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“EXTENDING UNEMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE FOR VICTIMS OF SEPTEMBER 11, 2001 TERRORIST ATTACKS” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Labor was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H960-H965 on March 19, 2002.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
EXTENDING UNEMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE FOR VICTIMS OF SEPTEMBER 11, 2001
TERRORIST ATTACKS
Mr. COOKSEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3986) to extend the period of availability of unemployment assistance under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act in the case of victims of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 3986
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. EXTENSION OF UNEMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE.
Notwithstanding section 410(a) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5177(a)), in the case of any individual eligible to receive unemployment assistance under section 410(a) of that Act as a result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the President shall make such assistance available for 39 weeks after the major disaster is declared.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Cooksey) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Cooksey).
Mr. COOKSEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3986 amends the Robert T. Stafford Emergency Assistance and Disaster Relief Act to extend the period of eligibility for disaster unemployment assistance for the Presidential disaster declared as a result of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
H.R. 3986 extends the provision of disaster unemployment assistance from 26 weeks to 39 weeks for those workers who lost their jobs at the World Trade Center in New York and at the Pentagon in the Washington metropolitan area as a direct result of the September 11 attacks.
Under the Stafford act, the disaster unemployment assistance program is for persons who become unemployed as a direct result of a disaster and who are not eligible for State insurance or any other unemployment benefits.
The New York State Department of Labor administers the Disaster Unemployment Assistance Program on behalf of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Disaster unemployment assistance is only payable during the disaster assistance period, and this legislation will extend that period until June 15, 2002.
The bill does not amend section 410 of the Stafford act to permanently extend disaster unemployment assistance payments; it merely creates an extension only for the disaster declaration stemming from the September 11 attacks.
This bill provides much needed assistance to displaced individuals for a sufficient period of time. I commend the bipartisan effort by the committee leadership, and especially the work of the New York delegation, for their hard work in bringing this bill to the floor. I support the bill.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
{time} 1600
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young), the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar), the gentleman from Ohio
(Mr. LaTourette), and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Costello) for shuttling this bill through committee and to the floor. I also want to thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Quinn) for working with me to bring this bill to the floor.
As most Members know, this legislation will extend by 13 weeks disaster unemployment assistance, or DUA. DUA is extended only to those people who lost their jobs as a direct result of the September 11 terrorist attack on our country, but who do not qualify for normal unemployment insurance.
Currently, the number of people receiving DUA stands at 2,500. That is what we are talking about in this bill, 2,500 people, although as individuals find work, hopefully this number will decline. These people overwhelmingly hold blue collar jobs and are the lowest paid in our economy. They include hotel workers, janitors and window washers. They are the most vulnerable members in our society and most in need of our help. Funding for this program is already in place by way of last year's supplemental appropriations act for New York disaster relief.
This legislation is urgent as DUA benefits have already terminated. Without this extension, thousands of victims of the attack on our country will be left without any help in an economy that in New York has been devastated not only by the national economic melee, but also by the disaster of September 11. While we cannot make people whole from the effects of the devastating attacks of September 11, we must do all we can to ease the transition of these people from tragedy back to normal life.
The Senate already passed this legislation last December. S. 1622, authored by Senator Clinton of New York, included a 26-week extension. In fact, the Committee on Transportation originally passed a bill, S. 1622, the Senate bill, by voice vote afterwards substituted for the bill that I introduced in the House. Unfortunately, in order to get this bill to the floor we had to make this bill only a 13-week extension.
As I said earlier, DUA benefits run out in New York on March 17, which is to say 2 days ago, and in Virginia on March 21, which is 2 days from now. It is imperative that these people know as soon as possible that their benefits will be extended or renewed.
I must point out that unlike regular unemployment, an individual is not entitled to 26 weeks which may be extended to 13 weeks. The program expires 26 weeks after the disaster is declared, and we are extending that by 13 weeks. An individual who started, perhaps because of bureaucracy, getting his assistance in November does not get anywhere near 26 weeks; it is cut back. So it differs between regular unemployment insurance there.
I urge the House and Senate to pass this legislation as soon as possible and send it to the President for his signature.
