Bill Text: NJ SR89 | 2014-2015 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Urges New Jersey delegation to U.S. House of Representatives to sign petition to release from committee legislation providing extended unemployment benefits.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-10-09 - Reported from Senate Committee, 2nd Reading [SR89 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2014-SR89-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator RAYMOND J. LESNIAK
District 20 (Union)
SYNOPSIS
Urges New Jersey delegation to U.S. House of Representatives to sign petition to release from committee legislation providing extended unemployment benefits.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
A Senate Resolution urging the New Jersey delegation to the United States House of Representatives to sign the petition to release from committee legislation providing extended unemployment benefits.
Whereas, The most recent recession is the most severe economic downturn since the Great Depression, causing the loss of more than half a million jobs in the State of New Jersey; and
Whereas, On December 31, 2013, the federal program of extended unemployment benefits, which provided essential support to unemployed workers and their families, expired, thereby cutting off an additional 47 weeks of unemployment benefits, paid by the federal government, to unemployed workers who had exhausted their State-funded benefits; and
Whereas, Approximately 1.3 million American workers, including tens of thousands of New Jerseyans, immediately lost their unemployment benefits when the federal program of extended benefits expired at the end of 2013, and they will not regain access to federal unemployment benefits unless and until the program is reinstated; and
Whereas, The federal program of extended benefits provides workers with vital unemployment benefits, and it is essential for Congress to reinstate this lifeline to unemployed workers; and
Whereas, The urgency of the need to reinstate the program of federal extended benefits has been underlined in recent months by the permanent layoff of more than 8,000 casino workers here in New Jersey who will need extra time to get retrained and find employment; and
Whereas, The legislation to reinstate the federal program of extended benefits was referred to committee on November 20, 2013, but no committee action has been taken on that urgently needed legislation; and
Whereas, A petition was filed on March 12, 2014 to obtain the release of the legislation from committee for consideration by the full membership of the House of Representatives, but only 193 House members out of the 218 members required to obtain the release have signed the petition; and
Whereas, Of the 12 current New Jersey members of the House, only five members, Representatives Frank Pallone, Albio Sires, Bill Pascrell, Donald M. Payne, and Rush Holt, have signed the petition to release that legislation; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey:
1. Those six members of the New Jersey delegation to the United States House of Representatives who have not signed the petition to release from the House committee the legislation to reinstate federal extended unemployment benefits, Representatives Frank A. LoBiondo, Jon Runyan, Chris Smith, Scott Garrett, Leonard Lance, and Rodney P. Frelinghuysen, are respectfully urged to sign the petition and help to make possible the consideration of that legislation by the full House of Representatives.
2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and to each member of the House of Representatives elected from the State of New Jersey.
STATEMENT
This resolution urges that all members of the New Jersey delegation to the House of Representatives sign the petition to release from committee for consideration by the full House legislation to provide extended unemployment benefits to laid off workers.
On December 31, 2013, the federal program of extended unemployment benefits expired, immediately cutting off unemployment benefits to nearly 1.3 million Americans, including tens of thousands of New Jerseyans. Legislation to reinstate federal extended benefits has languished in committee and a petition to release the legislation from committee, signed by five members of the New Jersey delegation to the House, has not received enough signatures to obtain that release. If the other six sitting New Jersey members of the House signed the petition, it would make a significant contribution towards obtaining the 218 signatures needed to enable the House to vote to reinstate the critically needed federal extension of unemployment benefits.
