UPDATE--PA Passes 3-Yr Lookback

AP May 24th 2011--
'PA Senate Approves Bill to Extend Jobless Benefits, House Measure Bogs Down'

http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/85143918b7584e779d687684978866ba/PA-XGR--Unemployment-Compensation

Like NJ.....the PA Senate passed the bill *UNANIMOUSLY*.....Repubs & Dems united.
Unlike NJ.....the PA House is screwing around.....that Perry guy hates the unemployed.

There's also a story in today's Philadelphia Inquirer that says the House will take up Perry's more draconian bill once again on Monday.....but I don't have the link.....if someone has it can you please post it?? Thanx.

Looks like they've figured out a way to put off making a decision even longer.....now they say they don't have to get a bill to the Governor till Monday June 13th.

http://www.newsworks.org/index.php?option=com_flexicontent&view=items&id=21150:pa-moves-toward-workers-comp-

Now they're saying they don't have to pass the bill till Fri. June 17th.

http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2011/06/pennsylvanias_extended_unemplo.html

The usual 'we hate UI' crowd is posting in the comments section.

Update from the PA GOP Facebook Page - Schedule for next week:

What's Happening in the House - Week of June 13

Helping Unemployed Workers by Saving and Fixing the Unemployment Compensation System

The House will take up Senate Bill 1030 (Sen. John Gordner, R-Columbia/Montour/Northumberland/ Snyder/Dauphin/Luzerne), which would save the bankrupt Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund an estimated $137 million per year. While federal emergency unemployment benefits expire Saturday, June 11, for 135,000 out-of-work Pennsylvanians, there is still time to pass this necessary legislation and get it to the governor’s before there is a disruption in benefits. The bill will:

Require an active job search – Pennsylvania is the only state where a job search is not required.

Increase the minimum weekly benefit rate.

Create a severance pay offset (32 states take into account dismissal pay, nine states prohibit people from receiving UC benefits while receiving severance pay).

Establish standards of willful misconduct and refine current law to modify eligibility benefits for people who voluntarily quit their job. These are standards similar to those in 40 other states.

https://www.facebook.com/notes/pennsylvania-house-republican-caucus/whats-happening-in-the-house-week-of-june-13/192069217506856

Many thanx Exhausted 99er. Was really disappointed to see that the AZ legislature (once again) has refused to accept Extended Benefits from the fed govt.....even after their Repub governor ordered them back into special session. The problem seems to have been that not enuf of the legislators bothered to show up.....Governor Brewer should've introduced the matter during the regular legislative session but she didn't.....

Extended Benefits for a million PA citizens hang in the balance. Probably some extremely rightwing Repubs like what happened in AZ b/c Tea-Monsters want to kill unemployment compensation altogether. Fortunately PA is a *thinking* state where Repubs & Dems alike for the most part have brains & use them. Let's hope.

In our neighboring state of NJ Republican Gov. Christie & the majority Republican legislature quickly passed a law to accept Extended Benefits. They didn't use EB as blackmail.....they just passed the bill into law. C'mon PA get your act together.

http://l.wbx.me/l/?instId=96fe2678-90a4-4f3a-b33b-274faca0728e&token=f963a5384853676d75fbcbf8908bc216a8f48c400000013089b7165f&u=http%3A%2F%2Fnews.google.com%2Fnews%2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26fd%3DR%26usg%3DAFQjCNGJy339KpkZpua_sseNylgtuF7A1A%26url%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.mcall.com%2Fnews%2Fnationworld%2Fpennsylvania%2Fmc-pa-unemployment-benefits-20110615%2C0%2C7105378.story

Looks like the PA UI bill will pass the House tomorrow, pass the Senate Fri., & go right to the Gov.'s desk for his signature.

Get a load of that Tea-Monster commenter.....'generation after generation of welfare and other social assistance families.' What a bonehead. First of all welfare is limited to a 5-year lifetime limit. Second of all.....unemployment insurance *is not welfare*!! The unemployed don't even want UI.....we want decent JOBS!!

After all the brouhaha.....today the PA House voted unanimously 194-0 to pass SB1030. It's expected to similarly pass the PA Senate unanimously & be signed by the Governor.

The bill fixes the Three Year Lookback so unemployed Pennsylvanians can get if needed up to 13 wks of EB.

(PA no longer gets the 6 wks of Tier IV & the 7 wks of HUB.)

There are a few other things in the law. Everyone getting UI in PA must attend two sessions at their local Career Center which in part involves posting your resume on the PACareerLink site with help from a resume coach. If you haven't done this already (many of us have) you'll get a letter in the mail about it. Imo everyone should be applying for jobs thru PCL periodically esp. from now on since the UI & PCL computers will be linked & they'll be able to see whether or not you're using PCL. However the law says only that you *must* attend the Career Center sessions after you get your letter in the mail.

The law also makes people who get severance pay after being laid off to wait till their severance pay is used up before they can start getting the first 26 weeks of UI. The DLI will prob. have a calculator for dividing the total severance by a certain amt per week. This will affect people who get laid off *after* the Governor signs the law (prob. tomorrow).

In addition the law limits increases in the maximum amt of UI over the next few years (yet also increases the minimum amt so go figure).

Finally they agreed to put off discussions about how to repay the $3B that PA stupidly borrowed from the fed govt to cover the first 26 wks. Legislators say they'll take that up in the summer or the fall.

Many thanx to everyone from PA (& also from other states) who made calls & sent emails & faxes to get 'er done!!



& for continuing the fight for HR589!!

http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/the-feed/item/21741-pennsylvania-senate-approves-bill-to-keep-emergency-unemployment-benefits

The PA Senate passed the EB bill *unanimously* today. It's on the Governor's desk waiting to be signed.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/usnw/20110617/pl_usnw/DC22284

PA's Governor signed the bill on Friday.

Thank you for the update!