Again, I want to thank the chairman and the rest of the House for their support as we continue to recover from the devastation of September 11, both at home and abroad. I would also like to point out that the necessity for this legislation, for this emergency assistance to people, window washers, janitors, who worked at the World Trade Center and were deprived of their jobs by direct enemy action, but yet cannot get regular unemployment insurance, also shows us the necessity of restoring our unemployment system to what it was. Only about one-
third of people who are laid off now get unemployment insurance because the restrictions that many States have imposed are so high. It used to be 60 percent and now it is down to one-third.
So this bill shows the necessity for restoring the strength of our once-vibrant unemployment insurance system so that workers like this would be covered without the necessity of special legislation on their behalf.
I thank the chairman and the rest of the House for their support.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. COOKSEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Quinn).
Mr. QUINN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 3986 this afternoon and urge my colleagues to vote in favor of bill later this afternoon.
As we stated, H.R. 3986 extends the period of availability of disaster unemployment assistance for individuals who lost their jobs as a direct result of the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, administers this part of the disaster unemployment assistance program pursuant to Section 410(a) of the Stafford Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to provide unemployment assistance to persons who become unemployed as a result of major disasters.
Our distinction here, Mr. Speaker, is that we are talking about disaster unemployment assistance as opposed to straight unemployment assistance.
This program currently provides disaster unemployment assistance to qualified individuals for a period not to exceed 26 weeks. Mr. Speaker, we are just about there right now at the 26-week period.
Individuals from Northern Virginia and New York City are eligible for disaster unemployment assistance only if they are not receiving other types of unemployment assistance. We do not want to duplicate. This legislation extends that period of eligibility from 26 weeks to 39 weeks. It will help roughly 2,500 Americans at a minimal cost, roughly about $2 million.
This bill enjoys broad bipartisan support. As the gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler) pointed out, it sailed through the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, as well as a voice vote in the Senate.
In only a few hours before its introduction, Mr. Speaker, I was able to secure the support of over 20 colleagues from New York State alone. That amount of support in such a short period of time I think is indicative of the importance and timeliness of this legislation.
I want to thank any fellow New Yorkers for their hard work and dedication on this issue, in particular, a special thanks to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler) for his relentless pursuit of the passage of this bill. Mr. Speaker, his constituents are the ones that are most affected by this bill, and he has worked tirelessly on their behalf, as well as all New Yorkers. I am hopeful that the Senate can take up the measure after it passes the House today and send it to the President for his signature as soon as possible.
Swift action will allow these hard-working Americans to continue to receive the benefits they so desperately need. As is always the case, it is time, Mr. Speaker, to thank the people who worked on the bill: our majority leader who allowed us to bring it under suspension today; the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Cooksey), the gentleman from Alaska
(Mr. Young), and I have mentioned the gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler) already.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Texas (Mr. Sandlin).
Mr. SANDLIN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler) for yielding me time.
Mr. Speaker, after September 11 hundreds of thousands of Americans lost their jobs and were forced to seek unemployment benefits. Earlier this month we voted to extend unemployment benefits for an additional 13 weeks. Unfortunately, the extension we approved on March 7 does not apply to those who receive unemployment benefits through the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Today we are considering legislation that would address that oversight.
Unemployment benefits are crucial to those who have lost their jobs in order to pay their bills and preserve their dignity. In the same way Social Security provides our Nation's 32 million seniors with crucial monthly income, it helps pay for their costly prescription drugs and otherwise keeps them out of poverty.
Unfortunately, the Republican budget for 2003 taps into the Social Security trust fund every year for the next 10 years, over $1.8 trillion through 2012. That is simply unacceptable in this country.
The legislation we are considering today provides funding for unemployment benefits for those directly affected by September 11. The budget we will consider tomorrow also contains funding for important initiatives that were begun as a result of September 11. Our military must continue to pursue terrorists and prevent attacks. However, we must also prevent a raid on the Social Security trust fund and reject the Republican plan to raid the fund once again.
Even as we continue to support the war on terrorism and those who lost their jobs as a result of the attacks, we must also continue to support our Nation's working families and seniors by protecting the Social Security surplus. We need to protect seniors and working families who have worked hard and played by the rules.
Preserve Social Security, do not raid it. Help our families that were directly affected by September 11. Do not make them worry about the future.
Mr. COOKSEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Kelly).
