In Oregon They Believe in 105ers

Are you a 99er falling through your safety net? Feeling like your state and the Feds have thrown you under the bus? Well, in Oregon they seem to have a bit more respect for those who have lost their jobs at the fault of bank fraud and financial abuse. Welcome there are the 105ers: the state has extended the usual 99 weeks of unemployment to 105 weeks. Below is the report from Oregon and here is the link to the story in the HuffPost.

SALEM -- The Oregon House gave final legislative approval Wednesday to two bills extending state and federal unemployment benefits to Oregonians who have been out of work for more than a year and a half.

After a sometimes-teary House floor debate, both bills were sent on to the governor, who indicated he'll sign them.

Oregon added 9,800 jobs in February, but the state continues to struggle with an unemployment rate of 10.2 percent, far higher than the national average. Thousands in Oregon have been out of work so long that they've either exhausted their unemployment benefits or are about to.

By unanimous vote, the House passed Senate Bill 637, which would allow the state to draw additional federal unemployment money through the end of the year. There are currently 11,876 people participating in the federal extended benefits program, according to the Oregon Employment Department. With the legislation, officials estimate about 50,000 out-of-work Oregonians would qualify by the end of the year.

Under a plan approved by Congress in December, the federal government will pick up all the costs.

The House also endorsed Senate Bill 638, which offers an additional six weeks of state benefits to Oregonians who have been out of work for more than 99 weeks and have exhausted all other benefits, including the federal extensions.

Officials say they plan to contact the estimated 17,500 Oregonians who could be eligible. The Employment Department will spend up to $30 million from the unemployment insurance trust fund to pay for those benefits.

The bill passed, 49-9, but not without emotional debate.

Republicans worried about the financial impact on the state trust fund and businesses that pay into it. They also questioned whether people might be becoming too dependent on the payments.

"I'm voting no because I feel there needs to be a line drawn in the sand," said Rep. Dennis Richardson, R-Central Point. "When do you say, 'We're not going to keep sending more payments?'"

Rep. Kim Thatcher, R-Keizer, said she's heard arguments that paying these benefits is good for the economy because people who are out of work will spend the money on food, gas and diapers.

But, she asked, "I wonder when does a hand up become a handout?   READ ON

"I also wonder if maybe we shouldn't be tying those extra benefits to a requirement for community service?" she said. "How about tying it to drug-testing? If you're not employable, why should you be getting unemployment benefits? Should we instead be working on innovative ways to get these people back to work?"

Democrats countered that it is wrong to blame the workers.

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