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LABOR DEPT. ESTIMATES OVER 7.1 BILLION IN OVERPAYMENTS TO UNEMPLOYED - CLICK HERE

MA - PATRICK SIGNS UI RATE RELIEF:

With unemployment at its highest levels since 1976 and federal loans eyed to keep jobless benefits flowing in Massachusetts, Gov. Deval Patrick on Thursday signed legislation sharply curtailing unemployment insurance premiums paid by employers, a move praised by business leaders.  Supporters of the bill say it will hit Massachusetts employers early this year with a $120 per employee increase in the cost of unemployment insurance, rather than the previously scheduled $300 increase.   In a press release, Patrick called the larger increase "simply unacceptable to us."  The administration says the change will save employers nearly $400 million in premium payments.  The state plans years of borrowing from the federal government, loans that will eventually carry steep interest costs, to make jobless benefit payments until predicted economic growth helps bring the benefits fund back into the black.  Debate on unemployment insurance reforms is expected in the coming weeks on Beacon Hill.   A hearing on economic development and job creation bills offered by Senate leaders and Gov. Deval Patrick is planned for Feb. 23 before the Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies.  That hearing starts at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday in Room 222.

CNN MONEY - UNEMPLOYMENT TAXES SLAM BUSINESSES

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MD - Benefits for Everyone - Article

MN - Difference Between Spending, Freezing and Cutting - Article

WI - Northwest UI rate News - Article