SF175 would reduce the maximum length of “unemployment benefits” from twenty 26 weeks to 20 weeks.

The House failed to pass SF175 on February 28, 2025, by a vote of 23 to 36. We have assigned pluses to the nays because there exists no right to a wage or remuneration apart from a person earning it themselves, through their own labor or investment. The reality is that government has no money of its own, and so-called “unemployment benefits,” despite being paid out by the state, are nothing but an illegitimate “insurance” mandate (i.e., tax) on employers—the cost of which is ultimately paid for by hard-working employees. Unsurprisingly, the subsidizing or compulsory financing of unemployed individuals undermines work ethic and profit incentive, creating more unemployment and poor people dependent on the government for income. State lawmakers must not be permitted to legislate beyond their proper constitutional scope and authority.