WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) voted twice on Thursday to advance legislation that would sustain support for Delaware jobseekers by extending federal emergency unemployment insurance benefits. Both procedural votes were defeated, each failing to earn the 60 votes necessary to overcome a Republican filibuster.
“Expanding economic opportunity for all begins with securing our nation’s most fundamental safety nets,” Senator Coons said. “Emergency unemployment insurance helps Americans who are out of work stay afloat while they search for a job and provides needed support to our economy at the same time. Ensuring this lifeline is there for the millions still looking for work is the least Congress can do to help Americans struggling in a tough job market. I am frustrated and disappointed that efforts to renew emergency unemployment insurance continue to face obstruction in the Senate. It’s time to put partisanship aside and come together to invest in American workers and rebuild our middle class.”
Since Congress let emergency unemployment insurance expire at the end of December, more than 1.7 million Americans – including 4,300 Delawareans – have lost their unemployment insurance. Senator Coons was a cosponsor of the bill blocked by Thursday’s filibuster, which would have extended funding for federal emergency unemployment benefits for three months.