Industry groups accused Beacon Hill lawmakers of “not grasping” the scope of the unemployment hit on business owners, noting as at least 30 states have already moved to relieve the debt racked up amid the pandemic.
“The state is looking to businesses to lead the recovery from the pandemic and they can’t do that if they’re being weighed down by high taxes,” Christopher Carlozzi, state director for NFIB, said. “They don’t fully grasp just how much of a crisis this is at this point. This is a dire situation.”
Massachusetts is on the hook to repay a $7 billion loan after the historic number of unemployment benefits claims paid out during the pandemic pushed its trust fund into insolvency.
For now, the burden has been placed on the backs of business owners who will be paying higher unemployment rates for the next 20 years as the bond is paid down.
States paid out roughly $175 billion in unemployment benefits…
