White House economist: Kansas not alone in need for unemployment upgrades White House economist weighs-in on Kansas unemployment system and last updated 2021-04-08 20:22:34-04 KANSAS CITY, Mo. â Kansas lawmakers are putting finishing touches on legislation to oversee upgrades at the Department of Labor. The House and Senate have both been working on their own versions of bill 2196. It would create an oversight council made up of representatives of employers, representatives of employees, lawmakers and representatives from the Department of Labor. White House economist Jared Bernstein, said Kansas isn't alone in drafting legislation to modernize its unemployment insurance system. "I've been an economist in government for many decades and it seems every time we hit recession, we have to kind of reinvent our unemployment insurance systems," Bernstein said.