Congresswoman Richardson Votes to Help California’s Unemployed and Those Seeking to Purchase Their First Home
WASHINGTON, Dc – November 6, 2009 – (RealEstateRama) — Today, Congresswoman Laura Richardson acted to make the basic tenets of the American Dream possible for thousands of Californians by voting for the Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2009 (HR 3548), which will help the unemployed by extending unemployment benefits and will continue to stimulate the housing market by extending and expanding the first time homebuyer credit. The legislation passed the U.S. House of Representatives with a vote of 403 to 12 and now goes to President Barack Obama for his signature.
“With our economy just now starting to recover from the worst recession in generations, this needed assistance of 14 additional weeks of unemployment will hopefully give job seekers the padding they need to reach the opportunity for gainful employment as the tide begins to turn,” Congresswoman Richardson said. “The extension of the unemployment benefits will immediately help thousands of people and their families in the 37th Congressional District, where the unemployment rates have reached 12.6 percent in Carson, 20.9 percent in Compton, 13.7 percent in Long Beach and 9.4 percent in Signal Hill; rates that in three of the four cities is higher than the national average, 9.7 percent, and for California as a whole, 12.2 percent. The Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2009 will aid 1.3 million unemployed individuals across the country by providing up to an additional 14 weeks of extended unemployment benefits, including extending benefits for an additional six week in states with unemployment at more than 8.5 percent, including California.
To encourage homeownership, the Act will extend the $8,000 homebuyer tax credit to first-time homebuyers through April, 2010 and it will also expand it to provide a $6,500 credit available to homebuyers who have been in their current residence for five or more consecutive years out of the last eight years. Additional provisions have been added into the homebuyer provision to provide improved access to the program for military families, these include allowing service members a break from repaying the first-time home buyer credit if they are ordered to deploy to a different location and forced to sell their home within three years and it extends the deadline a year so service members stationed overseas can take advantage of the credit when they return.
“The extension and expansion of the homebuyer credit will provide multiple benefits to the 37th District, from buyers and sellers to the slowly improving financial sector, it will improve the current real estate market by increasing the number of qualified homebuyers and it will improve the livability of our families, by offering homeownership,” Congresswoman Richardson added.
Congresswoman Richardson is a Democrat from California’s 37th Congressional District. She is a member of the House Committees on Transportation & Infrastructure and Homeland Security. Her district includes Long Beach, Compton, Carson, Watts, Willowbrook and Signal Hill.
Contact: Jeff Billington
(202) 225-7924
