Aid for jobless

State lawmakers will return to Columbia next week to fix a state law in an extraordinary move that would provide extended jobless benefits for thousands of out-of-work South Carolinians.

Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell and House Speaker Bobby Harrell, both R-Charleston, agreed to call legislators back for a two-day session starting Oct. 27. The benefit legislation is the only item on the agenda, and McConnell said he doesn't expect any opposition to the measure.

"I can't imagine there would be any," he said. "It doesn't put the state deeper in debt, it's money that would otherwise go to other states and it's money that will help these South Carolinians who have lost their jobs."

It was unclear Monday whether Gov. Mark Sanford, who lost a battle to reject $700 million in stimulus funds earlier this year, will approve the benefits legislation change. Sanford spokesman Ben Fox would not say whether the governor would support the measure, saying in a written statement only that "we will consider any legislation sent to us."

An undetermined number of residents would be eligible for additional money from the federal stimulus package if the change is approved.

Roughly 113,000 state residents have run out of unemployment benefits since Jan. 1.

A fiscal analysis from U.S. Rep. John Spratt Jr.'s office estimated tens of millions of dollars were available to the state through the program.

"For people who are about to exhaust their benefits or have already exhausted them, it means the difference between paying the rent ... or being homeless," said Sue Berkowitz of Columbia-based Appleseed Legal Justice Center, whose advocacy pushed unsuccessfully for the change in spring. "It keeps the lights on, and it means you're able to pay for basic needs that are necessary to keep your body, soul and family together."

Because of the state's high unemployment rate, jobless residents who qualified could get an additional five months of benefits on top of existing state and federal benefits. Some had been receiving an additional 13 weeks of emergency benefits, and now none is available because a statewide unemployment index fell below a certain rate.

Under the rules of reconvening, legislators will be reimbursed for travel but won't collect pay. And though some lawmakers have floated the idea of reconvening to impeach Sanford, McConnell said he expects the employment benefits bill to be the only main topic of discussion.

A typical bill takes weeks to pass through the proper channels, but legislative leaders mapped out a plan to speed up the process. At the earliest, the bill could hit Sanford's desk by Oct. 29.

"Frankly, I wish we could do it faster than that to make sure we put this issue behind us and put peoples' minds at ease," Harrell said.

Once the bill passes, the federal funds will be made "immediately available" to the state Employment Security Commission, according to a U.S. Department of Labor spokesman.

Depending on the bill's wording, residents who were shorted seven weeks of unemployment checks can get the money either through weekly installments or in lump-sum payments.

Officials at the state employment agency already are poised to make changes to their computer system to distribute the additional checks, said Allen Larson, deputy executive director for unemployment insurance. Residents who qualify for the additional benefits could start receiving the money within weeks.

"We're going to do everything to pay people just as quickly as possible," he said.

Roosevelt "Ted" Halley, the agency's outgoing executive director, has drawn sharp criticism for failing to pass along information about the additional emergency benefits to state lawmakers, who could have made the changes during the regular legislative session. Halley defended his actions last week, saying the information was available in the original 1,200-page stimulus bill.

"We are still disappointed that the ESC dropped the ball on this, but we are determined to not let that affect South Carolina families negatively," Harrell said.