WTC Records Folder 0140 label, 2001

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

SUPPORTING FAMILIES AND DISLOCATED WORKERS The events of September 11 significantly exacerbated an ongoing national economic slowdown. Tens of thousands of individuals are or soon will be unemployed, either directly or indirectly due to overall economic uncertainty created by the terrorists attacks. New York's workforce has unquestionably experienced the most severe blow. Nearly 377,000 workers were impacted by the attacks, a number roughly equivalent to the population of the entire City of Atlanta. Nearly 1,300 businesses were directly impacted. President Bush's proposals to extend unemployment benefits nationwide, provide grants for health insurance coverage, income supplementation and job training, and to provide assistance in accessing existing job search and training services will significantly mitigate this severe problem. New York is also seeking Federal assistance to address the immediate needs of these workers as follows:

➢ 100 percent reimbursement for COBRA premiums. Emergency grants to cover Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) continuation health coverage premiums for workers displaced as a direct result of the attacks is an important step in providing financial stability for individuals so brutally displaced from their jobs.

> Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund and workers' compensation. As a result of the terrorist attack against New York City, there are thousands more claims for unemployment insurance benefits than would normally be seen at this time of year. These claims are straining the Unemeployment Insurance (UI) Trust Fund and, in turn, adding to the considerable after- shock the State's businesses are experiencing.

The UI Trust Fund needs an immediate infusion of $260 million to cover the cost of unemployment insurance benefits that will be paid through December 31 to the thousands of workers who have lost their jobs due to the attack. Without Federal reimbursement of these charges, employers would suffer an unaffordable increase in UI taxes of $160 million.

A similar increase in workers compensation 'rates is also likely to be triggered due to payments made in relation to the terrorist attacks. New York State has made tremendous strides in lowering employer's workers compensation rates over the past several years, and the Federal Government should make special accommodations to prevent any increases in these rates due to the terrorist attacks.

As the impact of the crisis ripples throughout the State's employers, the amount of Federal funding almost certainly will need to be increased to accommodate those employers who provided services, products or otherwise relied on business activity generated in the immediate disaster area.

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NYC-WTC 000136772