Senator Hagan will hold a press conference in Raleigh to discuss a provision she introduced to reinstate North Carolina's eligibility for the Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) program and make an announcement about additional work she's done to ensure out-of-work North Carolinians have access to this critical lifeline. Joining Hagan at the press conference will be State Senator Josh Stein. The provision is a part of a larger bill to extend federal unemployment benefits, introduced by Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Dean Heller (R-NV), which the Senate will consider Monday evening.

Last year, the North Carolina General Assembly passed legislation that slashed state unemployment benefits, violating federal law and resulting in North Carolina becoming the only state in the nation to be disqualified from the federal emergency unemployment compensation program.

As a result, approximately 170,000 North Carolinians were no longer able receive federal unemployment benefits they were promised starting on July 1, 2013.