5 hidden mandates in new payroll tax cut bill

February 21, 2012 by Christian Schappel

By now you’ve probably heard that Congress passed a bill that’ll extend the Bush-era 2% payroll tax cut. Well, prolonging the tax cut isn’t all it’s going to do.

The bill, dubbed the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012, also contains five other provisions that haven’t received nearly as much hype.

Here’s a rundown of else the bill will do: 

• Expand work sharing program. The bill will allow workers who’ve had their hours reduced to receive unemployment benefits equal to half of their reduction in pay. Unemployment insurance funds will be used to pay for this benefit. Proponents of this provision say the current unemployment system tends to encourage layoffs because unemployed workers can collect benefits worth half of the former wages. So this provision is expected to keep more people on the job.

Click Here to continue reading.