[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 10]
[House]
[Page 13719]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    EXTENDING UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS

  (Mr. COSTA asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. COSTA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of extending 
unemployment benefits to the hardworking San Joaquin Valley families of 
California who continue to search for work during these tough economic 
times. The current lapse in benefits is unprecedented. Since 1959, the 
government has never allowed these benefits to expire when the national 
unemployment rate is above 7.2 percent.
  Californians are concerned with providing for their families and 
putting food on the table, not who scores the most political points in 
Washington.
  Extending unemployment benefits isn't just critical to our Central 
Valley's workers and communities where unemployment hovers around 20 
percent in some of the counties but also to our economy. Every dollar 
in unemployment benefits creates at least $1.63 in economic activity. 
That puts money in neighborhood businesses.
  Now is the time to focus on middle class families and our economy, 
not the next election. It's time to pass this measure and to send it to 
the President for his signature.

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