[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 1]
[House]
[Page 131]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    EXTENDING UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS

  (Mrs. DAVIS of California asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute.)
  Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, last year, as many have said, 
ended on a somber note. Over 1 million of our fellow Americans lost a 
vital economic lifeline, the temporary insurance that helps them get by 
while searching for a new job.
  Louise, a constituent of mine from San Diego, recently wrote me to 
explain what losing such benefits means to her. She is 60 years old, 
and she has been looking for work since she was laid off a year ago 
from a stable job that she had held just for about 15 years.
  And as she mentioned:

       It is very scary to think that effectively, on January 1, I 
     won't have any income. So what am I to do? I will have a roof 
     over my head for a short time, but I won't have the funds to 
     pay for utilities.

  And she went on to say:

       By cutting extended unemployment, all that will be 
     accomplished is more people being on welfare or living on the 
     streets homeless. And that, that helps us? How?

  Her story reminds us of our duty to lend a hand to those in need. Any 
of us could be in her shoes.
  Extending unemployment benefits is not only the right thing, but it 
is also good for our economy.

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