Fall 2009 Unemployment Extension Possible

Thank you

Hi all
Just a question. I read over the new Senate Bill and it talks about Tier 2 EB at 14 weeks, Tier 3 EB at 13 weeks and a Tier 4 EB at 6 weeks. Granted all will get something from this, but who are in Tier 2 EB and Tier 3 EB? Was not the Bush extensions EUC. Did anyone who ran out of origional 26 week of UI after March or April 2009 receive the EUC benefits passed by Bush or only the 20 weeks from Obams' HR-1 Bill?

fred wrote:Hi all
Just a question. I read over the new Senate Bill and it talks about Tier 2 EB at 14 weeks, Tier 3 EB at 13 weeks and a Tier 4 EB at 6 weeks. Granted all will get something from this, but who are in Tier 2 EB and Tier 3 EB? Was not the Bush extensions EUC. Did anyone who ran out of origional 26 week of UI after March or April 2009 receive the EUC benefits passed by Bush or only the 20 weeks from Obams' HR-1 Bill?

Hi Fred, I would guess that the Tier 2 @ 14 weeks and the Tier 4 @ 6 weeks are both for states with unemployment rates over 8.5% and that the Tier 3 @ 13 weeks is for the rest of the states with unemployment lower then 8.5%.

Hoppy, Fred, and everyone--

It's not quite like that; the bill as amended (if the amendment passes as introduced) is written in a rather complicated way in order to allow for the application for states that are in all different stages of unemployment and tier benefits that they've already received or not. The amendment is an amendment to a bill that is essentially an amendment to an amendment!

The best shorthand for all this that I've seen posted is from "NGOL" over at Open Congress, who posts this:

"If HR3548 passes with the proposed amendment SA2668, this is how it will go:

NEW TIERS OF EUC:
Tier 2 - 14 weeks for everyone.
Tier 3 - 13 weeks for at or over 6.5% 3 month average.
Tier 4 - 6 weeks for at or over 8.5% 3 month average.
They added Limitation rules so if your state already got Tier 2 - you will get the one extra week from the new Tier 2 and then will trigger on to Tier 3 for 13 weeks and if your state is at or over 8.5% average, then trigger on to Tier 4 for 6 more weeks.
If your state hasn't got the old Tier 2 of 13 weeks yet - you will get the 14 weeks and if your state goes to or over 6.5% average you will trigger on to Tier 3 for 13 more weeks and then if your state goes to or over 8.5% average trigger on to Tier 4 for 6 more weeks. "

You might want to know these details if you are reading this from another state, but the bottom line for Florida (if this passes as is) is this:

If you've run out of EB or EUC, this bill will provide you with 14 additional weeks of EUC benefits, plus another 6 weeks immediately following that if the state stays above 8.5% unemployment rate (this might change by the time pigs fly).

The bill is EUC, but is based on unemployment rate status that is determined by the law for EB that refers to the TUR (3-month average rate).

If you want to read updates on the bill progress that I post over at OC, or get links to the bill or the amendment, go to the new Benefit Wiki at Open Congress here:

http://www.opencongress.org/wiki/Project:Benefit_Wiki

This new Benefit Wiki (if you're not familiar with the term, just Google wiki and Wikipedia) will address national issues and updates about unemployment and other benefits and help for the unemployed. Since we seem to be in a national emergency state with this economy for an extended period, the moderators helped us put together this resource for community use. The link has a map for other state information as well.

nancym wrote:"If HR3548 passes with the proposed amendment SA2668, this is how it will go:

Great informative post Nancy....Thank You!

Nancy,
Thanks so much for all that great info! And for that link to Benefit Wiki. I've got my fingers crossed that it will pass.

sc4ram wrote:http://www.pri.org/politics-society/government/senate-unemployment-extension-all-states1667.html

Even though the date on that article says Oct 12, it's actually old news. The Senators who were arguing about what states get what have settled their differences on that with the introduction of the amendment that was made on Oct 8.

A sad state of affairs of our current news media is that most news is just a re-hashing of a few reports made by AP and a few others, then copied over and over into local papers and blogs, sometimes til the truth of the details is unrecognizable.

