November 20, 2008
Statement
Floor Statement on Extending Unemployment Insurance Benefits
Mr. REED. Mr. President, I rise in support of extending unemployment insurance to help the 10 million jobless Americans, the most in a quarter century, who are searching for work.
In the wake of the subprime mortgage crisis, turmoil on Wall Street, and decline in consumer spending, workers throughout this country are being given pink slips by the thousands. In fact, we are seeing record numbers today, further amplifying the depth and the seriousness of this employment crisis in the United States. The situation continues to worsen. This does not appear to be a passing trend, but, unfortunately, unless we do something quickly and appropriately, we can anticipate continuing job losses. We have already seen across the country individuals whom we know--family members, cousins, friends--who, one, are either losing their job, or, two, are being very concerned that their employment status is tenuous and at any moment they could be given the word that they have lost their job. Over the course of 1 month, national job loss numbers jumped from 6.1 percent to 6.5 percent--an extraordinary jump in 1 month. Updated State numbers, which will be released on Friday, will unfortunately likely continue to reflect this deterioration in our job markets.
Despite this bad news, a resolution of this employment crisis does not seem to be approaching. As I suggested, there are indications this will get worse before it gets better--another reason to act now to try to provide support and assistance to those people who have worked and now find themselves without a job, through no fault of their own.
In my home State of Rhode Island, these national trends are amplified dramatically. Nearly 9 percent of Rhode Islanders are now unemployed. That is 50,200 people. We are a small State with a relatively small population. Mr. President, 50,200 people are without work. They are searching for work. They are searching for answers. They are searching for help. We have to provide the help, and then the long-term answers.
Job losses in Rhode Island are occurring in all sectors. This is not just one area of economic endeavor that is under stress. Every area is under stress. Workers in manufacturing plants have been particularly hurt, and that is another consequence or another aspect of this discussion of the support for the auto industry. We have thousands of jobs in Rhode Island that in some way depend upon the auto industry. So their fate is linked to what we do effectively, constructively to assist these companies to maintain their presence, but also to change their practices so they are not only here for a few more months, but they can evolve into a sustainable manufacturing industry that will lead the world, as it once did, in the manufacture of high-quality, economically, and environmentally sound vehicles.
We are seeing layoff notices in the financial and services industries despite all the efforts we have made to support these industries through the legislation we passed last September. These losses are from small mom-and-pop manufacturing shops in Rhode Island and go up into national financial companies that are shedding workers.
This is a problem that must be addressed. We have done it in the past. In 1991 and 2002, Congress worked with the White House to successfully extend temporary benefits when unemployment rates were significantly high. In June, I was pleased that Congress came together and passed a 13-week emergency extension of unemployment insurance for all States. This was an important step to help desperate families make ends meet. But jobs are becoming scarcer. The action we took in June has actually been overtaken by events in the world marketplace.
We have to deal with this issue, particularly in those States such as Rhode Island that are seeing unusually high unemployment rates. So far, 4,416 Rhode Islanders have already exhausted their federal benefits. They are still searching for work, unsuccessfully, but now they have lost the support of unemployment insurance.
There are 20,000 Rhode Islanders who are receiving unemployment insurance benefits. In the first week of November, another 1,347 Rhode Islanders were added to our State's unemployment rolls. These are very dispiriting numbers. They call for action, and I hope we can act.
Nationally, it is estimated that nearly 1.2 million Americans will exhaust their current benefits by the end of the year. Where do they go? They have no direct financial support through the unemployment compensation program. They have seen the value of their homes whittle down to, in some cases, less than the mortgage they owe. They are seeing pressures in every area. Unless we provide them some assistance, their ability to simply keep their heads above water--to keep their families fed, to keep a bit of hope alive--will be extinguished. We cannot let that happen.
These benefits are not handouts. These people have worked. They have paid into the program. They receive a modest weekly benefit to keep them close to making ends meet.
There is something else too. We have a task before us not simply to deal individually with men and women who have worked hard and now--through no fault of their own, through the action of the huge economic forces worldwide--find themselves without jobs. We have to get this country moving again. We have to stimulate the economy.
