Dear Speaker Pelosi, Leader McConnell, Senator Schumer and Representative McCarthy:
We respectfully request that you extend the expiration date of the additional $600 per week allocated to individuals receiving unemployment insurance to January 31, 2021. This extra $600 per week in addition to regular unemployment benefits is desperately needed given the recession our country is facing due to COVID-19.
COVID-19 has crippled our economy, leaving approximately 40 million Americans without a job and severely strapped for cash. People will continue to experience financial hardships long after the pandemic is over, and regular unemployment benefits will likely be insufficient to cover all mandatory costs of living such as rent, utilities, childcare and groceries. Given the quickly approaching expiration on California’s moratorium on evictions, many renters will soon be obligated to pay back rent in addition to their current monthly rent. This, coupled with the costs associated with re-opening our country’s economy, such as personal protective equipment for those re-opening their businesses and childcare for workforce members returning to their jobs, leaves all Americans in an extremely difficult financial bind. Therefore, it is necessary to extend this program to provide Americans on unemployment insurance an additional $600 per week to assist them through this crisis. We simply cannot afford to let people lose their homes and their jobs and further contribute to the United States’ worsening homelessness crisis and recession in the middle of a pandemic.
For any questions, please contact Assembly Member Santiago’s office at (916) 319-2053.