Employers: Has Your State Made Unemployment Tax Changes?


If you’re an employer working on your state unemployment tax returns, you’ll be interested to know that many states have made changes for the 2016 tax year.

In many states, the tax liability on unemployment tax returns has changed due to new taxable wage bases and tax rates, and reduction or elimination of some tax surcharges.

The table below provides a summary of some 2016 state unemployment insurance changes.

StateChange
AlabamaThe shared cost assessment is not in effect in 2016 (it was 0.3% in 2015).
AlaskaTaxable wage base has increased from $38,700 to $39,700.
ArizonaEmployers no longer have to pay the job training tax, which was computed at 1% of taxable wages.
ColoradoTaxable wage base has increased from $11,800 to $12,200.
HawaiiTaxable wage base has increased from $40,900 to $42,200. Also, experienced employers pay unemployment taxes under lower rate Schedule C in 2016. Unemployment tax rates range from 0% to 5.56%. Rate schedule D was in effect in 2015 (rates ranged from 0.2% to 5.8%).
IdahoTaxable wage base has increased from $36,000 to $37,200.
IowaTaxable wage base has increased from $27,300 to $28,300.
KansasTaxable wage base has increased from $12,000 to $14,000.
KentuckyTaxable wage base has increased from $9,900 to $10,200.
MarylandExperienced employers pay unemployment taxes under lower rate Table A in 2016. Unemployment tax rates range from 0.3% to 7.5%. Table B was in effect in 2015 (rates ranged from 0.6% to 9.0%).
MichiganTaxable wage base decreased for most non-delinquent, contributing employers from $9,500 to $9,000, beginning in the third quarter of 2015.
MississippiRecent legislation lowered the basic minimum unemployment tax rate for experienced employers from 0.2% to 0.0%.
MinnesotaTaxable wage base has increased from $30,000 to $31,000.
MontanaTaxable wage base has increased from $29,500 to $30,500.
NevadaTaxable wage base has increased from $27,800 to $28,200.
New JerseyTaxable wage base has increased from $32,000 to $32,600.
New MexicoTaxable wage base has increased from $23,400 to $24,100. Also, New Mexico is revising the way it computes unemployment tax rates beginning in the third quarter of 2016.
New YorkTaxable wage base has increased from $10,500 to $10,700.
North CarolinaTaxable wage base has increased from $21,700 to $22,300. Also, employers no longer have to pay a 20% surcharge on their unemployment tax liability.
North DakotaTaxable wage base has increased from $35,600 to $37,200.
OklahomaTaxable wage base has increased from $17,000 to $17,500.
OregonTaxable wage base has increased from $35,700 to $36,900.
PennsylvaniaTaxable wage base has increased from $9,000 to $9,500.
Rhode IslandTaxable wage base has increased from $21,200 to $22,000 (from $22,700 to $23,500 for employers in the highest unemployment tax rate bracket).
TennesseeTaxable wage base has decreased from $9,000 to $8,000
UtahTaxable wage base has increased from $31,300 to $32,200.
VermontTaxable wage base has increased from $16,400 to $16,800.
VirginiaThe pool cost charge has been reduced from 0.14% to 0.07%. Employers don’t have to pay the fund builder tax in 2016.
Virgin IslandsTaxable wage base has increased from $22,900 to $23,000.
WashingtonTaxable wage base has increased from $42,100 to $44,000.
WyomingTaxable wage base has increased from $24,700 to $25,500