Federal Unemployment Extensions Expire

The Dept. of Workforce Development issued this press release today regarding the anticipated expiration of federal unemployment extensions:

INDIANAPOLIS – Today marks the expiration of the five federally funded extensions of unemployment (EEUC and EB). Approximately 90,000 Hoosiers are currently receiving federally funded extended benefits.

Eligible individuals will receive benefits for the weeks they have remaining on their Regular State Unemployment (UI) and the four federal extensions (EEUC), but will not begin the next tier of benefits after November 30, 2010 (see below). DWD estimates about 4,000 Hoosiers per week will exhaust their benefits and thus not have a voucher to file beginning Sunday, December 5, 2010.

The Extended Benefit (EB) program does not have a phase-out period. According to federal law, all Extended Benefit payments will stop immediately on Sunday, December 12, 2010. Approximately 16,000 Hoosiers are currently receiving extended benefits.

Beginning December 19, 2010, the $25 weekly federal additional payment will also expire due to federal law.

According to a summary of the federal extension by the AP, the estimated national impact will be significant:

The Labor Department estimates 635,000 would be cut off the week that ends Dec. 11, more than 1.6 million by Christmas and 1.98 million people would lose all benefits by Jan. 1. The figure would rise to 3.29 million by Jan. 29.

Frequently Asked Questions:

How can a person tell if they have exhausted benefits?
Hoosiers should visit their Uplink homepage. Look at the line that contains information associated with the current tier of benefits (UI, EEUC or EB). Follow that line to the right and look for the Maximum Benefit and Paid‐to‐Date. When those two numbers are the same, after November 30, 2010, benefits are exhausted. If all benefits are exhausted no new vouchers will appear on your Uplink homepage.

How can I determine how many weeks of benefits I have remaining?
The Dept. Workforce Development has created a graphic to help determine the number of weeks remaining.

See more FAQs from Dept. of Workforce Development.

Background:

The federal Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2010 (H.R. 4213) was signed by President Obama on July 22. The bill extended unemployment benefits through the end of November to the roughly 2.5 million long-term unemployed whose benefits ran out at the end of May. More background on these benefits is available in an August 3 update >>

Unemployment Program
Max Weeks	Cumulative Weeks *
State Unemployment (UI)	26	XX
Federal Extension 1 (EEUC)	20	46
Federal Extension 2 (EEUC)	14	60
Federal Extension 3 (EEUC)	13	73
Federal Extension 4 (EEUC)	6	79
Extended Benefits (EB)	20	99

*Prior to November 30, 2010

Budget Brief: Commission for Higher Education

Higher education funding represents approximately 13% (or $1.74B) of the state’s total budget. Indiana has seven public universities, each with different missions and student populations.  Distributing these funds  can be a somewhat challenging and politically charged endeavor.

What factors should the legislature consider when determining how much funding each institution should receive?  How can you evaluate a research university like Purdue University on the same scale that you evaluate Ivy Tech Community College?

These are some of the questions our legislators face as they attempt to determine how to spend the state’s limited resources on higher education. The Commission for Higher Education helps legislators answer these questions and is charged with reviewing budget requests from public institutions and making funding recommendations to the state legislature. More details from the universities’ Nov 17-18 budget requests>>

Budget Brief: University requests

Indiana’s public universities presented their FY 2012-2013 budget requests to the State Budget Committee on November 17-18, 2010. See the links below for program and enrollment highlights as well as details on each university’s operating and capital project requests. Read more about the Commission on Higher Ed’s role in reviewing these requests>>

 

Ball State University

• Presentation
• Operating Budget Request
• Capital Budget Request

Indiana University

• Presentation
• Operating Budget Request
• Capital Budget Request

Ivy Tech Community College

• Presentation
• Operating Budget Request
• Capital Budget Request

Indiana State University

• Presentation
• Operating Budget Request
• Capital Budget Request

Purdue University

• Presentation
• Operating Budget Request
• Capital Budget Request

University of Southern Indiana

• Presentation
• Operating Budget Request
• Capital Budget Request

Vincennes University

• Presentation
• Operating Budget Request
• Capital Budget Request

Budget Brief: Process and Procedure

Process

In the coming weeks, various state agencies will submit budget requests for fiscal years 2012-2013 to the State Budget Agency.

The budget requests include detailed information about the services provided by state agencies and the costs of doing so. The State Budget Committee uses the budget requests to evaluate state agencies, hold government programs accountable and to guide future funding decisions.

