Through early October this year, Idaho paid out nearly $504 million in regular, extended and supplemental unemployment insurance benefits to people who are out of work, an all-time record payout for any year in the state's history and more than double all of 2008’s total record payout of $247 million.
Unemployment insurance benefits are funded by a mix of employer-paid taxes collected at the state and federal level.
In regular benefits - those held at the state level by the Idaho Trust Fund - Idaho has paid out $336.8 million since January of this year in weekly amounts ranging between a high of $11.4 million in March to a low of $4.8 million in early October.
When it comes to extended and supplemental benefits, Idaho has paid out an additional $166.7 million year-to-date, in weekly amounts ranging from a low of $1.4 million in January to a high of $5.6 million in October.
A higher number of people out of work for longer periods of time and additional federal funds authorized by Congress for extended benefits are two key reasons for the record-breaking payout numbers, but according to Idaho Department of Labor Director Roger B. Madsen, regular benefit payout numbers are beginning to stabilize.
In the third week of May 2009, Idaho paid out $8.3 million in regular benefits, 160 percent higher than the $3.2 million for that same week in 2008. This week the state paid out $4.8 million in regular benefits, 71 percent above the $2.8 million for the same week in 2008. Analysts expect this trend to continue with year-over-year differences converging and completely closing by the end of the year, and in the process, taking some pressure off the Idaho Trust Fund. It was this time last year that Idaho’s economy experienced a precipitous decline where 36,000 nonfarm jobs were lost in only three months.
Idaho's record amount of regular benefits paid broke the Idaho Trust Fund in June of 2009, when the state began to tap interest-free loans from the federal government. As of Oct. 6, Idaho has borrowed over $67 million in interest-free loans to continue to pay regular benefits to new claimants. Department fiscal experts predict the borrowing will continue until the first quarter of 2010 when higher tax rates will kick in and help replenish the Idaho Trust Fund.
At the same time however, the decline in regular benefits is being offset by an increase in the number of people qualifying for and receiving extended benefits.
Claimants can initially draw benefits on a regular claim in Idaho for up to 26 weeks. Using both regular and extended benefits, claimants could draw benefits for up to 79 weeks.
Through September, more than 36,000 people have exhausted regular unemployment insurance benefits and that number continues to climb at a pace of around 1,000 people each week. Around 1,800 of these people have exhausted both regular state and federally-funded extended benefits, and each week around 100 additional people completely exhaust their eligibility to receive unemployment insurance benefits of any kind. Department unemployment insurance experts predict that if Congress does not extend the federally-funded extended benefit program beyond the end of the year, as many as 28,000 Idahoans could completely exhaust eligibility for both regular and extended benefits.
"People use unemployment insurance dollars to pay rent or make house payments, keep the heat and the lights on, put food on the table and buy gas so they can look for work," said Idaho Department of Labor Director Roger Madsen. “And while we would rather see these same people employed and earning livable wages, this record amount also represents $504 million being pumped back into Idaho’s communities, which is good."
Idaho's labor pool currently stands at about 750,000. Approximately 40,000 of those Idahoans are claiming unemployment insurance benefits.