Sandoval Statement on Unemployment Insurance Rate Decrease Recommendation

Statement

Governor Brian Sandoval today made the following statement after the state's Employment Security Council met and recommended a decrease in the unemployment insurance rate paid by employers in Nevada:

"In 2011, our state unemployment rate was nearly 14.3% and we owed the federal government $800 million Nevada had borrowed to pay unemployment insurance. Since then, we have worked diligently to diversify our state's economy, grow jobs and open doors of opportunity for all Nevadans.

"As a direct result of that economic development and retention work, I am pleased that the Employment Security Council has elected today to recommend a further decrease of the unemployment insurance rate. In 2018, as a result of paying off the $800 million we had borrowed from the federal government for unemployment, we were able to eliminate the unemployment bond assessment rate, which saved employers approximately $223 million. Should today's unemployment rate reduction be adopted, employers would see an additional savings of approximately $269 million per year, beginning in 2019.

"Taken together, these decreases would save Nevada employers a total of nearly $500 million over the next two years -- and even more in future years! Business owners would have a choice whether to pass that savings on to their employees or reinvest the savings into their companies. What's more, our state's reserve fund for unemployment contains nearly $1.3 billion -- a substantial increase over 2011.

"We have achieved significant goals by working together to build the new Nevada and I am confident we will continue to do so moving forward. I am hopeful the Legislative Commission will approve this decrease in December."

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