Department of Labor and Training requests $55 million for Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund

January 10, 2011

On Friday, December 31, 2010, the RI Department of Labor and Training requested a $55-million, three-month line of credit from the federal government so that the state may continue to pay unemployment insurance benefits. The line of credit is both guaranteed and immediate.

Prior to this most recent line of credit, the department had drawn down $225 million in federal loans between March 2009 and May 2010; it did not require any additional loans during the remainder of 2010. Made possible by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, federal loans to state unemployment insurance trust funds had been interest-free through December 31, 2010. However, as of January 1, 2011, the State of Rhode Island began accruing interest on its federal loans.

In 2010, the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training paid approximately $734 million through the Regular Unemployment Insurance, State Extended Benefits, Federal Emergency Unemployment Compensation and Federal Additional Compensation programs. Of that sum, approximately $218 million was paid directly from the state unemployment insurance trust fund. Both the state and federal unemployment insurance trust funds are financed through employer contributions.

The RI Department of Labor and Training offers employment services, educational services and economic opportunity to both individuals and employers. DLT protects Rhode Island’s workforce by enforcing labor laws, prevailing wage rates and workplace health and safety standards. The department also provides temporary income support to unemployed and temporarily disabled workers. For more information on the programs and services available to all Rhode Islanders, please call the RI Department of Labor and Training at (401) 462-8000 or visit the web site at www.dlt.ri.gov.

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