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You Can Use About 2 Million to Use Up Jobless Benefits
By LEIGH STROPE
The Associated Press
Thursday, January 29, 2004; 10:03 AM WASHINGTON - Nearly 2 million people
are expected to exhaust their state unemployment benefits in the first half of
the year without access to more government aid or a regular paycheck, according
to a study released Thursday.
The Center for Budget and Policy Priorities based its study on Labor Department
data of jobless workers who began receiving regular unemployment benefits in the
last half of 2003. It assumes the economy will improve slightly in the coming
months, making it modestly easier to find a job. "In no other January-June
period on record have so many unemployed workers exhausted their regular benefits
without qualifying for additional weeks of unemployment assistance," said the
study by the Washington-based advocacy group for poor and moderate-income people.
Congress has refused to approve another extension of federal unemployment
benefits for people who exhaust their state aid. The economy is improving,
and layoffs have eased. But jobs still are hard to come by. Although the nation's
unemployment rate fell to 5.7 percent in December, businesses added only 1,000
new jobs. Republicans who control Congress say a third extension of the
program providing 13 weeks of emergency benefits isn't necessary with unemployment
declining. But Democrats hope to force an about-face on the issue in an
election year. The economy has lost 2.3 million jobs since President Bush took
office in January 2001. According to the study, about 375,000 people will
use up their state unemployment benefits this month without access to extra aid
- the largest on record, even after adjusting for growth in the work force. Most
states provide about 26 weeks of benefits. Another extension of the emergency
benefits would cost the government under $1 billion a month from the unemployment
insurance trust fund, which contains about $20 billion, the center said.
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