have COBRA subsidies will not lose their benefits, but the newly unemployed won’t qualify.
‘To pull the plug on COBRA in the midst of super-high levels of unemployment is bad for workers and bad for the economy,’ he said.
The Department of Labor estimates that 323,400 people will lose benefits if Congress doesn’t pass an extension by June 12.
Hundreds of thousands of people have also begun reaching the end of the 99 weeks of benefits. House leader Nancy Pelosi said earlier this week that the House will not take up measures to further extend those benefits.
-- Alana Semuels