The new proposal on the table is for 20 weeks for Florida and other states over 8.5% and 14 weeks for all other states. This was temporarily blocked from a unanimous consent vote by Republican Senator Kyl of Arizona on Thursday, taking the bill into consideration this week with possible amendments and discussion. We hope it comes up on Tuesday when the Senate reconvenes.

Well guys... it looks like we are getting swept under the table yet again. I don't know about y'all but my family is seriously broke and on our way down even farther.. I personally don't give 2 sh*ts about the Health Care thing.. Without jobs nobody will be able to afford any type of Health Insurance anyway.. Hell, we'll probably be living in the woods in a tent eating Alpo...before to long.

I agree, it is so hard to be totally at the mercy of a group of people who seem oblivious to the day to day suffering of those of us whose benefits have run out. My lights are about to be turned off as well as the gas I use to cook. I am thankful that I was finally able to get food stamps and do have food. Of course, that will not help without power or gas. I really appreciate this website, until two weeks ago I felt alone in this mess, but having others who understand has helped somewhat.

nachomama wrote:Well guys... it looks like we are getting swept under the table yet again. I don't know about y'all but my family is seriously broke and on our way down even farther.. I personally don't give 2 sh*ts about the Health Care thing.. Without jobs nobody will be able to afford any type of Health Insurance anyway.. Hell, we'll probably be living in the woods in a tent eating Alpo...before to long.

I know...this is SO frustrating Hang in there everyone...

I feel bad for you guys. Mine ran out last week. I had thought last month, that when McDermotts bill went to the Senate on 9/22, that I'd be able to collect unemployment in stride. But then it took two and a half weeks for the Senate to get to it. And they didnt include the Republicans apparently, because now there's a problem with the funding according to Republicans. arrgh! I know they're trying. And I'm thankfull for that. But sheesh, healthcare, however important, is as it has been for decades. It can wait a little longer, one would think. And EUC means Emergency UC.

This is totally insane! Nothing seems to have been voted on about the unemployment problem in the senate today. what the h--- are they waiting for? they work tomorrow and that's it until next Tuesday.!! how are we going to survive if they are taking this long in helping us and on top of it, when they approve it , will take more time to consolidate everything! jesus! i am at my wit's end, just like many here!

UIO. what do you think of all this MESS???????

I think its just total bullshit..

Unemployed In Orlando wrote:I think its just total bullshit..

UIO thank you for saying what I've been thinking! I was fortunate enough to have been receiving my benefits while all the previous extensions were passed. I had no idea our politicos show such a lack of interest in the unemployed! It's so frustrating to feel so powerless over this situation. Are they all really so delusional?

Unemployed In Orlando wrote:I think its just total bullshit..

Yes this is absolute bullshit. They are GD losers. I will vote against everyone of them that I can. F...ing Jerks I'm sorry but I'm really hacked off...............

For what it's worth, I received this positive email from Senator Nelson today.
_______________________________

Dear *********:

Thank you for contacting me about unemployment benefits.

Florida has been hit hard by the current recession. Nearly one million Floridians are out of work, giving us an unemployment rate of 10.7%. And this past August, more than half of our 67 counties had double-digit unemployment. People who are out of work and trying to find a job deserve help while they get back on their feet.

Last month the House of Representatives passed a bill to extend unemployment benefits. That bill was expected to quickly pass the Senate, but was held up by Senators who were concerned it would only benefit States with high unemployment. Late last week, an agreement was reached, and I am confident that the Senate will pass an extension in a timely manner.

Thank you for contacting me about this important issue. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future.

Sincerely,
Senator Bill Nelson

Thanks for posting that Jeff.

i couldnt resist offering my opinion on this situation.

Im as anxious as anyone for a EUC extension. Of course sooner would be better.

