BPC's Hoagland on Expiring Unemployment Insurance Provisions
Washington, DC – The following is a statement from Bill Hoagland, senior vice president at the Biaprtisan Policy Center, on expiring unemployment insurance provisions:
“At the end of July, the additional $600 in weekly unemployment benefits enacted by the CARES Act is set to expire. The supplemental weekly benefit has provided crucial financial relief through America’s severe economic downturn. As state and local officials begin to relax stay-at-home orders, however, there is increasing evidence that the additional $600 in weekly benefits disincentivizes some from returning to work, inhibiting an economic rebound as business activity resumes. But with roughly 31.5 million people currently collecting benefits and the virus spiking across the country, more stabilization is needed.
“We recommend that Congress phase down the supplemental weekly benefit to $400 a week through September and issue another round of direct payments to American families. Although these policies are costly, and cannot continue indefinitely, this approach will begin to wean the country off an unsustainable benefit, ensure that households continue to receive the current support they need, and begin to rebalance the incentives between staying home and returning to work. Given the quickly evolving public health and economic circumstances, we also recommend that Congress reassess the need for additional stabilization this fall as it tackles funding for the next fiscal year.”