( CNN ) -- President Barack Obama on Saturday called for bipartisan legislation to extend unemployment insurance , an all-important benefit for the longtime out-of-work . `` Just a few days after Christmas , more than 1 million of our fellow Americans lost a vital economic lifeline -- the temporary insurance that helps folks make ends meet while they look for a job , '' Obama said in his weekly address . `` Republicans in Congress went home for the holidays and let that lifeline expire . And for many of their constituents who are unemployed through no fault of their own , that decision will leave them with no income at all . '' The insurance expired last week when lawmakers failed to continue a 2008 recession-era federal law providing nearly a year of benefits , paid for by U.S. taxpayers , that kicked in when state jobless benefits ran out . Congress will start the new year with an old fight : whether to extend jobless benefits for 1.3 million long-term unemployed . Obama urged lawmakers to restore the benefits . `` Right now , a bipartisan group in Congress is working on a three-month extension of unemployment insurance -- and if they pass it , I will sign it . For decades , Republicans and Democrats put partisanship and ideology aside to offer some security for job-seekers , even when the unemployment rate was lower than it is today . Instead of punishing families who can least afford it , Republicans should make it their New Year 's resolution to do the right thing , and restore this vital economic security for their constituents right now , '' Obama said . Democrats argue the program is needed to sustain economic recovery and offer a lifeline to those struggling to keep their heads above water financially . Republicans counter the benefits are an economic drain and a disincentive to looking for work . The Congressional Budget Office estimates continuing them for another year will cost about $ 26 billion . Many Republicans , including potential 2016 presidential candidate Sen. Rand Paul , R-Kentucky , have long insisted that the Great Recession-era extension of emergency federal benefits deters job hunting and is unnecessary as the economy rebounds and unemployment declines . Obama said denial of the security provided by the benefits `` is just plain cruel . '' `` We 're a better country than that . We do n't abandon our fellow Americans when times get tough -- we keep the faith with them until they start that new job , '' he said . `` What 's more , it actually slows down the economy for all of us . If folks ca n't pay their bills or buy the basics , like food and clothes , local businesses take a hit and hire fewer workers . That 's why the independent Congressional Budget Office says that unless Congress restores this insurance , we 'll feel a drag on our economic growth this year . And after our businesses created more than 2 million new jobs last year , that 's a self-inflicted wound we do n't need , '' Obama said . Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid , D-Nevada , plans to hold the first vote toward renewing the benefits on Monday , the day the Senate returns from its holiday recess . It will be a procedural test of a proposal to stretch the program another three months . Democrats do not yet know whether they have enough Republican support to get the 60 votes necessary to clear the procedural hurdle , a senior leadership aide told CNN . The fight has played out repeatedly over the past few years as the two parties clashed in often dramatic showdowns rife with fiery rhetoric and lengthy filibusters .
Last week Congress failed to continue a law providing nearly a year of unemployment benefits . That law was passed in 2008 when recession was at its worst . Democrats says benefits sustain economic recovery , offer a lifeline to those looking for jobs . Republicans counter the benefits are an economic drain and a disincentive to looking for work .