See below to learn more about what a budget request typically includes and how the legislature uses the budget requests to guide the budget writing process. Subsequent blog posts will include each state agency’s official budget request, line item expense and revenue reports, and highlights from each agency’s presentation to the State Budget Committee.

Unemployment rate decreases in October

The Indiana Dept. of Workforce Development (DWD) announced Tuesday morning that Indiana’s unemployment rate for October 2010 dropped by 0.2 percent to 9.9 percent,  down from the September 2010 rate of 10.1 percent. Although Indiana experienced a slight decrease, the state continues to lag behind the national unemployment rate of 9.6 percent.

• County with the highest unemployment rate: Elkhart 12.9%
• County with the lowest unemployment rates: Daviess 5.5%

Also available from DWD:

• Labor Force Estimates for U.S., Indiana, MSAs, Counties, Cities
• Ranking of Indiana Counties by Unemployment Rate
• Indiana County Map with Unemployment Rates

Job Report (CES)

• Seasonally-Adjusted Employment Table for Indiana
• Non-Seasonally-Adjusted Employment Table for Indiana
• Detail Employment Listing – Statewide & MSAs

Click here for a complete list of the October 2010 unemployment numbers.

Introducing 2011 Budget Briefs

Released in conjunction with the Open Government Initiative and efforts to improve transparency in state government budgets and spending, the Briefing Room will be profiling action by the State Budget Committee and the Indiana General Assembly as they prepare to write a balanced budget in the face of restricted state revenues and a slowly recovering economy.

This is the first in a series of Briefing Room posts that will highlight the state budget requests and discuss progress of the next two-year state budget. Check back for continuous updates.

Introducing: 2011 Budget Briefs

While Indiana’s state budget process is a public matter, budget-related information can often be presented in forms that are difficult to access and hard to understand. The state’s budget documents include constantly changing revenue projections, fluctuating income statements and fund balances, thousand-page revenue reports, multiple budget bills and spending options considered by the General Assembly, and long lists of appropriations and expenses that are paid by the state. All things considered, state budget accounting is necessarily complicated.  However, there ought to be a way to break down this budget information so everyone can understand how and where our state tax dollars are being spent.

The state’s budget process, after all, is not so different from an average household’s financial planning practices. Just as in a household, the state examines its income and expenses, sets spending priorities, and tries to save money and make positive investments whenever it can. In Indiana, the General Assembly is responsible for writing the two-year state budget, which is approved by the governor and implemented under the governor’s direction by the State Budget Agency and numerous state agencies.

It is our hope that the Budget Briefs will not only improve citizens’ understanding of the budget writing process, but that they will also prompt engagement in a discourse that will help legislators define the state’s spending priorities. Use the Briefing Room to follow legislators through the budget writing process from planning, to decision making.

What to expect from the Budget Briefs

• Updates from Budget Committee hearings (See the complete hearing schedule>> )
• Budget request presentations (Nov-Dec)
• Agency expense reports (Nov-Dec)
• Revenue forecast documents (Dec)
• Updates as the budget bill moves through House Ways & Means, Senate Appropriations, and the rest of the legislative process (Jan-Apr)
• Final summary of the budget as approved by the General Assembly (May)

Photos: Organization Day 2010

Organization Day, the official convening of the 117th Indiana General Assembly, was held on November 16. Traditionally held in mid-November, Organization Day provided an opportunity for new and re-elected legislators to be sworn in, new rules to be adopted, and for legislators to make arrangements for the upcoming legislative session. The Indiana Senate and House of Representatives now stand in recess and will reconvene on January 5, 2011.

PHOTOS:

Sen. Lindel Hume and Sen. Earline Rogers talk with colleagues in the Senate chamber.

Sen. Lonnie Randolph reviews information at his desk in the Senate chamber.

Sen. John Broden waits for activities to begin in the Senate.

Indiana Chief Justice Randall T. Shepard swears in new senators.

VIDEO: Several Senate Democrats took time during the day to record messages on what issues they anticipate addressing in the 2011 session. Use the links below to jump to each member’s message:

Sen. Jim Arnold (LaPorte)
Sen. Jean Breaux (Indianapolis)
Sen. John Broden (South Bend)
Sen. Lindel Hume (Princeton)
Sen. Tim Lanane (Anderson)
Sen. Frank Mrvan (Hammond)
Sen. Lonnie Randolph (East Chicago)
Sen. Earline Rogers (Gary)
Sen. Richard Young (Milltown)

Sen. Breaux previews events on 2011 Organization Day

Sen. Arnold reflects on Organization Day, looks forward to 2011 session

Sen. Hume proud to take part in 2011 Organization Day