Florida Republican lawmakers have no easy fix for the broke unemployment trust fund and how to continue paying unemployment compensation.
The state has borrowed just over $2 billion from the federal government and the time is drawing nigh for Florida to begin paying interest on this loan.
Employers who contribute to the trust fund, have seen this year’s minimum unemployment rate climb from $25 per worker to $72.10 per worker. In June nearly $10 will be added on as interest payments on the loan from the federal government, reports the News Service of Florida.
House Speaker Dean Cannon admitted on Wednesday, it is one of the toughest problems lawmakers face. And they don’t yet have an answer.
“There is no magic bullet for solving that one,” Cannon acknowledged before a gathering of newspaper editors and reporters hosted by the Associated Press.
Repayments to the federal government are coming at a bad time as Florida tries to close a $3.6 billion budget gap.
Because federal rules do not allow the use of unemployment insurance taxes to make interest payments, Florida will have to take that money from its general budget, bringing about cuts in other priorities such as schools, roads, and health-care services.
While the budget crunch is on, Gov. Rick Scott has pledged to keep his campaign pledge to begin cutting corporate taxes and reduce property tax rates. But, even many of Scott’s Republican lawmakers are skeptical this can be done in the upcoming budget or anytime soon.
Who will be the winners, who will be the losers? Big business or the unemployed?
Let the tough choices begin!