Unemployment insurance helps do that. These benefits are spent right away in the local communities. These benefits are going to people who are not going to, unfortunately, be able to put it away for a rainy day. Today is their rainy day. They are going to have to go to the supermarket. They are going to have to go to the pharmacy. They are going to have to go put some gas in their automobiles to get around, to get their families around. This money is spent almost immediately on food, medicine, and gasoline. Economists of virtually every stripe believe this is one of the most effective ways to stimulate the economy, to increase consumer demand.
This is something we have to do. It generates approximately $1.64 in gross domestic product per $1 spent. So for every dollar of unemployment compensation benefits, we are generating additional support.
In September, I introduced bipartisan legislation to provide an additional 7 weeks of unemployment insurance to people who have exhausted their benefits, and 13 more weeks of benefits to unemployed workers in States such as Rhode Island that have unemployment rates above 6 percent.
Despite the urgent need for these extra benefits, a minority of Senators prevented this bill from moving forward. What we have seen since that date is not an improvement in the situation but a significant deterioration in the situation. We can no longer ignore acting on this critical issue.
Today there are more disturbing numbers. There is an indication also in the press that President Bush would sign a bill, but he cannot sign a bill unless we pass a bill. We have the opportunity to do that before we leave today. Since the economy continues to unravel, we cannot sit back and wait. We have to act.
In October, the House overwhelmingly passed a measure virtually identical to my legislation. We must do the same. I hope we take this action this week. We cannot wait until January. There will be more people without jobs, unfortunately, by January, and those who are having the opportunity to collect benefits bill exhaust those benefits by January. We have to act.
We have to do more than just an unemployment insurance program. We have to focus on other forms of relief that will provide not only help to Americans but stimulate our economy, such as funding for food stamps and food banks. Families are turning more to these institutions every day. It is not just the marginal American, someone who might be on the street struggling with mental health issues, who needs the assistance of those institutions. More and more families--working families--are coming to food banks and asking for a handout, for food, to feed their children.
We can do better, and we must do better.
We also have to make investments to improve job creation and provide long-term benefits. I think this means investing in our infrastructure, putting people to work, putting people to work to rebuild this country, not in a transient, temporary fashion but in projects that will last beyond this economic crisis.
When I was a child in Rhode Island, walking around on the sidewalks, looking down, I would ask my mom and dad: What is this plaque: ``WPA''? Well, it is the Work Projects Administration. That was from 1935, 1934. Well, in 1955, in 1958, in 1968, and, indeed, in 1998, and now in 2008, walk around, look at those facilities, those public infrastructures that are still serving the communities. They were investments to help people work, but investments that have spurred this economy for more than 60 years.
We have to do a lot, and we can do a lot. There are so many needs here: aging infrastructure, roads, bridges, public transportation systems, transit systems so people can get to work and get to school, drinking water systems and wastewater systems.
In Rhode Island, proposed funding for these initiatives would support $50 million for road improvements. Some of the discussions we have had about a package--$50 million for road improvements. It would also support $14 million for transit operations which would assure transit operations for particularly the poorest citizens of Rhode Island. It would also support $19.1 million for water infrastructure projects.
Across this country, these projects could generate more than 470,000 jobs. We are losing about 500,000 jobs, it seems, every reporting period. If we could reverse that and report an increase in jobs, that would not only put a lot of money into people's pockets and families' pockets, but it would also send a signal to the country that confidence can be restored, that hope can indeed be engendered.
Finally, I believe we need to provide some funding for the States and communities that are strapped by this crisis. We are looking at severe deficits. States are looking at them. Many States do not have the ability to operate beyond a balanced budget. They are going to have to make excruciatingly difficult cuts. I think we should put more money into our matching Federal Medicaid programs which will help States and help people receive health care. These investments, again, are not only compelling because of the needs of our fellow Americans, but justified because of their ability to stimulate the economy and to pick us up and move us forward.
Events over the last several months have dramatically highlighted the economic challenges we face. We are grappling with the most severe economic downturn we have seen perhaps since post-World War II and perhaps since the Great Depression--the worst set of economic circumstances. We must do something. To sit back and watch Americans continue to lose hope, to lose their jobs, to lose their sense of the potential of this country is unacceptable. We need swift action. No more debate; we need to vote. We need to pass an unemployment compensation extension bill before we leave today.
Mr. President, I yield the floor.
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