{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.curtis.senate.gov/press-releases/curtis-ernst-introduce-bill-ending-unemployment-benefits-for-millionaires", "CURTIS, ERNST INTRODUCE BILL ENDING UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS FOR MILLIONAIRES", "2025-05-15", "2025", "2025-05", "Republican", "Senate", "UT", "John R. Curtis", "C001114", "www.curtis.senate.gov", "curtis", "https://www.curtis.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases", "scraper", "Washington, D.C. \u2013 U.S. Senators John Curtis (R-UT) and Joni Ernst (R-IA) introduced the Ending Unemployment Payments to Jobless Millionaires Act, which would make anyone earning $1 million or more from any source of income ineligible for unemployment benefits.\n\n\u201cThe federal government must be responsible stewards of taxpayer money. That includes ensuring programs like unemployment insurance only serve those who need them the most. Yet IRS data show that thousands of millionaires are gaming the system to receive unemployment benefits,\u201d said Senator Curtis. \u201cOur commonsense legislation would end jobless benefits for anyone earning $1 million or more from any source of income.\u201d\n\n\u201cOur nation\u2019s safety net shouldn\u2019t be strained by subsidizing the lifestyles of the self-sufficient,\u201d said Senator Ernst. \u201cAble-bodied millionaires shouldn\u2019t expect handouts paid for by overtaxed and overworked Americans. The freebies for free-loading fat cats are over.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nAccording to a Congressional Research Service analysis of tax returns, thousands of high-income earners collected jobless benefits during 2021 and 2022. In 2021 alone, 14,972 individuals and households reporting incomes of $1 million or more received a collective $213.6 million in unemployment benefits. The following year, another 5,773 millionaires were paid a total of $57.6 million.\n\nAmong them were more than 300 ultra-wealthy individuals earning $10 million or more, who collectively received nearly $4 million. On average, each unemployed millionaire was paid approximately $14,265 for not working in 2021. Over the course of these two years, nearly half a billion dollars in unemployment benefits were distributed to out-of-work millionaires.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:20:29Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.curtis.senate.gov/press-releases/curtis-ernst-introduce-bill-ending-unemployment-benefits-for-millionaires"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9730758611112833, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}