Congressional impasse could hit Kentuckians hard

This from the Enquirer:

Gov. Steve Beshear warned Monday that more than 8,000 Kentuckians will stop receiving jobless benefits unless Congress resolves an impasse that is holding up an additional round of federal funding to financially strapped states.

Kentucky lawmakers had counted on additional federal funds to help pay for the rising cost of jobless aid and the Medicaid program when they crafted a two-year budget earlier this year.

Those funds were blocked last week by a Senate Republican filibuster, leaving Kentucky facing a $238 million budget gap.

The legislation, which would have provided $16 billion in new aid to states, included dozens of tax breaks sought by business lobbyists and tax increases on domestically produced oil and on investment fund managers.

"I will continue to aggressively lobby Kentucky's congressional delegation to make sure they understand the critical need the commonwealth has for both the Medicaid extension and unemployment assistance extension," Beshear said in a statement.

The Democratic governor said Congress needs to understand the "critical need" Kentucky has for the additional federal assistance.

Beshear brokered a compromise between the Kentucky House and Senate last month, getting a $17 billion budget enacted, preventing massive layoffs of state workers that could have included police. Without passage of that budget, Beshear had warned that all nonessential government services would have had to shut down beginning July 1.

"The Senate's failure to extend unemployment benefits will mean nearly 8,700 Kentuckians will stop receiving assistance," Beshear said. "Right now, nearly 140,000 Kentuckians are receiving unemployment aid - money that helps families keep roofs over their heads and food on the table as they try to find work. The failure to pass the federal extension means thousands of Kentucky families will continue to struggle in this recession."...