Unemployment Surges, McConnell Chops Away at Relief for Struggling Families

Nearly 900k American Filed For Unemployment Last Week

In response to weekly unemployment numbers surging to their worst levels in weeks, Protect Our Care’s Coronavirus War Room Director Zac Petkanas released the following statement:

“American families have suffered unemployment levels that have outpaced the Great Recession for nine straight months and the crisis is just getting worse, not better. 

“Americans are desperate for Republican leaders to stop blocking meaningful relief, forcing them to make impossible choices about how to make rent or mortgages, which bills are most important to pay, and how are they going to keep their loved ones safe during the worst wave of the virus yet.

“Instead of working to provide families and our economy the real boost they need, Mitch McConnell and his Republican allies have spent relief negotiations chopping away at every proposal that comes before them until it’s just pennies on the dollar of what the American people need and want. 

“We need to treat this crisis like the emergency it is. That means real help through unemployment insurance; survival checks for families and small businesses; mortgage relief; and state and local aid that pays for essential workers and first responders.

“Mitch McConnell and his Republican allies are nickel and diming families desperate for relief, putting our economy in danger and the wellbeing of the American people behind their short term political calculations.”

Americans Face Unprecedented Economic Calamity as the Virus Spreads Uncontrolled and Unemployment Filings Show No Signs of Slowing

• Another 885,000 Americans Filed For Unemployment Last Week, A 23,000 Increase From The Week Before. “The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose again last week to 885,000 as a resurgence of coronavirus cases threatens the economy’s recovery from its springtime collapse. The Labor Department said Thursday that the number of applications increased from 862,000 the previous week. It showed that nine months after the viral pandemic paralyzed the economy, many employers are still slashing jobs as the pandemic forces more business restrictions and leads many consumers to stay home.” [Associated Press, 12/17/20]
• Nearly Seventy Million Americans, About 40% Of The Labor Force, Have Filed For Unemployment Since The Beginning Of The Pandemic. Have Filed For Unemployment Since “The number is nearly four times the precrisis level but is well below the peak of almost 7 million that was reached when stay-at-home orders were first issued in March. Almost 70 million Americans, or about 40% of the labor force, have filed for unemployment benefits during the pandemic.” [Fox News, 12/17/20]
• 20.6 Million Americans Are Currently Collecting Unemployment Benefits. “BREAKING: 1.4 million Americans filed *new* unemployment claims last week — the highest level in weeks. Rising layoffs are an alarm bell that Congress needs to pass more stimulus. Overall, 20.6 million Americans are on unemployment aid as we head into holidays.” [Twitter, @byHeatherLong, 12/17/20]
• New Data Released By Researchers At The University of Chicago And The University Of Notre Dame Shows That Nearly 8 Million Americans Have Fallen Into Poverty Since June. “The U.S. poverty rate has surged over the past five months, with 7.8 million Americans falling into poverty, the latest indication of how deeply many are struggling after government aid dwindled. The poverty rate jumped to 11.7 percent in November, up 2.4 percentage points since June, according to new data released Wednesday by researchers at the University of Chicago and the University of Notre Dame.” [Washington Post, 12/16/20]
• The US In 2020 Saw The Biggest Jump In Poverty In Sixty Years. “It is the biggest jump in a single year since the government began tracking poverty 60 years ago. It is nearly double the next-largest rise, which occurred in 1979-1980 during the oil crisis, according to James X. Sullivan, a professor at Notre Dame, and Bruce D. Meyer, a professor at the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy.” [Washington Post, 12/16/20]
• One In Three US Adults Reports Having Difficulty Covering Basic Expenses Like Food, Rent Or Car Payments. “Today, amid the pandemic, a third of U.S. adults say they are having difficulty covering everyday costs such as food, rent or car payments. While people with the lowest incomes face the biggest challenges, even some households making above $200,000 are straining to pay basic expenses.” [NPR, 12/16/20]
• In Mid-November, Nearly 26 Million Adults — 12 Percent Of All Adults In The US — Reported That Their Household Sometimes Or Often Didn’t Have Enough Food To Eat. “Data from several sources show a dramatic increase in the number of households struggling to put enough food on the table. Nearly 26 million adults — 12 percent of all adults in the country — reported that their household sometimes or often didn’t have enough to eat in the last seven days, according to Household Pulse Survey data collected November 11–23. This was far above the pre-pandemic rate: a recent survey released by the Agriculture Department found that 3.4 percent of adults reported that their household had ‘not enough to eat’ at some point over the full 12 months of 2019.” [Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 12/10/20]
• Sixty Percent Of Businesses — An Estimated 100,000 Establishments — That Closed Temporarily During The Pandemic Are Now Closed For Good. “The coronavirus pandemic has taken a brutal toll on the U.S. economy. Job losses resulting from the health crisis wiped out years’ worth of gains, hitting women, people of color and lower-paid workers already vulnerable to economic swings the hardest. An estimated 60 percent of businesses — about 100,000 individual establishments — that closed their doors temporarily as a result of Covid-19 have shut down for good, and more may follow in the months to come.” [New York Times, 12/16/20]
• The End Of The Federal Eviction Ban At The End Of December Will Cause Millions To Lose Their Homes, And Disproportionately Impact Black And Latino Renters. “Black and Latino people are twice as likely to rent as white people, so a wave of evictions would hit them hardest, adding to the unequal toll of a pandemic that is already ravaging the health and finances of minority communities. ‘The majority of the up to 17 million households at risk of losing their homes this winter are comprised of people of color,’ said Diane Yentel, president and CEO of the National Low Income Housing Coalition.” [Politico, 12/15/20]

