Congress Will Decide How Much The Unemployed Suffer
Lawmakers continue to negotiate over what federal unemployment policy will look like, and what they decide will determine the level of financial suffering for millions of Americans this winter.
The simplest question is whether to extend the current federal benefit programs for the long-term jobless and gig workers, who aren’t usually covered by state unemployment systems. If those programs are allowed to expire at the end of December, nearly 12 million beneficiaries will lose that income.
The second question is whether to give the unemployed extra money. In March, Congress added $600 per week for both state and federal benefits recipients. But that lapsed at the end of July, and politicians are deciding what, if any, extra money to provide going forward.
A bipartisan compromise proposal that’s gained momentum in Congress this week would preserve the federal benefits for the long-term jobless and gig workers for four more months while reviving the former supplement, though at $300 instead of $600. These benefits are part of a broader package that includes small business aid, money for state governments and a clampdown on coronavirus lawsuits.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) suggested Friday that the package could be tacked onto a broader funding bill that Congress has to pass by Dec. 11 to prevent a partial government shutdown.
The senators and representatives who worked on the benefits deal over Thanksgiving have not introduced it as legislation or even summarized it in any detail. They simply announced Tuesday that they had agreed on overall numbers for categories of relief, with the unemployment provisions coming in at $180 billion.
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said that figure accounts for 18 weeks of the federal unemployment programs plus the extra $300. “That includes gig workers and people that basically we covered under the first CARES Act,” Manchin said.
The Congressional Budget Office has not scored the proposal, but Marc...