FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: (202) 225-1025
August 31, 2000
No. HR-24
Congresswoman Nancy L. Johnson (R-CT), Chairman, Subcommittee on Human Resources of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Subcommittee will hold a hearing on reform of the Unemployment Compensation (UC) system. The hearing will take place on Thursday, September 7, 2000, in room B-318 Rayburn House Office Building, beginning at 10:00 a.m.
Oral testimony at this hearing will be from invited witnesses only. Witnesses will include representatives from the U.S. Department of Labor, the business community, State government, and organized labor. However, any individual or organization not scheduled for an oral appearance may submit a written statement for consideration by the Committee and for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing.
BACKGROUND:
The UC program provides benefits to unemployed workers who have a history of employment. Within a broad Federal framework, each State designs its own benefit program and imposes taxes on employers to pay for regular unemployment benefits. A Federal tax is also imposed on employers to fund the Federal parts of the system, including State and Federal administration, the U.S. Employment Service which helps unemployed workers find new jobs, loans to States with bankrupt programs, and half of extended unemployment benefits for workers in States with very high levels of unemployment. All funds are kept in Federal trust funds that are part of the unified Federal budget.
In February of this year, the Subcommittee held a hearing that covered both introduced legislation and proposals to reform and improve the UC program. Major provisions of these proposals included eliminating the temporary 0.2 percent surcharge on the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) taxes paid by employers, allowing more workers to qualify for unemployment benefits, providing incentives for States to improve the solvency of their benefit accounts, making the extended benefits program more accessible, and helping State programs get more money back from the FUTA taxes paid by their employers.
Both before and since that hearing, a coalition of groups with an interest in UC, consisting of representatives from the Administration, organized labor, the business community, and the States, has met to work out a consensus reform proposal and is now prepared to present this proposal to the Subcommittee.
In announcing the hearing, Chairman Johnson stated: "The unemployment program currently provides real peace of mind to millions of hardworking Americans. However, it is also a system in need of reform and improvement. I am committed to preserving and strengthening these benefits for workers. That is why it is so encouraging that a broad coalition of interested parties has now developed a proposal to make these much needed reforms. This is a unique opportunity for the Subcommittee to learn more about this proposal."
FOCUS OF THE HEARING:
The hearing will focus on the UC reform proposal developed by a broad coalition of interested parties.
DETAILS FOR SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN COMMENTS:
Any person or organization wishing to submit a written statement for the printed record of the hearing should submit six (6) single-spaced copies of their statement, along with an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect or MS Word format, with their name, address, and hearing date noted on a label, by the close of business, Thursday, September 21, 2000, to A.L. Singleton, Chief of Staff, Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives, 1102 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515. If those filing written statements wish to have their statements distributed to the press and interested public at the hearing, they may deliver 200 additional copies for this purpose to the Subcommittee on Human Resources office, room B-317 Rayburn House Office Building, by close of business the day before the hearing.
FORMATTING REQUIREMENTS:
Each statement presented for printing to the Committee by a witness, any written statement or exhibit submitted for the printed record or any written comments in response to a request for written comments must conform to the guidelines listed below. Any statement or exhibit not in compliance with these guidelines will not be printed, but will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.
1. All statements and any accompanying exhibits for printing must be submitted on an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette WordPerfect 5.1 format, typed in single space and may not exceed a total of 10 pages including attachments. Witnesses are advised that the Committee will rely on electronic submissions for printing the official hearing record.
2. Copies of whole documents submitted as exhibit material will not be accepted for printing. Instead, exhibit material should be referenced and quoted or paraphrased. All exhibit material not meeting these specifications will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.
3. A witness appearing at a public hearing, or submitting a statement for the record of a public hearing, or submitting written comments in response to a published request for comments by the Committee, must include on his statement or submission a list of all clients, persons, or organizations on whose behalf the witness appears.
4. A supplemental sheet must accompany each statement listing the name, company, address, telephone and fax numbers where the witness or the designated representative may be reached. This supplemental sheet will not be included in the printed record.
The above restrictions and limitations apply only to material being submitted for printing. Statements and exhibits or supplementary material submitted solely for distribution to the Members, the press, and the public during the course of a public hearing may be submitted in other forms.
The
Committee seeks to make its facilities accessible to persons with
disabilities. If you are in need of special accommodations, please
call 202-225-1721 or 202-226-3411 TTD/TTY in advance of the event
(four business days notice is requested). Questions with regard to
special accommodation needs in general (including availability of
Committee materials in alternative formats) may be directed to the
Committee as noted above.