The New Compromise Bill Falls Short of Providing Americans With the Comprehensive Relief They Need

• The New Relief Proposal Is Expected To Slash Direct Relief Payments To Americans By Half, After Months Of Heightened Unemployment And Missed Rent. “Stimulus checks could be around $600 to $700 per individual, Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters on Wednesday. That’s just about half of the $1,200 payments authorized by the CARES Act in the spring… It remains to be seen whether there will be a push to increase the second stimulus checks to the $1,200 per individual that were sent out in the spring.” [CNBC, 12/16/20]
  

• The New Relief Proposal Provides $300 In Federal Unemployment Benefits For Sixteen Weeks — Down From The $600 Enhanced Checks That Were Provided In The CARES Act — And Does Not Include Retroactive Payments. “The CARES Act passed in March gave $600 per week to people who are out of work, on top of their usual state unemployment check. When this funding lapsed at the end of July, President Donald Trump signed an executive action to pay a $300 per week bonus. That money will run out by Dec. 31. The bipartisan proposal would provide $300 per week in additional federal unemployment benefits for 16 weeks. It would not make payments retroactive.” [CNET, 12/17/20]
  

• The New Relief Proposal Eliminates $160 Billion In Funding For State And Local Governments When States Are Desperate For Funds. “The bipartisan proposal would split off $160 billion for state and local aid into the package with liability guards, with the intention that Congress could consider the two areas of conflict separately from the bill focused just on economic relief.” [CNET, 12/17/20]
  

• • • Despite Entering 2020 With $119 Billion In Savings, State And Local Government Budget Shortfalls Could Reach $450 Billion In The Next Year. “After the financial crisis of 2008—a rare instance when collective state revenue fell—many states created new (or supplemented existing) “rainy day” funds. As a result, state and local governments entered 2020 with a combined $119 billion in such savings, according to the Brookings Institution. But the economic slowdown caused by COVID-19 has blown up budgets from coast to coast, and the impact will be lasting. Moody’s Analytics estimates that state and local government budget shortfalls could be a combined $450 billion over the next three years even as the economy recovers. Below, a state-by-state breakdown of the looming deficits.” [Fortune, 12/3/20]
      
    • A Report By Moody’s Analytics Concluded That Six Of The Seven States Expected To Suffer The Biggest Revenue Declines Over The Next Two Years Are Red States. “But it turns out this budget crisis is colorblind. Six of the seven states that are expected to suffer the biggest revenue declines over the next two years are red — states led by Republican governors and won by President Trump this year, according to a report from Moody’s Analytics.” [New York Times, 12/4/20]
      
    • Governors Have Been Pleading With Congress For State Aid To Shore Up “Everything From Schools To Emergency Services” As Cases Surge. “Leaders across the country pleaded with Congress for months to reach a deal that would deliver hundreds of billions of dollars to plug budget holes and shore up everything from schools to emergency services. But the $900 billion emerging deal, expected to include direct checks to Americans and a weekly unemployment boost of $300 through March, will not provide the state and local aid that was requested. The stimulus agreement comes just as CARES Act funding is drying up, and as states are taking on two logistical nightmares: weathering a winter surge of Covid-19 cases, and distributing Covid-19 vaccines.” [Politico, 12/16/20]
      
    • Smaller And Rural Communities May Opt To Cut Essential Services Without Relief. “Smaller communities may opt to cut essential services if they are low on funds, according to Wisconsin Treasurer Sarah Godlewski… ‘As we are going into winter, I mean, we’re looking at — are we going to have to be cutting or furloughing snowplow drivers? Or are we going to have to furlough sewer workers or any sort of essential services, because we have to balance our budget at the local level,’ Godlewski said in an interview. ‘One of the most challenging things for local governments, especially rural governments, is that they can’t just go to the bond market as easily as larger communities.’” [Politico, 12/16/20]
      

• The New Relief Proposal Only Extends A Federal Moratorium On Evictions Through January 31, 2020. “The CARES Act established a nationwide ban on evictions for renters who were late on rent. When that was set to expire, Trump extended the ban — but that extension, too, is set to expire at the end of the year.  The new bipartisan proposal would guard against evictions through providing $25 billion to state and local governments to pay for rent and utilities. The bill would also extend an eviction moratorium through Jan. 31, 2021.” [CNET, 12/17/20]