Gov. Wolf Urges Congress To Pass $600 Weekly Unemployment Aid, Calls Pres. Trump's Executive Order 'Convoluted'
By: KDKA-TV News Staff
HARRISBURG (KDKA) -- Governor Tom Wolf wrote a letter to Congress yesterday, requesting that legislators extend the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) program.
In the letter, Wolf criticized President Donald Trump's decision to allow supplemental benefits through the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA).
"The president's convoluted and temporary idea will leave families waiting weeks just to get less," said Wolf. "This is not what the American people want or expect, and all of us deserve better."
Wolf says that it is important for the House and Senate to come to an agreement for Pennsylvanians struggling during the Coronavirus pandemic.
"As I have said before, the extra $600 per week is vital for families to get by and the federal government should extend it," Wolf said. "The additional unemployment benefit was helping many working families to pay their bills and put food on the table. The U.S. House has already passed a bill to extend the program and the Senate should do the same."
This follows a letter Wolf previously sent to the Pennsylvania Congressional Delegation in the Senate on July 27, which urged Pennsylvania senators to support the extension of the $600 benefit.
The Wolf administration says that under Trump's executive order, Pennsylvanians could go through the new benefits in a matter of weeks and that states are not equipped with current systems to process funds in a timely manner.
You can read the full letter here.