The state Department of Labor will mail out special assessments Thursday to approximately 55,000 Connecticut employers, part of the state’s ongoing effort to pay back federal loans it took to fund unemployment benefits during the Great Recession.
The state owes approximately $430 million, DOL Spokeswoman Nancy Steffens said Wednesday. That’s down from approximately $575 million a year ago and $635 million in 2012, she said.
The payments this year amount to $7.50 per employee. That’s down from $15 last year and $19.50 in 2012. The lower assessments are the result of an interest-rate reduction last year, and a shrinking loan balance.
Last year, approximately 75,000 employers received an assessment. The reduction in numbers is due to the shrinking per-employee cost, as DOL doesn’t send a bill to any company that owes less than $10.
The assessments are owed on top of employers’ regular contributions to the unemployment trust fund.
