A million Americans face benefits cut-off

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Sunday, 29 December, 2002, 13:49 GMT - More than one million Americans face losing their unemployment benefits after a federal scheme expired [Amazingly, this BBC report is more objective than others I've read. Hillary Clinton has been bitching about this, yet--correct me if I'm wrong--the Democrats had a majority when they left for Christmas break.]

The House of Representatives in Washington failed to extend the programme before it went into recess last month.

The Senate has backed continuing the programme, which Senate Democrats said on Saturday should be the first order of business in January, but both houses of Congress must endorse the scheme before it can take effect.

President George W Bush has urged both houses to pass the measure and make it retroactive. [This piece of info is lost in other reports.]

Congress does not reconvene until 7 January, 2003.

Payments stopped

The federally-funded scheme, set up in March, 2002, provides 13 weeks of benefits to unemployed workers whose regular state benefits have run out.

Benefits for about one million unemployed people have already expired.

Up to 800,000 people will have their payments cut off on Saturday, while another 95,000 unemployed workers will exhaust their benefits each week thereafter.

-- Anonymous, December 29, 2002

Answers

White House spokeswoman Claire Buchan said Mr Bush was "disappointed" Congress had not extended the scheme and he urged both houses "to act on this as a first priority when they return".

Bush blamed

However, political opponents blamed Mr Bush and Republicans for the cut-off.

"Regrettably, the House Republican leadership turned their backs on these [unemployed workers] and refused to act, and the administration chose not to intervene before Congress adjourned," said Senate Democrat leader Tom Daschle.

"This inaction by Republicans was unconscionable then and it is even more so now," he said.

The US Labor Department said it was confident the payments would be extended and that Mr Bush had called for back payments to be made.

At least one state, Idaho, will continue paying benefits in the expectation the programme will be renewed, while other states will continue processing applications.

-- Anonymous, December 29, 2002


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