In order to be able to cope with this emotionally, I have set low expectations for timely execution of these types of bills (and in that respect I have never been dissapointed) . Unemployment bills have never (in my expierience) been passed or enacted quickly. The EB expierience we have had this year and the other extensions previously are testimony to that. I dont know why anyone would expect any different based on that history. If my emotional well being depended on a bill getting passed this week, I think I would start buying lottery tickets, (as they may have a better probability of paying in the short term)

I think if you wake up every morning waiting for Congressional action you are just torturing yourself.

As far as the Hon. Sen. Nelson goes, I wouldnt expect him to say anything else. My experience with his email responses are that they are form letter based and are either profesorial, patronizing, non-commital or all of the above. Notice how he didnt commit in this letter to vote for a unemployment extension or what his idea of acceptable financing was. (Dont get me wrong, he will vote for a EUC extension, but Ive seen more specifics in letters inviting me to go fishing than I did in that one)

Mr. Nelson and his collegues are so hung up in their underware over pending Health Care legislation (which nobody seems to want) im surprised you even got a response on EUC. [they are planning massive Medicare cuts and Sen Nelson is trying to save his political neck with Florida Sr. Citizens]

Once this does get passed and the Prez signs it , I cant believe that the Feds and AWI will execute payment in less than a month (based on the last EUC extension)

I hope I am wrong here, if checks start flowing next week, feel free to ridicule.

Just to insert one line of politics here, remember the Dems run the White House and Congress, they control the levers of power, nobody is fillibustering unemployment legislation. I look to the Dems execute this, they have no execuses.

I will be watching the progress of this with you and will post any info I find.

Just rember what the 1930s humorist Will Rogers said about Congress:

•"Congress is so strange; a man gets up to speak and says nothing, nobody listens, and then everybody disagrees."

•"We all joke about Congress, but we can't improve on them. Have you noticed that no matter who we elect, he is just as bad as the one he replaces?"

•"When Congress makes a joke it's a law, and when they make a law, it's a joke

Hang in there and good luck .

Jeff: "For what it's worth, I received this positive email from Senator Nelson today.
_______________________________

Hi Jeff,

"for what it's worth" I received the exact same email today from the good Senator

"I think if you wake up every morning waiting for Congressional action you are just torturing yourself."

Well put sc4ram...I totally agree.

You will only drive yourself nuts by obsessing with the status of the extension every day.

Check this out...maybe it will shed some light for you, just press play

I listened to C-span till the end and the Senator from Ohio who was talking about healthcare brought up the Unemployent Extension issue and wanted it brought up tomorrow and voted on. Apparently Senator Reid feels he has enough votes to over ride a Repulbican Filabuster. That was how I viewed it. These Damn Republicans don't realize that between our unemployment issues and the healthcare issue they very well may go the way of the dinasaurs.

Thats great news if they indeed vote.

Just remember, the Dems have 60 members, they can intro any bill they want, cut off a debate/fillibuster and pass it with their 60 vote majority.

The Repubs are not a factor here.

sc4ram wrote:
The Repubs are not a factor here.

Whoa, fact check time here. I'm not going to get into a food fight here between political parties, but apparently some are not following this as closely as those of us over at Open Congress.

Following the passage of HR 3548 in the House Sen Jack Reed of RI introduced the duplicate bill S.1699 in the Senate the next day, when it was immediately referred to the Finance committee. At the same time they were dealing with the health care 500 amendments Baucus on Finance managed to deal with HR 3548/S.1699 by putting forth an amendment that first week that would allow 4 weeks for all states in addition to the 13weeks for the states over 8.5, since Senators from all over the country were objecting to their states under 8.5 getting zero.

For another week those same Senators (primarily Democrats, but a long list of Senators, Governors and others advocating for their constituents in their own states, almost half the states) tried to get a compromise about what would be in the bill.

What we saw last week on the 8th was a compromise bill, an "amendment as a substitute for HR 3548" that was introduced formally by Baucus, Reid, Reed, and Shaheen (VT) that would give 14 weeks to all plus an additional 6 weeks for states like FL, over 8.5%, totalling 20 weeks for Floridians. Reid tried to get that passed last week by "unanimous consent," a procedure that would allow the Senate to bypass a whole load of time for debate and procedures that is normally required by any bill, UNLESS any Senator objects.

