October 2011 Recent E-News: Courting Crisis
Posted October 31, 2011 in eNews
Courting Crisis – Unemployment compensation, in Ohio and across the country, provides a crucial backstop for jobless workers and their families. It also injects funds into the economy when they are most needed, acting as an automatic stabilizer that eases the effects of economic downturns. In 2010, UC helped more than 3 million Americans avoid poverty, according to the Census Bureau.
Unfortunately, Ohio has underfunded its (now broke) UC system and has been among the states least prepared for a serious recession. Unless action is taken soon, Ohio employers and the state will pay close to a half billion dollars in taxes and interest to the federal government between September 2011 and the end of 2013, debt obligations that will siphon off badly needed resources, burden employers and potentially threaten the state’s UC system, weakening coverage for jobless workers and reducing the system’s positive effect on the economy. Ohio should face up to the need for more adequate financing and a higher taxable wage base.
Zach Schiller, Policy Matters research director, has been tracking problems with Ohio’s UC system for years. Read his latest report about how state policy is Courting Crisis.
Unemployment not your issue? – Watch Amy Hanauer debating Issue 2 on Channel 3; listen to us talk about James O’Keefe’s attempted “sting” on public radio; read our job numbers in PolitiFact (ruling: we tell the truth, those who quote us don’t necessarily); or read about giveaways to corporations.
That’s all!
The Policy Matters Ohio Team