(SACRAMENTO) – A resolution authored by Assemblymember Sandré R. Swanson (D-Oakland) to urge Congress to grant a federal extension of unemployment insurance benefits passed the Assembly today by a 45-29 vote.  The measure, Assembly Joint Resolution (AJR) 56 is sponsored by the California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO.

AJR 56 urges Congress to extend federal unemployment benefits by at least 13 weeks for all states, and an additional 13 weeks for high unemployment states, including California.

" The bottom line is that Californians are struggling and need this Federal extension of unemployment benefits,” stated Assemblymember Swanson.   “Just a few weeks ago, the State announced that our unemployment rate had jumped one-half percent to 6.2 percent.  More troubling is that Californians are remaining unemployed for longer periods of time, which is a very strong indicator of long-term economic trouble.  "

Mounting job losses and rising unemployment mean that many more families of jobless workers are now also dependent on the maximum 26 weeks of State unemployment benefits, which average only $298 a week.  Since the beginning of the year, the number of Californians collecting unemployment has averaged 486,000 a month, almost 100,000 more compared to the same period last year. 

Equally alarming is the fact that 218,000 California workers exhausted their state unemployment benefits in the past six months, an increase of 22,500 compared to the same period last year.  With nearly half of all workers (45 percent) running out of their State unemployment benefits in California, in the next six months, about 240,000 more workers will find themselves jobless and without any additional unemployment benefits to support their families.

"Unemployment benefits are a life preserver for working families trying to stay afloat after a job loss," said Art Pulaski, Executive Secretary-Treasurer of the California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO. "With food and gas prices on the rise and the foreclosure crisis deepening, Congress should do everything it can to extend that lifeline and help working families keep their heads above water."

On April 21, 2008, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger wrote a letter to Congressional leaders, urging them to make this move and extend unemployment insurance benefits.

“An extension of jobless benefits will help stimulate the California and national economies, while helping to mitigate the housing crisis.  Every dollar of unemployment benefits boosts the economy by $2.15,  meaning benefits are spent immediately to cover the costs of basic necessities.  In California alone, if the average unemployed worker collected 10 weeks of a 13-week extension of benefits, an additional $1.4 billion in economic stimulus would be pumped into those communities hardest hit by the downturn in just over six months.  Moreover, a major study found that unemployment benefits reduce the chances that a worker will be forced to sell the family home by almost one-half,” Assemblymember Swanson stated.

Maurice Emsellem with the National Employment Law Project stated, "The Assembly's resolution sends the message loud and clear that Congress and the President should act without delay to extend jobless benefits, not just to aid the surging numbers of workers in California now exhausting these benefits, but to make clear to consumers and businesses nationwide that our representatives in Washington should take seriously the need to turn this economy around."

"Congress can help millions of families who are struggling to cope with the new realities of long-term unemployment while surviving without paychecks and dealing with the skyrocketing costs of gas, food and housing," concluded Swanson.  "Economists broadly agree that extending unemployment benefits is a sure strategy to stimulate the economy, create and preserve jobs, and provide much needed assistance to struggling families.  I urge my friends in Congress to do the right thing."

AJR 56 next heads to the California State Senate.

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Press note:  A copy of the Governor’s letter to Congressional leaders can be found at http://gov.ca.gov/press-release/9380/.