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PA Chamber members push for action on UC reform compromise
Want reasonable cost-savings measures included in federal UC benefits extension
With the General Assembly poised to adjust Pennsylvania law to allow thousands of UC recipients to continue receiving extended benefits funded by the federal government, PA Chamber members are asking for commonsense reforms to help improve the system. In a memo sent to state House lawmakers this week, the PA Chamber urged passage of S.B. 1030, a compromise unemployment compensation reform bill that, in addition to extending federal benefits, would save $137 million and ensure that the UC system works as intended for individuals who are out of work due to no fault of their own. House Bill 916 was the preferred UC reform bill because, in addition to making meaningful improvements, it addressed serious solvency concerns facing the UC Trust Fund. To date, the fund has borrowed nearly $4 billion from the federal government. House Bill 916 would restore solvency to the fund by 2018 and leave it with a healthy balance of $607 million. As the most viable UC reform measure now before lawmakers, S.B. 1030 – as amended by the House Finance Committee – does not address solvency, but does include the changes supported by PA Chamber members contained in H.B. 916, such as provisions to require recipients to actively look for work; clearly define willful misconduct; address voluntary quits to require an attachment to the workforce in order to receive benefits; and set a reasonable limit on severance package amounts that would prevent the collection of severance pay and UC benefits at the same time. All of these reasonable UC reforms are designed to protect the UC system and save the system money. The PA Chamber supports the extension of federal UC benefits, but it is wrong to allow hundreds of millions of dollars to enter the UC system without implementing any improvements to ensure that when these dollars exit the system, they are directed to those who need the support and truly earned the benefits. And with S.B. 1030 clearly a compromise, the Chamber told lawmakers it is “unfortunate and telling” that the rhetoric and tired talking points espoused by opponents of reform have remain unchanged, despite repeated concessions made by employers and the business community. PA Chamber members are determined to restore the UC system to its original purpose and restore solvency to the fund so that it can remain a financial safety net for individuals who lose their job through no fault of their own.
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