Biden Cuts Off $300 Additional Unemployment Past Sept. 6, Janet Yellen Tells Americans: “Get Back to Work”

     President Joe Biden's administration will not be reinstating the $300 enhancement of unemployment benefits that are set to expire on Sept. 6, as the U.S.’s unemployment rate, which has plummeted to 5.4%, indicates that Americans can easily find work and do not need extra funds.

     Although President Biden had previous twice extended the extra $300 per recipient of unemployment, using the funds from his $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, President Donald Trump first enacted the financial boost with his Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act  of 2020.

     The CARES Act, which originally set the bonus at $600 per month, but was later cut in half, was meant to provide fast and direct economic assistance for American workers, families, small businesses, and industries. 

      For states that want to continue receiving the extra $300 per recipient of unemployment benefits, the president has suggested that the states can use their portions of $350 billion in direct aid they already received from the American Rescue Plan. 

      While some moderate Senate Democrats have indicated they would not support extending the benefits past September, several states with Republican governors, who have criticized the extra money as disincentivizing unemployed Americans get back to their jobs, have already opted out of the benefits.

      "The temporary $300 boost in benefits will expire on September 6th, as planned," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Labor Secretary Marty Walsh co-wrote in a letter to lawmakers Thursday. "As President Biden has said, the boost was always intended to be temporary and it is appropriate for that benefit boost to expire.

      "We still have more work to do, but the trend is clear," Yellen and Walsh wrote. "Our nation is getting back to work."