LANSING — Bills to expand unemployment benefits in Michigan are headed to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s desk after lawmakers in the state House of Representatives approved a package that expands unemployment benefits to 26 weeks and increases the maximum weekly payment for beneficiaries.
The main bill in the package, Senate Bill 40, passed the House 58-51 on Tuesday. The bill would allow unemployment beneficiaries to receive benefits for 26 weeks, up from the current 20 weeks under state law. It would increase the maximum weekly unemployment benefit in each of the next three years — up to $446 a week next year, $530 in 2026 and $614 in 2027. The bill also expands the benefit cap for dependents from $6 to $26.
Currently, those receiving unemployment benefits in Michigan can receive a maximum of $362 each week.
The bill, introduced by Sen. Paul Wojno, D-Warren, passed the Senate last week. Legislators also approved companion bills that address how claims are filed and determined. One companion bill, Senate Bill 975, would allow victims of domestic violence to still be eligible for unemployment benefits after voluntarily leaving a job, if they left the job because of domestic violence.
The legislation heads back to the Senate, which could send it soon to Whitmer’s desk. Lawmakers passed the unemployment expansion during the so-called lame-duck period between the November election and the start of a new legislative term. Democrats are set to lose control of the state House next year.
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Republican Reps. Gregory Markkanen, of Hancock, and Dave Prestin, of Cedar River, joined Democrats in approving SB 40.
Backers of the legislation say Michigan has lagged behind its midwestern counterparts in terms of benefits for jobless residents, and that expanding benefits will allow the state to retain talent for its workforce.
“Unemployment benefits are not a permanent solution, but they are a lifeline to people who fall out of a job through no fault of their own,” said Rep. Jim Haadsma, D-Battle Creek.
Sen. John Cherry, D-Flint, told reporters last week Michigan hasn’t expanded unemployment benefits in more than 20 years. A temporary expansion of benefits to 26 weeks was in place during the COVID-19 pandemic but expired in 2021.
Opponents of the legislation said increasing benefit amounts could place strain on the state’s employers, who pay taxes to both the state and federal governments to support the unemployment system.
“For all businesses in the state, this is going to be a major cost increase for them to (take)” said Rep. William Bruck, R-Erie.
In 2011, then-Gov. Rick Snyder signed legislation reducing unemployment benefits in Michigan to 20 weeks, down from 26 weeks. Amanda Fisher, Michigan state director for the National Federation of Independent Business, told members of the Senate Labor Committee last week the cut was partially brought on by strain on the funding pool.
In October, the most recent month for which data is available, the jobless rate in Michigan was 4.7%, according to the state Department of Technology, Management and Budget.
Julia Dale, director of the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency, will leave her position Jan. 3 to take an executive role at a Detroit-based nonprofit, she announced this week.
Contact Arpan Lobo: alobo@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan unemployment: Bills to expand benefits pass House