Washington Legislature poised to boost jobless benefits

OLYMPIA -- Washington's unemployed could soon have an extra $45 in their pockets each week.

A measure aimed at stimulating the economy by tapping into the state's flush unemployment-insurance fund is expected to pass the House today and the Senate next week.

The proposal has the support of Gov. Chris Gregoire.

The Democratic sponsors want to take $193 million from the more than $4 billion trust fund over the next year to give unemployed workers much-needed cash as early as May 3. It would boost the minimum weekly benefit amount from $129 to $155, and all unemployed workers would then receive a temporary additional $45 a week, bringing the minimum to $200 per week. The maximum weekly amount, including the additional $45, would be $586.

The measure would also expand eligibility for training benefits for low-wage workers, discharged military personnel and disabled people.

While the Democratic majority in the Legislature says the state can afford to draw down the trust, the country's wealthiest unemployment fund, business groups and economists say it is unwise to take a large sum without knowing how long the recession is going to last.

The Association of Washington Business has opposed taking extra money from the fund, arguing that if lawmakers keep pulling money out, businesses might have to pay more taxes down the road to refill it should the fund become dangerously low.

At a news conference in Olympia this morning, House Speaker Frank Chopp, D-Seattle, and Rep. Steve Conway, D-Tacoma, plan to discuss the bill, called the "Economic Security Act of 2009."

Last month, Gregoire and Senate majority leaders said they supported tapping into the unemployment-security trust fund. Gregoire proposed using $400 million -- half to boost benefits and the rest to aid businesses by reducing the amount of money they pay in.

Sen. Majority Leader Lisa Brown, D-Spokane, said Thursday that having such a large trust creates an opportunity to offer relief to the unemployed and stimulate the economy at the same time. She believes unemployed workers will put their extra $45 each week directly back into the economy in everyday spending.

"Washington is in good shape relative to the rest of the country," Brown said. "I think we're going to be able to pass UI [unemployment insurance] legislation that businesses feel good about and UI legislation that labor feels good about."

The normally quiet state Employment Security Department has been the focus of intense attention this legislative session because of the sheer size of the unemployment fund and because the state's system of taxing businesses and issuing benefit payments has been out of compliance with federal regulations since 2005.

If this isn't changed soon, federal financial penalties will likely be issued.

Brown said a bill addressing this lack of conformity with the federal law will likely be introduced next week.

Republican Rep. Cary Condotta, R-East Wenatchee, said that if the conformity bill is introduced, he sees no objection to the unemployment-insurance bill. The Washington Roundtable, a nonprofit organization made up of business executives, is also pushing for the conformity bill.

"We can certainly use that money to help the unemployed, but we need to stop bleeding the employers," Condotta said.

The U.S. jobless rate was 7.2 percent in December, while Washington's rate hit 7.1 percent. There were more than 251,700 people in the state out of work, about 91,400 of them in Seattle.

Jennifer Sullivan: 206-464-8294 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com

Information from The Associated Press was included in this report.

Information in this article, originally published Feb. 6, 2009, was corrected Feb. 6, 2009. A previous version of this story inaccurately said that $155 was minimum unemployment payment Washingtonians could receive under a proposed, state economic relief plan. On Friday, House Speaker Frank Chopp clarified the proposed payment plan: The minimum unemployment benefit would be raised from $129 to $155 as early as May 3, then all benefits recipients would receive an extra $45 dollars per week from the state. That would raise the minimum unemployment benefit to $200 a week.