Governor signing bill to extend unemployment benefits

PHOTOGRAPHER: The Associated Press

Gov. David Paterson is signing a bill today that will extend unemployment benefits to 56,000 New Yorkers who faced their last checks this week.

Paterson and lawmakers had to rewrite legislation in order to qualify for federal stimulus money to help more unemployed New Yorkers for a longer time.

But the AFL-CIO labor organization is upset. They say the state should also have increased the unemployment benefit. Labor President Denis Hughes gives President Obama credit for extending unemployment benefits for 13 more weeks, but says Paterson must back an increase in New York’s embarrassingly low unemployment check.

Paterson pushed to hold off on that issue to get the extension passed so New Yorkers won’t lose their benefits.