Week 15 in review at the Indiana General Assembly

As the legislature moves into its final weeks, the pace has accelerated. Work on the state’s two-year budget plan and the completion of drawing new boundaries for the state’s legislative and congressional districts has intensified.

Joint House-Senate conference committees also have begun to meet to work out differences in bills that have moved through both chambers. Including two members appointed from each chamber and each political party, these committees work to develop compromise language when two different versions of a bill exist. Once a compromise is approved by all four members, the new language must gain approval of both chambers before advancing to the governor for final consideration.

The following brief report summarizes some of this week’s activities in the State Senate.

Update: Federal unemployment benefit extension

On July 22, President Obama signed The Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2010 (H.R. 4213). The bill extends unemployment benefits through the end of November and retroactively restores benefits to the roughly 2.5 million long-term unemployed whose benefits ran out at the end of May.

According to the Indiana Dept. of Workforce Development (DWD), approximately 220,000 unemployment vouchers have been filed totaling $54 million in benefits through the federal unemployment extensions since July 28. Payments on eligible vouchers filed over the weekend are expected to be completed today.

WorkOne offices have extended hours this week and will be open 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. through Friday, Aug 6. WorkOne Express offices will maintain normal business hours.

Who qualifies?

Unemployed Hoosiers who exhausted the regular state unemployment or emergency unemployment extension after May 29, 2010, may be eligible. Hoosiers who had a balance remaining on Extended Benefits when that program ended on June 12 may also be eligible.

Those who fully exhausted Extended Benefits are not eligible.

How do Hoosiers apply?

Complete online vouchers for each week of benefits to collect. Verify unemployment, report weekly job searches and applications, and report any outside income earned each week.

Hoosiers who have exhausted their Tier 4 benefits are required to apply in person at the local WorkOne Center and will not see vouchers online. A letter from will be received from DWD with instructions for filing for extended benefits at the local WorkOne Center.

What happened to the additional $25 benefit?

This new federal legislation changes the $25 weekly federal additional payment. Anyone who previously collected the $25 per week will continue to collect this money weekly.

Individuals who file new initial unemployment claims after May 29, 2010, will not receive the additional $25 per week.

Resources for more information

Indiana Dept. of Workforce Development: July 2010 Federal Extensions Frequently Asked Questions

Congress reauthorizes Fed Unemployment Extensions through May

Congress has approved legislation to keep federal funds intact for five unemployment extensions through June 2, 2010. Those who did not recieve benefits during the two week gap between the expirations and passage of this legislation will have their funds restored.

The Indiana Department of Workforce Development (DWD) noted in a press release that eligible Hoosiers who did not have a voucher available last week due to the expiration of the federal extensions will find vouchers for last week and this week on Uplink, DWD’s online unemployment filing system, beginning April 18.

According to the United States Department of Labor:

Extended Benefits are available to workers who have exhausted regular unemployment insurance benefits during periods of high unemployment. The basic Extended Benefits program provides up to 13 additional weeks of benefits when a State is experiencing high unemployment. Some States have also enacted a voluntary program to pay up to 7 additional weeks (20 weeks maximum) of Extended Benefits during periods of extremely high unemployment.

Debate continues on the U.S. Senate floor to extend coverage through the remainder of 2010.

Read more in the news at:

Evansville Courier & Press

The New York Times

Video: Tallian Statehouse Update

Reopening debate on unemployment insurance reform

This week the Senate again took up changes to the state’s unemployment insurance policies, with a proposal (Senate Bill 23) to delay reform approved with bipartisan support in 2009.

Monday: Not enough bipartisan support to leverage $150M for out of work Hoosiers

Senators voted along party lines against making changes in state law that would have made $150 million in federal funds available to provide benefits to more unemployed Hoosiers. The author of the proposed amendments (to SB 23), Sen. Karen Tallian of Portage, says that money could have meant more dollars spent in the local economy.  The amendments would have made changes to conform with federal modernization standards determining an employee’s base wage period and expanding eligibility for those caring for an ill spouse, child or parent and continue to receive benefits while enrolled in approved training.

