Governor Corzine Urges Extension of Unemployment Benefits for Thousands of New Jerseyans

TRENTON - In a letter to Congress, Governor Jon S. Corzine today urged extension of  unemployment benefits for those who have or are about to exhaust their unemployment assistance.

"New Jersey is committed to helping our unemployed citizens get back on their feet again," Governor Corzine said. "We were the first state in the nation to create its own state economic recovery package and because of our progressive and innovative UI program, New Jersey also was the first state to qualify for its entire UI modernization incentive funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.  These state and federal initiatives will continue to help our residents survive the effects of the national recession until the economy further stabilizes."

Below is the text of the Governor's letter:

Dear Speaker Pelosi, Congressman Boehner, Majority Leader Reid, and Senator McConnell:

I am writing to urge you to pass legislation as soon as possible to help tens of thousands of unemployed New Jerseyans who have already or soon will run out of all unemployment benefits, as well as continuing the current extended benefits programs for thousands more who are expected to exhaust their benefits in the coming months.

In the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), the Obama Administration and the Congress provided crucial support to unemployed workers, including full federal funding for several tiers of extended unemployment insurance benefits, a $25 supplement added to all weekly unemployment insurance benefits, a subsidy for 65% of the cost of continuation health insurance during the first nine months that a worker is involuntarily unemployed, and a temporary suspension of the interest on advances to state unemployment trust funds that are overwhelmed with historically high claims loads. 

At the State level, my Administration created the first-in-the-nation state economic recovery package, which is creating thousands of new infrastructure jobs related to transportation, school construction, energy efficiency and renewable energy.  This package also provided assistance to families and individuals across New Jersey for hunger relief, mortgage stabilization, energy costs, and property tax relief for Seniors, as well as job-creation incentives to businesses.   We are making every effort to inform individuals who are losing their unemployment benefits about these programs and related services through local One-Stop Career Centers and county welfare agencies.

These federal and state initiatives have helped millions of workers survive unemployment by providing vital income support that has helped to stabilize the economy.  While the economy has begun to recover, however, the labor market is not expected to begin recording robust job growth in the near future, and workers who are among the long-term unemployed continue to face a daunting task in gaining reemployment.  Already, more than 45,000 New Jerseyans have run out of all extended benefits, and unless Congress acts, more than 120,000 workers in New Jersey will exhaust their federal extended benefits by the end of the year.

That is why I urge you to take action to continue for one more year all of the ARRA provisions related to unemployment insurance and continuation health insurance.  Just as important, I urge Congress to provide additional weeks of federally-funded emergency unemployment compensation benefits in all states for individuals who run out of the extended benefits already available, with a progressive increase in additional weeks of benefits for workers who live in states with higher levels of unemployment. 

In addition, Congress should adopt the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program's rules for all extended benefits program.  Under current law, cash-strapped State and local governments are required to pay the full cost of Extended Benefits (EB) for laid off public employees.  Using the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program rules would provide federal funding for benefits paid to public employees under the same terms that apply to all other employers. Also, the EB program's antiquated rules have placed extreme administrative burdens on state governments, and should be temporarily suspended during this crisis.

Thank you for your consideration of this request, which will help further stimulate the economy and support vulnerable families in these troubled times.  I look forward to continuing to work with you to improve our nation's economy.

                                                                        Sincerely,

                                                                        Jon S. Corzine

                                                                        Governor 

c:  NJ Congressional Delegation

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