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Florida businesses can expect future savings on rising unemployment compensation taxes resulting from a comprehensive unemployment compensation reform measure.
The minimum tax rate for businesses nearly tripled this year from last year and faces further increases to cover interest and principal payments on more than $2 billion borrowed from the federal government to pay claims.
Gov. Rick Scott signed House Bill 7005, which creates a sliding scale for benefits beginning in 2012 by tying the maximum weeks of benefits to the unemployment rate. The bill reduces the maximum number of benefits available from 26 weeks to 23 when the unemployment rate is 10.5% or greater. The number of weeks scales back to 12 weeks of benefits when the unemployment rate is 5% or less.
The new law also provides tax relief for employers beginning in 2012 by adjusting the tax calculation, and it changes the criteria by which claimants are disqualified from receiving benefits.
For example, the law changes the definition of misconduct to specify certain acts, such as absenteeism, that would disqualify an individual from receiving benefits. It also adds a disqualification for any weeks an individual receives severance pay from an employer. Many provisions take effect Aug. 1.
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