Obama to Sign Tax Bill Temporarily Extending Unemployment Benefits, Payroll Tax Cuts

Posted on December 17, 2010 by Ilyse Schuman

On Friday, President Obama is expected to sign into law compromise legislation that would extend expiring tax cuts. The $858 billion tax deal will also extend emergency unemployment benefits an additional 13 months, and cut Social Security payroll taxes by 2 percent for one year on income up to $106,800. The House of Representatives approved the measure (H.R. 4853) by a 277-148 margin late Thursday night. An almost equal number of Democrats (139) and Republicans (138) voted in its favor. On Wednesday, the Senate overwhelmingly approved the bill by a vote of 81-19.

Photo credit: MBPHOTO, INC.

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Unemployment Benefits Bill Ready for Obama's Signature

Posted on July 22, 2010 by Ilyse Schuman

On Wednesday, the House of Representatives approved a bill that will extend unemployment insurance benefits through November, and make such benefits retroactive to June 2. The Senate similarly approved this bill on Tuesday by a 59-39 margin. The version of the American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act (H.R. 4213) (pdf) that cleared both chambers is a significantly scaled-back draft that did not contain a number of extensions to other tax benefit programs. The limited bill that will likely be signed into law today will do the following:

  • Extend the Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) program through November 2010, and apply its benefits retroactively to June 2. Depending on a state’s unemployment rate, the program provides up to 53 weeks of extended benefits.
  • Continue the Extended Benefits (EB) program through November 2010. This program, which expired in May, provides up to an additional 13 weeks of benefits in states with unemployment rates at or exceeding 6.5 %, and up to 20 weeks of benefits in states with unemployment rates at or above 8 %.
  • Eliminate the penalty for part-time employment in the EUC program. The bill would coordinate EUC benefits with regular benefits by providing states with a number of options to allow EUC claimants to remain eligible for the EUC program when they become newly entitled to state unemployment compensation, if switching to state benefits would reduce their weekly UI check by at least $100 or  25 %.

Photo credit:  MBPHOTO, INC.

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House Passes Bill Temporarily Extending COBRA, Unemployment Benefits

Posted on February 26, 2010 by Ilyse Schuman

U.S. House of Representatives sealOn Thursday evening, the House of Representatives approved by voice vote the Temporary Extension Act of 2010 (H.R. 4691), legislation that provides brief extensions of unemployment insurance benefits and premium health insurance subsidies under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), among other programs. This stopgap measure would extend the 65 percent premium COBRA subsidy through March 31, 2010, and unemployment assistance benefits through April 5, 2010. Both measures are set to expire on February 28.

It is unclear how the Senate will act upon the expiring benefit programs. The Senate has thus far been unable to pass a short-term extension by unanimous consent, and Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is expected to introduce legislation that would extend these measures even longer.

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Unemployment Benefits Extension Bill Stalls Yet Again

Posted on October 23, 2009 by Jay Sumner

It appears that hope for easy passage of an amended unemployment insurance benefits extension bill introduced earlier this month has faded. The Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2009 (H.R. 3548), which would extend UI benefits in all 50 states, has run into opposition from Senate Republicans who have either introduced or plan to introduce a number of amendments in an alleged attempt to stall the legislative process.

In a press release, Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) claims that “Republicans have held up the bill for nearly two weeks by offering amendments that have nothing to do with helping the unemployed.” Some have raised concern about how the bill would be funded. As it stands, the extended benefits would be fully paid for by extending the Federal Unemployment Tax Act surtax until June 30, 2011. This tax imposes an annual fee in the amount of $14 per worker on employers. One or more amendments are expected to replace this tax with funds from the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

A less expansive version of this bill cleared the House of Representatives in September, but came under fire by Senators whose states would not have qualified for additional benefits under that bill. The current bill, which was introduced as a substitute, would provide up to 14 weeks of additional UI benefits for all states, and up to 20 extra weeks in states with unemployment rates averaging 8.5% or higher during a three-month period. The bill also contains provisions updating the Unemployment Insurance Modernization provision in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to allow victims of sexual assault who have left their job to be eligible for benefits under the “compelling family reasons” clause. In addition, the amended bill specifies that railroad workers facing expiring unemployment benefits would be eligible for additional weeks.

As of Thursday, the Senate failed to agree on which, if any, amendments would be considered as part of the final bill. A cloture vote on whether to consider the measure as-is is scheduled for Tuesday, October 27. At this point, it is unclear whether Senate Democrats will have sufficient votes to overcome a filibuster if they chose to proceed with the measure in its current form. Assuming the bill advances, it would be surprising if any significant action is taken by the end of the month.
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