Idaho’s Standard Unemployment Insurance Tax Rate Drops Approximately 18% for 2021

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: Dec.18 2020
Media Contacts: Georgia Smith, Georgia.Smith@labor.idaho.gov or Darlene Carnopis, Darlene.Carnopis@labor.idaho.gov

Idaho employers will see a roughly 18 percent decrease in unemployment insurance tax rates for 2021.

The state’s new employer rate remains at 1.0 percent – the lowest rate allowed by federal conformity requirements.

“Thanks to Governor Little approving a $200 million transfer of CARES Act funding to keep the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund whole, most Idaho businesses will see a decrease in their tax rate for 2021,” said Jani Revier, Idaho Department of Labor director. “This move by the governor allows Idaho to keep UI tax rates low in the coming year and will help business owners as they navigate through these difficult times,” Revier said.

In response to the increase in pandemic-related unemployment, Idaho paid about $1 billion in unemployment insurance benefits to out-of-work Idahoans. While a portion of the benefits were federally funded, Idaho’s UI Trust Fund was responsible for payment of the remaining benefits.

During this historic year, Idaho had a record low unemployment rate of 2.5% in March. But in the span of one month, with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the unemployment rate reached a record high of 11.8%. As the economy reopened, the unemployment rate declined and Idaho emerged as one of the least impacted states for job loss and unemployment. Year-to-year, Idaho continues to lead the nation in the rebound with nonfarm jobs in November at .5 percent above November 2019.

Businesses can help keep taxes low by:

A complete list of the 2021 unemployment insurance tax arrays for businesses can be found at http://www.labor.idaho.gov/taxrates.

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