Mrs. KELLY. Mr. Speaker, the unprecedented suffering our country endured on September 11 has been met with unprecedented compassion. The American people have shown their true colors in the wake of the attacks by selflessly giving their time and money to the victims of the attacks. People from all over come to New York now. They come to visit, hold hands and it helps us. This helps us to recover, and we from New York thank you for coming. Please come in great numbers and spend money. It will help us a lot.
Congress is continuing to show its strong commitment to help those most affected by September 11. This bill would extend unemployment benefits to those individuals who lost their jobs as a direct result to the attacks to 39 weeks after a major disaster has been declared. It is common-sense legislation. It says that Congress will protect American families and see them through tough economic times brought on by these attacks until they can get back on their feet.
I would like to thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Quinn), my fellow New York Republican for his work on this issue; and I thank the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Cooksey) for allowing me the time.
It is important legislation. I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 3986.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Maloney).
Mrs. MALONEY of New York. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that we are finally voting on legislation that would extend disaster unemployment benefits to workers who lost their jobs because of September 11.
I would like to thank particularly my colleagues, the gentlemen from New York (Mr. Quinn and Mr. Nadler) for their hard work. I especially want to note the efforts of the gentleman from New York (Mr. Quinn) who again shows how the State of New York is pulling together in a bipartisan way to help New York City after the terrorist attacks.
I would also like to thank Senator Clinton for her hard work in assisting those workers left out of standard unemployment assistance. Too many working families are still suffering because of the terrorist attacks.
While I am pleased that we are finally extending relief to New Yorkers who would otherwise not receive unemployment and who lost their jobs as a result of the disaster, it is unfortunate that this legislation has come in at the very last minute. Many New Yorkers and workers would have lost their unemployment benefits in the next weeks if we had not extended these benefits and if we had not ended these political games and brought this legislation to the floor. I only hope that the bill reaches the President's desk in time so that there is not a lapse in benefits.
However, our work is not done. Now that we have extended unemployment benefits for the workers laid off as a part of the recession nationwide and unemployment benefits for those directly affected by September 11 who would not otherwise have received benefits, we must now turn our efforts to ensure that all laid-off workers, both in New York and across the country, who are now going without health care, get the coverage that they desperately need.
Health care is one of our basic necessities. It is vital that we do not forget that there are workers who are facing a multiple of dilemmas. Not only are they unemployed, but they must also figure out how to afford necessary health care for their children. Seven-point-
nine million Americans currently are unemployed. Because most workers depend upon employer-provided health coverage, millions of people are likely without health care.
We must work to make sure that we get this assistance to them now.
Mr. COOKSEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Walsh).
Mr. WALSH. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Cooksey) for his leadership on this issue and for bringing it promptly to the floor.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 3986, a bill to extend the period of availability of disaster unemployment assistance for those most affected by the terrorist attacks of September 11 and their families. The extension would take it out a full 39 weeks.
On September 11 the Nation endured a domestic assault upon American values and our democratic way of life beyond anything anyone could have previously imagined. Thousands of innocent people lost their lives, thousands lost their homes, their businesses and their jobs. Thousands more lost their families' livelihood. The attack caused the loss of 110,000 jobs in New York alone; another 270,000 are at risk.
Twenty percent of the downtown New York office space has been damaged or destroyed. In Northern Virginia the Pentagon attack has greatly impacted local businesses, especially those at or around Reagan National Airport.
The impacts of September 11 will extend further and longer than those of any other major disaster in our history. As such, our Nation and our government must respond to the overwhelming needs of the September 11 victims and their families. This bill ensures that our government keeps its responsibility to those Americans by extending unemployment benefits and ensuring economic solvency for the affected families.
In the case of the World Trade Center attacks, this insurance will be eligible for many of the small business owners, small restaurant operators, janitors and other blue collar workers who no longer have jobs, or who are unable to reach their jobs in the case where the building was destroyed, or have become the sole breadwinner for the household because the head of the household died or cannot work because of a disaster-related injury.
This bill is important to the well-being of those most impacted by the September 11 terrorist attacks, and I are urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.
I would like to especially thank the majority leader, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Armey) for the expeditious scheduling of this important legislation; and I would also like to thank the gentleman from New York
(Mr. Quinn) for his consistent and strong leadership on behalf of our State, New York, and for all working men and women in America.
