April 29 (Bloomberg) -- Since the U.S. recession began in December 2007, Congress has extended the duration of weekly unemployment benefits for the jobless three times. Now, the lawmakers may have reached their limit.
They are quietly drawing the line at 99 weeks of aid, a mark that hundreds of thousands of Americans have already reached. In coming months, the number of those who will receive their final government check is projected to top 1 million.
Itâs a deadline that has rarely been mentioned in recent debates over jobless benefits, in which Republicans have delayed aid because of cost concerns. The deadline hasnât been lost on Teauna Stephney, a 39-year-old single mother from Bothell, Washington, who said she could become homeless once her $407 weekly checks stop in June.
âWhat are people like me supposed to do?â said Stephney, who said almost two years of benefits havenât proved long enough for her to find work after she lost her last job in August 2008. Referring to lawmakers, she said, âI would like them to come and talk to me and spend a day in my shoes.â
Democrats who have pushed through the past extensions agree thereâs insufficient backing to go beyond 99 weeks, largely because of mounting concern over the federal deficit, projected to reach $1.5 trillion this year.
âYou canât go on forever,â said Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, of Montana, whose panel oversees the benefits program. âI think 99 weeks is sufficient,â he said.
âThereâs just been no discussion to go beyond that,â said Senator Byron Dorgan, a North Dakota Democrat.
âDamned If They Doâ
Allowing the ranks of those who lose their aid to swell carries risks for Democrats in Novemberâs elections.
âTheyâre damned if they do and damned if they donât,â said Stuart Rothenberg, publisher of the Rothenberg Political Report. Voters are âsensitive these days to spending and deficit issues and yet there are going to be people who need help, and if the administration ignores them, theyâll look rather callous.â
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aXwP.wJosrtY&pos=7
Lost your job ? Call uncle Ben at the Federal Reserve. He has the magic printing machine...
They are quietly drawing the line at 99 weeks of aid, a mark that hundreds of thousands of Americans have already reached. In coming months, the number of those who will receive their final government check is projected to top 1 million.
Itâs a deadline that has rarely been mentioned in recent debates over jobless benefits, in which Republicans have delayed aid because of cost concerns. The deadline hasnât been lost on Teauna Stephney, a 39-year-old single mother from Bothell, Washington, who said she could become homeless once her $407 weekly checks stop in June.
âWhat are people like me supposed to do?â said Stephney, who said almost two years of benefits havenât proved long enough for her to find work after she lost her last job in August 2008. Referring to lawmakers, she said, âI would like them to come and talk to me and spend a day in my shoes.â
Democrats who have pushed through the past extensions agree thereâs insufficient backing to go beyond 99 weeks, largely because of mounting concern over the federal deficit, projected to reach $1.5 trillion this year.
âYou canât go on forever,â said Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, of Montana, whose panel oversees the benefits program. âI think 99 weeks is sufficient,â he said.
âThereâs just been no discussion to go beyond that,â said Senator Byron Dorgan, a North Dakota Democrat.
âDamned If They Doâ
Allowing the ranks of those who lose their aid to swell carries risks for Democrats in Novemberâs elections.
âTheyâre damned if they do and damned if they donât,â said Stuart Rothenberg, publisher of the Rothenberg Political Report. Voters are âsensitive these days to spending and deficit issues and yet there are going to be people who need help, and if the administration ignores them, theyâll look rather callous.â
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aXwP.wJosrtY&pos=7
Lost your job ? Call uncle Ben at the Federal Reserve. He has the magic printing machine...
