Miller Statement on GOP Plan to Jeopardize Extended Unemployment Benefits

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), the senior Democrat on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, issued the following statement today after House Ways and Means Committee Republicans approved a bill to end this year’s federal guarantee for extended unemployment benefits. The legislation would threaten unemployment insurance benefits for 4.1 million out-of-work Americans, more than 650,000 in California alone:

“House Republicans’ proposal to jeopardize federal unemployment insurance benefits is yet another cruel attack on vulnerable Americans. After voting to end Medicare and gutting Head Start, Republicans’ next line of attack against working families seems to be to blame the economic downturn squarely on the jobless themselves.

“Extended unemployment insurance benefits are a lifeline for unemployed workers and their families. These benefits keep roofs over their heads and put food on their tables while they look for a new job. And these benefits go directly into the economy, supporting additional jobs. Until businesses – many that are once again making record profits – start hiring at a quicker pace, this proposal will do nothing but inflict greater pain on those who can least afford it.”

http://democrats.edworkforce.house.gov