I urge all my colleagues to support this important bill. It is timely, the right thing and the necessary thing to do.
I thank the gentleman for yielding me time.
{time} 1615
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Washington (Mr. McDermott).
Mr. McDERMOTT. Mr. Speaker, it is unfortunate we have to come out here and put Bandaids one after another on this unemployment benefit. Where the other body has passed 26 weeks, we ought to do 26 weeks; but I guess we will get a chance to do another bill.
What is really missing here, though, is the health care benefits if someone is drawing unemployment. The average in this country is somewhere around two and a quarter a week. I am sure in New York it is a little higher than that. Let us say it is $300 a week. So they get
$1,200 a month. Now, if they had health care benefits before, they do not have enough out of $1,200 to go out and pay the premiums for health insurance. So they have the double hit of no money to live on and no health care if something happens to them.
Most of the working Americans in the situation in New York that they got into were covered with insurance, and they have been able to build up little bit of equity and little bit of future for themselves. All it takes is one illness, one injury and they are wiped out; and there is a bill here, it is Discharge Petition Number 6, that is for House Resolution 3341, which gives 75 percent of COBRA benefits, plus it gives additional money to States for their Medicaid programs so that they can cover the other 25 percent.
We could cover everybody in health care, but 6 months after the incident on 9-11 we still have not done anything on health care. Now, if we care about those people, it is nice to talk about unemployment benefits, and I am for this bill; but where is the plan to help them get covered with their health care? Are we counting on Medicare in New York to take care of it? I will bet that the New York legislature is struggling with that.
The next issue ought to be House Resolution 3341, which is a discharge petition. We have got 177 signatures. So anybody who really wants to help New Yorkers, go sign 6.
Mr. COOKSEY. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Texas (Mr. Rodriguez).
Mr. RODRIGUEZ. Mr. Speaker, many workers lost their jobs as a result of the September 11 attacks on America. Several of those workers are still jobless and continue to struggle financially.
H.R. 3986 provides a much-needed 13-week extension of those benefits for those workers who lost their jobs as a result of the terrorist attacks and are ineligible for traditional unemployment assistance. These workers represent part of the millions unemployed in America.
Many of these laid-off workers lost more than just steady paychecks. They also lost critical benefits and crucial benefits. Many have lost their family health coverage, joining the ranks of the uninsured.
Before we give more tax cuts to large corporations, we should protect workers and their families by extending the COBRA benefits and providing some reimbursement for premium payments.
A few months ago, even the Bush administration had proposed that an income stimulus package should include some type of subsidy to help unemployed workers to be able to afford to purchase COBRA coverage. This a step in the right direction. However, for many of the workers eligible for COBRA coverage when they are laid off, the high cost of coverage acts as a powerful barrier, making it difficult to purchase even with Federal and State subsidies, and a tax credit will not serve as a panacea for assisting workers with COBRA coverage.
Therefore, we should also consider other options for the majority of workers who do not have access to COBRA coverage because their incomes are too low. The average cost of group insurance for family coverage is now approximately $7,000 a year. This is exceptionally high premiums for unemployed workers to afford.
One temporary option is for States to provide coverage through their Medicaid programs to allow low-income workers to be able to afford access to health care coverage. Democrats have proposed helping States meet the increase in Medicaid costs by temporarily increasing the Federal matching rate and protecting State Medicaid programs from further budget cuts.
There must be some relief for low-income workers who lose their jobs and their health insurance. We should not relegate uninsured workers and their families to the low costs or no cost health care safety nets provided by the local communities to provide that service.
Safety net providers such as public hospitals and community health centers are already struggling to meet the needs of their indigent and the uninsured population despite the growing deficits faced by municipal and State governments.
By extending similar benefits to workers affected by the September 11 attacks, the House has again made some progress in meeting the needs of the unemployed workers. It is now time for us to act quickly and provide health care coverage to the unemployed workers and their families.
Mr. COOKSEY. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, how much time do I have remaining?
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Simpson). The gentleman from New York
(Mr. Nadler) has 7\1/2\ minutes remaining, and the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Cooksey) has 11\1/2\ minutes remaining.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. George Miller).
(Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)
Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bill which directs the Federal Government to extend unemployment benefits to workers in New York and Virginia who would otherwise fail to qualify for unemployment benefits under State law.
It is a fine idea, and it is a good bill, as far as it goes; but it does not go nearly far enough to address the real economic pain of millions of American families in other States who are being unfairly denied unemployment benefits. These workers in many of these instances lost their jobs just as directly by the attack on 9-11 as the people in New York or Virginia. The people in San Francisco and Las Vegas and New Orleans, or Orlando, L.A., Dallas or Miami, they lost their jobs almost immediately, matter of hours, matter of days in the hotel and restaurants, resorts, convention centers, and rental car agencies; but most of these people are not eligible for unemployment. So even though they lost their jobs, through no fault of their own, even though they lost their jobs as a result of the terrorist activity, they are not getting unemployment.
Historically, unemployment benefits have covered more than half of all unemployed workers. Coverage rates during past recessions have approached 70 percent, but that is not the case in the current situation.
Over the last decade, the changes in State laws, and many of those States that I read, significantly reduced the percentage of workers who receive unemployment benefits. Only 43 percent of the unemployed workers in 2001 and only 40 percent of the unemployed women workers received unemployment benefits. In 15 States, less than 35 percent of unemployed workers received unemployment benefits. In 10 States, less than 30 percent of unemployed workers received unemployment benefits.
Why does the leadership continue to refuse to bring this kind of legislation to the floor to make sure that all of these workers who suffered as a result of 9-11, all of the workers who lost their jobs directly because of that activity, would get the unemployment benefits, if they are necessary to hold their families together while they are waiting for the economy to recover, while they are waiting for their jobs to return in many of the areas of our country, especially those areas impacted by tourists and convention business? We have employees that are working one shift a week trying to hold on to their jobs for when that recovery comes because they are not eligible for unemployment benefits.
Mr. Speaker, this legislation is a fine piece of legislation for those people in New York, New Jersey, and in the Virginia area; but it does not address the needs of hundreds of thousands of America workers who were devastated every bit as much as those workers on 9-11.
Today, we find that almost 98 percent of all workers in America pay into unemployment insurance, but less than 40 percent of them are covered. It is just an unacceptable fact that these people will be denied the benefit of the money they pay into. The Federal Government ought to step in and have a uniform unemployment system for all Americans.
Mr. COOKSEY. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, how much time do I have remaining?
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler) has 5 minutes remaining. The gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Cooksey) has 11\1/2\ minutes remaining.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters).
Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3986, which extends disaster unemployment assistance; and I commend my colleagues from New York for the hard work that they are putting in to try and make sure that people who have been victims of 9-11 are at least afforded some kind of relief.
The disaster of September 11 demands that we focus on the needs of the many, many victims of that attack. However, life is going to be tougher not only for the victims of 9-11 but for most Americans because, as I review what we are doing right here in the Congress of the United States, I am disappointed with the budget resolution that the Republicans have voted out of committee.
This budget resolution is a $2.1 trillion resolution that claims to be able to fund an extended and expanded war and to also fund the domestic needs, the unemployment needs, the health needs, and the education needs of this country despite the fact that we have passed out a $1.7 trillion tax cut for the 2002 budget that benefits the wealthiest corporations and individuals in the country, and in addition to that, another $40 billion in tax cuts that was recently passed in the so-called economic stimulus legislation.
Because of the policies of this administration, we have reduced our surplus by $4 trillion, and we are now faced with dipping into Social Security, $1.8 trillion over the next 10 years. Despite voting five times for the Social Security lock box, today we are breaking that promise and raiding Social Security.
It is indeed important that we address the needs of those who lost their jobs. However, what about the future? What about the retirement of Americans who expect Social Security benefits to be there for them when they retire?
I want my colleagues to know that the Republicans are breaking the promise of protecting Social Security. I mentioned that we have voted five times for the Social Security lock box. We cannot escape the fact that, yes, we can do some Bandaid and temporary protections. For those in New York and others where we extend unemployment benefits, we come up with some additional support for disaster unemployment assistance, but the fact of the matter is this: we are doing nothing to protect the future for these workers.
