MADISON, WI (WTAQ) - Wisconsin’s long-term unemployed are one step closer to getting an extra 13 weeks of benefits.

The Unemployment Insurance Advisory Council voted unanimously this afternoon to ask the state Legislature to obtain $89-million in federal funding which the Badger State is now eligible to receive.

About 10,000 unemployed Wisconsinites were getting extended jobless benefits until mid-April, after the state’s unemployment rate fell to the point where it didn’t qualify for the extra funding.

But the state has qualified since then – and some Republican lawmakers have said they were hesitant to provide the extra benefits, claiming it might be a disincentive by some to go look for work.

The state’s top AFL CIO leader strongly disagreed, saying the benefit is only the equivalent of $9.00 in a 40-hour-a-week job.

It’s not known when the full Legislature could act on the extra funding.