[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 13]
[House]
[Page 18502]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Maryland (Mr. Hoyer) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, before we adjourn for the year, there are a 
number of important items that we must address. The most pressing is 
the expiration of unemployment benefits at the end of December.
  Should Congress fail to act, millions of Americans who rely on 
emergency unemployment compensation will begin to see their payments 
disappear starting in January. 2.1 million of our fellow Americans will 
have lost their benefits by the middle of February, and over 6 million 
by the end of 2012. However, we have the power to prevent that from 
happening by extending those benefits.
  These emergency benefits were put in place at the start of the 
recession in December of '07; and with so many Americans still out of 
work, now is certainly not the time to let them come to an end.

                              {time}  1010

  The number one challenge we must address in the Congress remains job 
creation. Americans out of work have been doing their part to find 
jobs. Congress must do its part as well. Some Republicans have unfairly 
and incorrectly blamed those who have been laid off for their continued 
difficulty in finding jobs. However, there are over four people looking 
for every one job that is available. At the same time, there are nearly 
7 million fewer jobs today than there were in 2007.
  Instead of blaming the victims, we ought to work together, Democrats 
and Republicans, to find solutions. Congress has never allowed 
emergency unemployment benefits to lapse with our jobless rate anywhere 
close to where it is today. If it did, over 17,000 people in my State 
of Maryland would see their lifeline cut off by February. In Ohio, 
Speaker Boehner's State, 80,000 people are at risk.
  Among African Americans, Latinos and other minorities, a 
disproportionate number have been affected by long-term unemployment 
and are especially vulnerable if these benefits were to end. Every 
State would see more Americans who are out of work slip into poverty. 
Local communities would be affected, too, with residual job losses. The 
Economic Policy Institute has estimated that allowing these benefits to 
expire would cost us another 500,000 jobs--a half a million.
  I sincerely hope that Republicans will work with us to prevent so 
many Americans from being left out in the cold as they continue to seek 
jobs but can't find them. It's long past the time that they start 
working with us to pass a real jobs plan to get Americans back to work 
and grow our economy.
  The President put a jobs bill on our desk in September. It is now 
December. We've yet to see that bill or any other jobs bill put on this 
House floor by the Republican leadership. Democrats have multiple jobs 
plans on the table--the President's American Jobs Act and the House 
Democrats' Make It in America plan. Both will help create jobs right 
away and invest in long-term economic competitiveness.
  If Republicans continue to be unwilling to work with us on a plan to 
create jobs, I hope they will at least work with us to pass a measure 
that will prevent further losses as a result of expiring unemployment 
benefits. I strongly urge my Republican friends to help us stop the 
looming and entirely preventable disaster of millions having no 
support. It is the responsibility we have to our constituents and to 
those looking to us for leadership during this challenging time.
  Let us not go home. Let us not celebrate Christmas or other holidays 
without ensuring the extension of unemployment benefits for those 
Americans who cannot find jobs, notwithstanding the fact they are 
looking for jobs. They're counting on us. Let's be sure that their 
reliance was well placed.

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