We are doing nothing to protect Social Security. Social Security is now at risk. It is at risk because this administration has done away and is doing away with the budget surplus that had been built up under the past administration; and because of that, whatever we do today is very temporary and these very same workers will be faced with a bleak future because we are dipping into Social Security.
Americans must be concerned about the fact that now our Social Security benefits for the future are at stake.
Mr. COOKSEY. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the remaining time.
I am glad here we are finally today, two days after the benefits ran out in New York, two days before they run out in Virginia. Unfortunately, this bill is not as the bill Senator Clinton originally passed in the Senate, as the bill that almost passed here by unanimous consent last December but arrived a few minutes too late from the Senate, and as the bill that I sponsored that was reported out of the committee unanimously about 3 weeks ago did, all of those bills said a 26-week extension.
Unfortunately, this bill only says 13-week extension. Unfortunately, this also means that the Senate is going to have to take time presumably next week or later this week to change its bill to match our 13 weeks before it goes to the President, and there will be at least a week interruption in benefits because we delayed in doing our job in getting this bill to the floor.
As I said before, we are not talking here about 39 weeks of benefits for individuals, but of 39 weeks of eligibility for the program from the date the disaster was declared. Most people did not start getting DUA right away. It took the bureaucracy some time. They started getting it in November or December, which means they are getting it for less than 26 weeks and with this bill for less than 39 weeks.
We will probably have to, in light of how difficult it is for some people who were thrown out of work specifically by the attack on our country, we will probably have to be back here extending it for another 13 weeks later.
I am appreciative of the work especially of the gentleman from New York (Mr. Quinn) and the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Hostettler) and of others and of the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young) and the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar), who helped get this bill to the floor; and I am hopeful that we will pass this bill today so that the interruption in benefits for the people in New York and in Virginia who were victimized by the attack directly will be as short as possible, and I extend my appreciation to all of them. And I urge approval of this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. OBERSTAR. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 3986, a bill to extend the period of availability of disaster unemployment assistance under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act in the case of victims of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The bill extends the unemployment assistance period from 26 weeks to 39 weeks.
The Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) program provides unemployment benefits to individuals who have become unemployed because of a Presidentially declared disaster. The Department of Labor has been delegated the authority to administer the program for which the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is responsible under Section 410 of the Disaster Assistance Act.
It is important to note that DUA will not be paid to someone who receives regular unemployment compensation or private income protection insurance compensation unless that person's other program eligibility expires and weeks of unemployment continue in the disaster assistance period. DUA will then be paid to those individuals at the same weekly benefit rate that they were receiving under the other compensation program. These requirements ensure that there is no duplication of benefits.
Extending the DUA program is particularly important because it covers the self-employed, low-wage earners, and those who fall between the cracks of our regular unemployment insurance programs. Since the program is available only in the wake of such terrible disasters as we experienced on September 11, the help that it provides is especially vital in helping families get back on their feet.
The Stafford Act originally provided for up to 52 weeks of disaster unemployment assistance, but during the Reagan Administration, the FEMA programs were subject to many budgets cuts and disaster unemployment assistance was reduced to 26 weeks. Many Members of Congress opposed these cuts at the time.
Last December, after months of work by Senator Clinton and Senator Schumer, the other body passed a bill, S. 1622, to extend the disaster unemployment assistance period from 26 weeks to 52 weeks. The Gentleman from New York, Mr. Nadler, had already introduced a companion House bill and he made every effort to have the House consider S. 1622 on the final day of the First Session of the 107th Congress. Regrettably, the House Leadership did not clear the bill for consideration before we adjourned.
The Gentleman from New York has continued to actively work the issue almost everyday since the Other Body passed the bill. He shepherded the Senate bill through our Committee, and with the strong support of Chairman Young, Subcommittee Chairman LaTourette, and Subcommittee Democratic Ranking Member Costello, we reported that bill unanimously, in an effort to speed the bill to the President's desk and avoid causing the disaster victims to suffer a lapse in benefits.
Although I wish we were simply sending the Senate-passed bill, S. 1622, to the President, it is imperative that we move this new bill, H.R. 3986, forward today, even though it only extends the benefits by 13 weeks. Unfortunately, time is of the essence now. It has been three months since the Other Body acted and the benefits for disaster unemployment insurance are now running out. The disaster unemployment insurance benefits for victims of the World Trade Center attack ended last Sunday, March 17. Similarly, the benefits for victims of the Pentagon will end on March 21.
