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Congress Fails to Extend Benefits November 20, 2002 UPDATE -- WASHINGTON: CONGRESS FAILED to approve an extension of unemployment benefits leaving roughly 860,000 jobless Americans to lose their income this holiday season. While both the House and Senate had earlier approved extensions of the program, no compromise on the most recent version could be reached. Their discrepancy involved the length of benefit extensions and a protection measure for doctors subject to planned Medicare reductions. House Majority Leader Dick Armey (TX), who will be leaving Congress at the end of this term, suggested GOP leaders would approach the issue again in January, a statement Democrats refute. The White House did not lobby Congress on the issue.
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News for Jobless: November 20, 2002 Jobless Americans will probably be getting an unwelcome holiday gift from Congress this yearan end to unemployment benefits. Last week the House of Representatives approved five weeks of benefits, as a supplement to the 13-week extension passed with economic stimulus legislation earlier this year. Those 13 weeks end on December 31. The Senate passed another 13-week extension, which would give an estimated 2.1 million workers relief until the end of March. But it is unlikely the two sides will come to agreement before the next Congress convenes in mid-January. "Extending unemployment insurance is not just the right thing to do for working Americans, it is smart economic policy," said Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-New York). "The strong bipartisan support behind this legislation in the Senate should send a clear message to the House that they should pass this bill." But House Republicans say they will not compromise on their bill, which would benefit an estimated 800,000 jobless workers. They say extending benefits more than five weeks would consume too much of the federal unemployment trust fund.
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