Casey, Residents Who’ve Seen Benefits Expire to Call on Congress to Extend Unemployment Benefits

Scranton, PA - With a crucial vote likely coming next week in the U.S. Senate, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), joined by residents who have seen their benefits expire, will called on Congress to extend unemployment benefits today. Through March 15^th, over 110,000 Pennsylvanians have seen their benefits expire. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has found that extending unemployment insurance will increase GDP while helping Americans find work. The Economic Policy Institute (EPI) recently released a report detailing the economic impact of failing to continue UI through 2014.  The EPI analysis found that 310,000 jobs and $37.8 billion of economic activity would be lost by the expiration of UI.

“Extending unemployment insurance will help those looking for work and produce growth in the economy,” Senator Casey said. “The pace of job growth has increased in the last few months but there are still far too many Pennsylvanians looking for work. Extending unemployment insurance will help those actively seeking work and their families, and I’m urging both Houses of Congress to quickly take up and pass this legislation.”

Senator Casey has been calling on Congress to pass an extension of unemployment insurance since December in order to provide an essential lifeline to middle class families who rely on the program to stay afloat as they actively seek work. Unemployment insurance is not just a lifeline for families struggling with the loss of a job and trying to make ends meet - it also provides a boost to the economy because the money is immediately spent in communities around the country.

Recent analyses specifically focusing on an extension of benefits in 2014 have also found a large economic boost. According to NELP, in Pennsylvania, extending benefits will provide a boost to consumption and economic activity that will save an estimated 15,000 jobs.

In Pennsylvania, almost 75,000 people immediately stopped receiving unemployment benefits when emergency unemployment compensation expired on December 28, 2013. As of March 31st, over 110,000 Pennsylvanians have lost their benefits, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.  Through May – the period covered by current legislation in the Senate – the Office of Unemployment Insurance estimated that 158,400 Pennsylvanians and 2,795,300 Americans will have lost their emergency unemployment compensation and will benefit from this bill.

Information from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry on county-specific data is below for both those who rely on unemployment benefits and those who have exhausted their benefits since December 2013.

Pennsylvania EUC Recipients by County

as of December 28, 2013

Pennsylvania EUC Exhaustees by County

December 28, 2013 through March 15, 2014