There are so many tragic stories that could be told to help illustrate why this extension of disaster unemployment assistance is so critical at this time. For example, Mr. John Ortiz worked at the Marriott Hotel at the World Trade Center. He is not eligible for regular unemployment assistance and he has been receiving disaster unemployment assistance since mid-October. He has also been helped by two charities, Safe Horizon and the Red Cross, with the money covering needed expenses such as rent. He has looked for other work within the hotel industry, but has not been able to find a new job. The hotel industry has been so dramatically affected by the events of September 11, that there are very few available jobs, if any at all. Mr. Ortiz feels lucky that he does not have children to support, but says there are many, many families who do have children and are in desperate need of help. He is but one of the approximately 2,500 people who will benefit from this legislation. All of these people are trying their best to help themselves by searching each day to find a job, develop new skills, find assistance from charitable programs, pay their rent, and simply survive.
I commend the gentleman from New York, Mr. Quinn, for recrafting this legislation to ensure its House passage. I also thank Mr. Nadler for his efforts--he is a champion for all of the victims of September 11th, and I commend him for his stalwart dedication. I am hopeful that the Other Body will be able to quickly consider this legislation and clear it for the President's consideration.
Mr. Speaker, these victims of the September 11th terrorist attacks have struggled enough; as Americans, we must help them in their time of need.
I urge all Members to support H.R. 3986.
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 3986, a bill to extend unemployment assistance administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency for qualifying individuals who lost their jobs as a direct result of the September 11th terrorist attacks.
While the heroic clean-up and recovery efforts continue unabated, the unprecedented devastation caused by the attacks is still starkly evident today in lower Manhattan and at the Pentagon. The attacks destroyed twenty percent of downtown New York City's office space and led directly to the loss of over 100,000 jobs.
In Virginia, the three week shut down of Reagan National Airport led to the loss of nearly 20,000 jobs. Under current Federal law, individuals who lost their jobs as a direct result of terrorism are able to receive 26 weeks of unemployment assistance through FEMA. However, many of these individuals are still struggling to find work while facing the prospect of the termination of this assistance.
Accordingly, this important and timely legislation will extend the assistance for an additional 13 weeks. As we continue our collective efforts to rebuild our Nation's economy, let us also ensure that those men and women who were directly affected by the attacks are not forgotten. As a co-sponsor of this legislation and as a proud New Yorker, I urge my colleagues to support this measure.
Mr. COSTELLO. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that this much-needed bill has been scheduled for consideration in an effort to pass it before the benefits lapse. I would like to thank Chairman Don Young, Ranking Democratic Member Oberstar and the Subcommittee Chairman Steven LaTourette for speeding this bill through our Committee. I would also like to commend Mr. Nadler for his diligence on this issue and his longstanding commitment to the victims of the tragedy on September 11th and in particular to the people of New York.
Mr. Speaker, although I support this legislation, I do wish that we were able to pass the original bill that passed the other body in December and through the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in February. It was important to pass the legislation before the benefits lapse and I am hopeful that this bill will be enacted soon.
I support H.R. 3986, which extends unemployment assistance under the Stafford Act. This bill extends the period that victims of the terrorist attacks of September 11th would be eligible for unemployment benefits to 39 weeks. Currently, the Disaster Unemployment Assistance
(DUA) benefit period begins with the week following the disaster incident or date thereafter that individual became unemployed and can extend up to 26 weeks after the date of declaration or until the individual becomes re-employed. The Department of Labor has been delegated the authority to administer the program, for which FEMA is responsible. In fact, the Stafford Act originally provided for 52 weeks of benefits--this legislation would simply restore unemployment benefits to that level.
The expansion of these benefits would help the more than 2,200 workers who lost their jobs as a direct result of the attacks on September 11th but don't qualify for regular unemployment assistance. Many of these individuals are in low wage jobs and are among the neediest of assistance, especially given our current economy. They need this extension to help them move forward again after experiencing the worst terrorist event in our nation's history.
Mr. Speaker, this is good legislation, and urge my colleagues to join me in supporting it.
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Mr. COOKSEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Simpson). The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Cooksey) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 3986.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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