Well, one Senator, a Republican from Arizona, Sen Kyl, refused to let that happen (first claimed he needed more time to read this 9-page bill, then later claimed he wants to introduce amendments, then later claimed he wants to use taxpayer excess stimulus money to pay for this instead of the built-in deficit-neutral extension of a tax that has been around for 30 years that was about to expire --costs employers $14 per employee per YEAR! (I'm sorry, but any business that can't pay $14 per year per employee, as they have been doing for the last 30 years, probably shouldn't be in business in the first place!)

Once that unanimous consent objection is raised, the Senate is forced to abide by its own rules of a kind of waiting game til they can try to get Kyl to withdraw his objection or else introduce the bill to the regular calendar, where it has to take its turn in legislation or go through a bunch of steps to get passed. Kyl would not compromise on that; that's why people from all over the country were calling his office constantly from the 9th to the present.

Meanwhile, we have Senator Coburn, Republican from Kentucky, (known by some as "Senator No" for his record of holding back legislation) actually filibustering the bill that was on the agenda just prior to this unemployment bill, talking ALL DAY about his granddaughter on the Senate floor (did you all miss that part?) --

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gBPaHA8wyvhZsKWPW8Uxp30QpfqgD9BB50T00

http://newsok.com/coburn-stalls-action-on-senate-legislation/article/3409140

The Dems blocked this filibuster, but the clock still has to run out on that block, which means that they can't finish with that bill until 6pm tonight (Thursday). Meanwhile, our unemployment bill, forced to be put on the regular agenda instead of being passed by unanimous consent, is waiting in the wings.

I listened to Sen Coburn's speeches Wednesday, and in spite of the reports about his feud with the Appropriations committee, I understand his concern with the deficit, though his primary reason to block this appropriations bill seemed to be wanting his provision to be included about transparency. The deficit is a major concern all around, and personally I share his concern about that and pork spending that seems like a bad habit the Senate can't break. But the Republican calls for using stimulus money (taxpayer money) for our unemployment bill are completely misguided, since the FUTA tax extension makes HR 3548 deficit neutral! How ironic!

So now we have a bill that we all want passed; it was supposed to be an "emergency bill." It's deficit-neutral. The CBO even did a provisional score (which Kyl must have seen) that pronounces it deficit MINUS by a few million! (I.e., it costs less than what would be collected.) The House passed it quickly, but it was unfair to the unemployed in states like New Hampshire or Connecticut, even Texas, for example, almost half the states.

The Senate lumbers along with its own procedural rules that normally guarantee due deliberation (that's why we have a Senate, as opposed to the generally shorter term House members), with first Dems slowing the process because of the off-the-floor fight over numbers of weeks for the lower rate states. Then we get a chance at immediate passage blocked first by a Republican Senator who claims he can't read 9 pages in 90 minutes, who will not even withdraw his objection after taking all Columbus Day weekend to read these 9 pages, saying the Republicans want to introduce amendments, forcing the Senate to put the bill into regular order after current bills already under consideration. And then we get a Republican Senator filibustering, yes literally filibustering, the current bill on the floor, preventing any action in the Senate on ANY bill for 30 hours.

Dems control most of the votes in Congress, but not the basic mechanisms of action, which allow Senators from the other party to block, stall, or otherwise hold up legislation, either the bill in question, or other bills that affect the order or even tit for tat agreements that the Senate is famous for. Many of those mechanisms are in place to prevent hasty action on legislation, a safety check that most of us would want under ordinary circumstances. But it is up to individual Senators to decide if they want to take advantage of their right to object. Kyl objected, then Coburn objected to the floor bill, slowing things down to a crawl.

As one poster on Open Congress stated, he was furious with the Dems for dragging this "emergency" bill out in a fight between the states, but he was more than disgusted with Republicans for what appeared to be frivolous objections to what we all know is a real emergency.

Whatever party you have allegiance to, to say the Republicans are not a factor here is just, sorry, not really looking at what's actually happening in Congress right now. Many unemployed are getting an advanced civics lesson that we'd rather not have to take.