Congress may pass legislation Tuesday that would extend unemployment benefits for 30 days for some unemployed Wisconsin residents. Without the bill, many unemployed Wisconsinites will lose benefits in the coming weeks.
Wisconsin citizens are normally eligible for unemployment benefits for up to 26 weeks, but because of the recession, policymakers extended assistance to 93 weeks in Wisconsin. The current legislation would help maintain those additional benefits.
John Dipko, communications director for the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, said he is optimistic the extension will pass.
""We were disappointed that Congress didn't act last week, but we were encouraged by the fact that there is strong bipartisan support for an extension,"" he said. ""We are hopeful that they will rectify the situation and act quickly.""
Dipko said if Congress passes the legislation soon, only ""a couple hundred [Wisconsin citizens] or so would be affected at most by a loss of benefits.""
U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning, R-Ky., delayed the legislation Friday, saying Congress did not have the $10 billion to fund the bill.
U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., the second-ranking Republican in the Senate, backed Bunning's actions.
""All Sen. Bunning was saying, quite correctly, is that it ought to be paid for,"" Kyl told Fox News Sunday. ""Congress just passed the pay-go legislation, which is supposed to require that we find offsets or other savings if we're going to spend money … [The unemployment bill] will pass though because it is a temporary extension.""
Kyl said the long-term unemployment extension currently pending in Congress will likely be more difficult to pass because it is projected to cost more than $100 billion.
—Alison Dirr
