SCHUMER FIGHTS TO EXTEND ESSENTIAL TRADE ADJUSTMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM THAT HELPS DISPLACED WORKERS GET BACK ON THEIR FEET - PROGRAM ON THE BRINK OF EXPIRING
TAA Program, Which Helps Workers Whose Jobs Are Shipped Overseas, Will Expire In Less Than Two Weeks Without Congressional Action; Schumer, Other Senators Urge Quick Action
On The Chopping Block: Critical Program That Has Helped Thousands of New Yorkers Find New Jobs, Retrain, And Keep Health Insurance
Schumer: In Tough Economic Times, TAA Is More Essential than Ever; Co
On Friday, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer released a letter to leaders in the House of Representatives, written with twelve other Senators, urging the House to extend the Trade Adjustment Assistance Program (TAA) which will expire on February 12th without Congressional action. The program has helped thousands of New Yorkers find new jobs, afford healthcare, and provide for their family when their jobs are shipped overseas. In the letter, Schumer and his colleagues urge Congress to take into consideration the difficult economic times and extend the program before it sunsets.
"During these difficult economic times, Congress needs to focus like a laser on the middle-class and help put New Yorkers back to work, and TAA does just that for workers whose jobs are shipped overseas," Schumer said. "Without immediate action, an essential program that helps workers retrain, find new jobs, and support their families during the transition to new employment is at risk of running out. Too many middle-class New Yorkers still need help finding work and ways to support their families, and this program is an essential part of solving that problem and it must be extended immediately."
Trade Adjustment Assistance helps workers and farmers who either lose their jobs or face reduced wages as a result of outsourcing or other factors related to global trade. Benefits can include retraining, relocation allowances in the event a family must move to find new work, help with job search expenses, as well as income benefits.
Over the last two years workers at over 160 businesses around New York successfully petitioned for TAA benefits in the wake of layoffs, resulting in thousands of New Yorkers receiving TAA benefits when they lost their job. In 2009 alone, nearly 6,000 workers received assistance under the program, when it was determined that their job loss came about as a result of global trade. Over 2,000 New Yorkers participated in jobs training programs in 2009, helping to learn new skills that increase their competitiveness in the search for new employment.
Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) provides assistance to qualifying workers who lose their jobs directly due to increased imports or shifts in production out of the United States. Certified workers whose unemployment compensation has ended and who are in approved training may receive income support payments (Trade Readjustment Allowances, or TRA) for a maximum of 156 weeks. Some workers age 50 or older are eligible to receive Reemployment Trade Adjustment Assistance (RTAA), a wage supplement program. Both TAA- and RTAA-eligible workers can receive a Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC), which provides a refundable tax credit to offset 80% of the health insurance premiums of TAA- and RTAA-eligible workers. The Trade Adjustment Assistance for Farmers program provides technical assistance and cash benefits to producers of agricultural commodities and fishermen who experience adverse economic impacts caused by increased imports.
The reforms to TAA in 2009 helped 5,963 workers in New York alone. Over 360,000 Americans have been certified for TAA assistance over the past two years, and over 40 percent of them were certified because of the improvements to TAA that were enacted in 2009. The 2009 improvements also help ensure TAA program accountability and results by requiring data on performance and worker outcomes, enabling Congress to identify where improvements are needed.
Senator Schumer and his colleagues are urging that the TAA program and all of its improvements be preserved and extended immediately.
The letter was signed by Senator Harry Reid, Senator Dick Durbin, Senator Sherrod Brown, Senator John Kerry, Senator Jeff Bingaman, Senator Debbie Stabenow, Senator Ron Wyden, Senator Bob Casey, Senator Kay Hagan, Senator Tom Harkin, Senator Maria Cantwell, and Senator Carl Levin.
The full text of the Senators' letter is below:
February 4, 2011
The Honorable John Boehner
Speaker
U.S. House of Representatives
H-232, U.S. Capitol
Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Dave Camp
Chairman
Committee on Ways and Means
1102 Longworth Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Representatives:
The Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) for Workers program will expire on February 12, 2011 unless Congress takes action, and we are writing to ask for your help. TAA has enjoyed bipartisan support for decades. We believe that Congress should enact a long-term extension of TAA before it expires. Because the vehicle for such legislation must originate in the House, we ask that you quickly introduce and pass a long-term extension of TAA.
TAA is a critical part of our nation's competitiveness strategy. It ensures that the workers affected by trade receive the support and training necessary to transition into new jobs in emerging sectors of the economy.
In 2009, with bipartisan, bicameral support, Congress overhauled TAA and made important improvements to the program. Specifically, the reforms made service sector workers eligible for the program, expanded access for manufacturing and secondary workers, almost tripled training funding and promoted incumbent, part-time and longer-term training. These reforms also improved and expanded access to TAA's Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC), which helps certified workers to purchase private health insurance. Until these changes were made, the TAA program had not kept pace with our changing trade and employment landscape, at a time when other industrialized countries were investing more and more resources in labor market programs.
As we understand it, you and many members of the House support a long-term extension of TAA. Just six weeks ago, on December 15, 2010, the House passed an 18-month extension of TAA in the original version of H.R.6517. This extension passed the House by voice, indicating that it had broad bipartisan support, including the support of the leadership of both parties and the chairman and ranking member of the Committee on Ways and Means.
The length of the extension in H.R.6517 was reduced in the Senate, but as we understand it, this was done not because of opposition to the TAA program, but rather because of a dispute over unrelated trade matters.
All told, the reforms to TAA in 2009 help hundreds of thousands of workers, in every State. Over 360,000 Americans have been certified for TAA assistance over the past two years, and over 40 percent of them were certified because of the improvements to TAA that were enacted in 2009. The 2009 improvements also help ensure TAA program accountability and results by requiring data on performance and worker outcomes, enabling Congress to identify where improvements are needed. It is critical that we preserve all these improvements to TAA.
Thank you for considering our request. We look forward to working with you on this bipartisan issue.