Ohio’s unemployment compensation reform Task Force will meet this week to discuss a report by a third-party actuary, detailing the cost and savings of several ideas to help the fund achieve solvency.
“There is a genuine commitment from all parties to get it done this time,” said ACT Ohio Executive Director Matthew Szollosi. “The third-party actuary is providing us the options; we have to find the balance.”
That balance includes compromises by both labor and management in order to prevent another shortfall like the one in 2007, requiring Ohio and other states to borrow from a federal loan in order to pay unemployment benefits.
The Columbus Dispatch reported today that “Ohio law sets a minimum adequate reserve for then unemployment compensation fund at $2.8 billion, an amount the state has never achieved. The current balance is $313 million.” Many agree that another recession would send Ohio back to the federal government again, seeking assistance.
Szollosi is optimistic about the commitment from all sides to fix this ongoing problem. The 10-person panel includes representatives from labor – like Szollosi – and business, in addition to lawmakers.
The group aims to have a proposal to the General Assembly in June, prior to the summer recess.