Listen to Sen. Tallian’s comments from Monday’s debate in the Senate:

Tuesday: Senate Democrats vote against delay in getting unemployment benefits to Hoosiers

While most Senate Democrats supported this bill as it made its way through the Senate Tax and Fiscal Committee, a last minute amendment caused the vote to split along party lines. The amendment includes language that would delay out-of-work Hoosiers who have been denied unemployment benefits from receiving any help until a hearing for an appeal is set and a judgment is made.

Sen. Tallian says that the lag time between when an appeal for unemployment benefits is filed and a date is set for the hearing is too long for Hoosier families to withstand. Sen. Tallian also says that this one amendment has caused a once bipartisan agreement to go by the wayside.

Listen to Sen. Tallian’s comments from Tuesday’s debate in the Senate:

Sen. Tim Skinner of Terre Haute says that families should not have to wait for their benefits while they wait for the outcome of an appeal. Sen. Skinner noted his support for the bill before the amendment was included and says that because the bill was changed, so was his vote.

Listen to Senator Skinner’s comments from Tuesday’s debate in the Senate:

Audio: Tallian says unemployment benefits would help Hoosier families, economy

State Senator Karen Tallian proposed an amendment today that would allow Indiana to access approximately $50 million in federal funds to provide unemployment benefits to more unemployed Hoosiers. Tallian says those benefits could mean more dollars spent in the local economy, and the federal government would cover the cost for the next two to four years. Tallian told her colleagues today that, should the changes become burdensome on the state once the federal funds run out, the provisions could be repealed. The amendment, which was called on Senate Bill 23, failed today along party lines.

Listen to Senator Tallian’s comments:

News: State Extended Benefits Resume in Indiana

The Indiana Dept. of Workforce Development announced Monday that Indiana has resumed providing State Extended Benefits. The benefits are resumed “due to Congress renewing 100% federal funding of the program through February 28, 2010.”

According the Jan 4 DWD press release:

This program provides up to 20 weeks of benefits to Hoosiers.

State Extended Benefits are considered the “benefit of last resort.”  These benefits include strict work search requirements and the mandate of accepting any job paying minimum wage or above that an individual can physically perform.  There are no work search waivers available on State Extended Benefits.

Hoosiers who were collecting State Extended Benefits prior to passage of Federal Extensions #3 and #4 will be able to resume collecting their State Extended Benefits, once they exhaust the new federal extensions (#3 and #4).

Hoosiers can now collect up to 99 weeks of benefits, which are detailed below.

Program	Maximum # of  weeks	Cumulative Max Weeks
Regular UI	26	1-26
Federal Extension #1	20	27-46
Federal Extension #2	14	47-60
Federal Extension #3	13	51-73
Federal Extension #4	6	74-79
State Extended Benefits	20	80-99

Click here to read the Frequently Asked Questions about Extended Benefits.

State Extended Benefits End in Indiana

Announced today in a press release from the Dept. of Workforce Development:

The Indiana Department of Workforce Development (DWD) has officially notified the U.S. Department of Labor that Indiana has automatically “triggered off” State Extended Benefits.

This program, which provided up to 20 weeks of benefits to Hoosiers, automatically activates and deactivates based on certain economic indicators. House Enrolled Act 1379 temporarily changed Indiana’s indicator to a three-month average Total Unemployment Rate of six percent or higher, while the federal government paid 100% of the costs of extended benefits. Typically, Indiana’s Extended Benefits program is triggered when the 13-week average Insured Unemployment Rate exceeds five percent. The Insured Unemployment Rate measures the percent of Hoosiers receiving state unemployment from the entire pool of workers covered by the unemployment insurance system.

Since 100% federal funding of state extended benefits has lapsed, Indiana has reverted back to its traditional trigger and is now triggered off.  Indiana’s current 13-week average Insured Unemployment Rate is 3.28 percent. Absent HEA 1379 changing Indiana’s trigger indicator, State Extended Benefits would have automatically deactivated on July 26, 2009.

Relief for unemployed Hoosiers: 20 week fed extension available Monday

Hoosiers who have previously exhausted their unemployment benefits and remain unemployed may file for the new federal unemployment extension beginning Monday. The federal government enacted the up to 20 week extension of benefits on November 6.

The Department of Workforce Development estimates that approximately 50,000 Hoosiers may qualify for this extension between now and the end of the year.