Republicans seek to cut duration of unemployment benefits
MADISON – Assembly Republicans approved legislation Thursday that would allow people to receive unemployment benefits for about half as long as they do now when the economy is doing well.
Assembly Bill 937 would link how long one can receive benefits to the state’s unemployment rate.
Now, the unemployed can receive regular benefits for up to 26 weeks. That would drop to 14 weeks under the legislation because the state’s unemployment rate of 2.8% is at a historic low.
The number of weeks of benefits that would be available would rise along with the unemployment rate, topping out at 26 weeks when the unemployment rate is at 9% or higher.
“(With) the economic climate we have right now, there’s no reason that someone should need a half a year to find a good, high-quality paying job as they’re around every corner,” said Republican Rep. Alex Dallman of Green Lake.
The legislation was part of a package Assembly Republicans took up that would reduce benefits across a host of programs. Republicans touted the measures as a way to keep people in the workforce, while Democrats described them as mean-spirited.
“I’m still trying to figure out exactly how your bills are going to reemploy anybody because as far as I can tell they mainly punish people who may still be looking for work,” said Rep. Christine Sinicki of Milwaukee.
The Assembly worked into the evening passing the Republican measures on party lines. They will next go to the Senate, which is controlled by Republicans.
If the bills clear that house, they would face likely vetoes from Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.
Other bills Assembly Republicans passed or planned to pass Thursday would put in place more drug testing and work requirements for unemployment benefits and food stamps, cut off unemployment benefits for those who don’t show up for job interviews and suspend people’s access to public health insurance if they turn down job offers.
Under Assembly Bill 939, those who don’t show up for job interviews could lose their unemployment benefits. They could also lose their benefits if they declined a job interview or did not respond to a request for a job interview.
Assembly Bill 883 seeks to jump-start a provision in state law that is supposed to require some people to take drug tests to qualify for unemployment benefits. The provision has not gone into effect because the Evers administration has not adopted formal rules on the drug-testing program. The legislation would force the administration to take that step.
Assembly Bill 935 is meant to ensure the administration enacts work requirements and drug testing requirements for some people to qualify for FoodShare benefits.
Assembly Bill 938 would require the state to maintain longer hours at its unemployment call centers when call volumes are three times higher than normal, as happened in 2020 during a massive backlog of unemployment claims because of the coronavirus pandemic.
In an attempt to reduce fraud, the measure would also require the state to run the names of benefits claimants through databases of death records and prison records.
In addition, the bill would require the Department of Workforce Development to conduct an audit of at least half the work searches the unemployed are supposed to perform while they are receiving benefits.
Other bills are focused on BadgerCare Plus, the Medicaid program that provides health insurance to lowincome people in Wisconsin.
Assembly Bill 936 would suspend BadgerCare benefits for six months to those who refuse to take a job in an effort to keep their benefits.
Assembly Bill 934 would require the state Department of Health Services every six months to check the BadgerCare eligibility of adults in the program who do not have dependent children.
Prisons would need more vendors
The Assembly is also slated to take up Senate Bill 564, which would require the Department of Corrections to contract with at least three vendors to provide personal items to inmates, such as soap, toothbrushes, fans, televisions and other products.
The bill was introduced after news of the department’s decision to narrow inmates’ choice to one vendor — California-based Union Supply Group, which has a warehouse near Milwaukee. The move eliminated two others vendors that had offered other choices.
Those incarcerated, their loved ones and advocates spoke out about the change, saying that reducing the number of vendors would eliminate competition, cause prices to rise and result in a lack of choice.
The decision to drop to one vendor resulted in the elimination of the J.L. Marcus company from the personal property program. It was the only vendor to offer in-person purchases for those who live in Milwaukee. The bill would require at least one of the vendors in the program to offer an in-person option for purchasing within the Milwaukee area.
The Senate approved the bill in January.