Ron Paul introduces bills to help the unemployed

SPEECH OF
HON. RON PAUL
OF TEXAS
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2009

Madam Speaker, today I am introducing two pieces of legislation to help the increasing number of Americans who, because of the recession, have lost their jobs. The first bill, the Unemployed Tax Relief Act, makes a laid-off worker's last paycheck tax free.

The second bill, the Unemployment Assistance Act, allows unemployed people to make penalty-free withdrawals from accounts such as Roth IRAs and 401(k)s, to cover living expenses, health care, education, and job training expenses. People who make these penalty-free withdrawals while unemployed will be able to replenish their accounts once they have started new jobs.

Madam Speaker, while we may disagree about the best solutions to the economic crisis gripping the nation, I hope my colleagues will at least agree on these commonsense measures and cosponsor the Unemployed Tax Relief Act and the Unemployment Assistance Act.