State Debt for Unemployment Benefits Continues to Climb

North Carolina’s Employment Security Commission made news about a month ago when it was discovered that they overpaid unemployment benefits by about $28 million.

But there may be more to the story. According to WRAL:

The state Employment Security Commission paid out too much in jobless benefits to thousands of unemployed people in North Carolina for much longer than previously thought, according to a report released Monday.

So the problem may end up being worse than originally thought. But this snafu pales in comparison to the debt owed to the federal government. Because unemployment insurance benefits paid out have drastically exceeded the amount of unemployment taxes collected, North Carolina has borrowed from the federal government $2.4 billion to cover the payouts. The $2.4 billion owed is about two and a half times what the state collected in UI taxes over the past year.

I have yet to hear a credible repayment plan coming from any state lawmaker – other than “let’s hope the feds don’t collect.”