Kentuckians Are Having Hard Time Due to Federal Cutbacks

Economic Analyst: Budget Austerity Hurting Kentucky

Some Kentuckians are still having a hard time making ends meet even though the economy is improving. According to economic policy analyst Anna Baumann federal budget cuts, sequestration and austerity are "a blow" to thousands of Kentuckians.

"Times are still really hard for Kentuckians. It's a weak economy and a bad job market," she said. "And, low and middle class families are still not benefiting from growth in the economy, so when the federal government cuts these programs that are supporting those families it's a significant hardship."

Late next month, with the cut-off of long-term unemployment benefits, it may get even worse. The benefits now stretch up to 63 weeks but, Baumann said that unless Congress reauthorizes Emergency Unemployment Compensation, nearly 36,000 Kentuckians would lose crucial support because their benefits would end at 26 weeks.

"Which, by the way, is about ten weeks shorter than the average length of unemployment in the nation today," she said. "It'll be a real hardship for people who are still looking for jobs in the weak job market."

And, many Kentucky families will stop receiving rental assistance at the end of next year.

"That's potentially a 13 percent drop in the number of households receiving support in Kentucky," Ms. Baumann said.