Unemployment Trust Fund
Date:
August 7, 2009
Who:
Dept. of Labor
Policy Area:
Fiscal Policy
Economic Target:
Consumers
Action Type:
Direct Spending
Maximum Amount:
$7.50 billion
Amount Spent:
$7.50 billion The unemployment trust fund was a risk of running out of money in August 2009. The economic recession has fueled unemployment claims, depleting unemployment budgets in 18 states. With unemployment expected to remain high through the coming months, more states are expected to request loans from the federal unemployment trust fund. The law appropriates $7.5 billion to the unemployment trust fund.
Notes:
Amount spent reflects the total funds transferred into the unemployment trust fund, all of which the CBO expects the government to spend. Since the $7.5 billion addition by Congress from the general revenue of the Treasury to the trust fund is an intergovernmental transfer, the deficit impact is zero. Also, because states are required under law to cover all unemployment payments, those costs are already assumed under CBO's baseline projections. Thus, the $7.5 billion addition to the trust fund will not increase direct spending relative to the baseline.