Idaho ends some emergency unemployment benefits

SANDPOINT — In response to the improving state economy, the state is shutting down some of its emergency unemployment benefits.

According to Idaho Department of Labor officials, Idaho dipped below 8-percent this year, prompting the state to ease back on its emergency extended benefits. While officials are slicing off three to seven weeks of the payments, the impact should be fairly minimal. Based on the number of weeks left in the year, only 368 people across Idaho risk losing any unemployment insurance.

“It doesn’t mean a whole lot in reality, because extended benefits are cut off in December,” Idaho Department of Labor spokesman Bob Fick said.

Idaho features two different unemployment benefit programs. One is a state-run benefits package financed through a tax on Idaho businesses.

“In good times and bad, this state program is there to help residents if they become unemployed,” Fick added.

When residents exhaust their state benefits after a maximum time frame of 26 weeks, the federal government is there to take over.

In a somewhat confusing situation, Idaho qualifies for both the typical federal extended benefits and a special program known as Federal-State Extended Benefits. That program was reserved for states left in particularly bad shape by the recession.

“Idaho, being a state with particularly high unemployment, had both programs in effect,” Fick said.

Having both programs available certainly came in handy. For instance, when Idaho’s unemployment rate fell below 8.5-percent, the improvement triggered an elimination of Tier IV benefits. However, with both systems in place, the transition made no practical difference Idaho residents, who didn’t miss a single week when it came to scheduled benefits.

Since the most recent elimination of extended benefits will ultimately impact relatively few people, Fick reads the development as a positive sign.

A year ago, there were 16,000 individuals on state benefits and another 16,000 on extended federal benefits. That number has fallen to 12,000 on state benefits and 10,000 on federal benefits, which is only a good thing for the Idaho economy, he said.