Thank you for contacting me regarding the extension of unemployment insurance benefits.  I greatly appreciate hearing your thoughts on this important issue.

On December 17, 2010, the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of 2010 was signed into law by President Obama. The bill extends the tax rates first enacted in 2001 and 2003 for all individual income tax brackets for two years, in addition to extending a number of other federal tax cuts and credits. These extensions include the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit, the Alternative Minimum Tax exemption, marriage penalty relief, and the American Opportunity Tax Credit. The bill also extends the tax rate on dividends and long-term capital gains income, and sets the estate and gift tax exemption at $5 million per person with a top tax rate of 35 percent.

The legislation also reauthorizes the enhanced unemployment benefits program for 13 months. Without the passage of this provision over 230,000 North Carolina families would have been at serious risk of seeing their unemployment benefits expire.

I did not support this overall bill because it will raise our national debt by $858 billion without any long-term plan to address our national deficit. I believe it is time for Congress to tighten its belt, like American families must do daily.  However, I do support the extension of enhanced unemployment insurance programs during these difficult economic times. During Senate consideration of the bill, I supported an amendment sponsored by Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) that would have permanently extended income tax cuts for middle class Americans, while allowing the tax cuts for people making over $1 million per year to expire.  This amendment also included the provision extending enhanced unemployment benefits.

As you know, families all across North Carolina are facing a difficult time making ends meet. I look forward to continuing my work during the 112th Congress to improve our economy and get more Americans back to work.