North Carolina Becomes First State To Drop Federal Jobless Funds

The AP is reporting:

With changes to its unemployment law taking effect this weekend, North Carolina not only is cutting benefits for those who file new claims, it will become the first state disqualified from a federal compensation program for the long-term jobless.

State officials adopted the package of benefit cuts and increased taxes for businesses in February, a plan designed to accelerate repayment of a $2.5 billion federal debt. Like many states, North Carolina had racked up the debt by borrowing from Washington after its unemployment fund was drained by jobless benefits during the Great Recession.

The changes go into effect Sunday for North Carolina, which has the country’s fifth-worst jobless rate. The cuts on those who make unemployment claims on or after that day will disqualify the state from receiving federally funded Emergency Unemployment Compensation. That money kicks in after the state’s period of unemployment compensation — now shortened from up to six months to no more than five — runs out. The EUC program is available to long-term jobless in all states.

But keeping the money flowing includes a requirement that states can’t cut average weekly benefits.

This is what strikes me the most: North Carolina was actually one of the states I thought was doing very, very well, economically. This is quite shocking, quite surprising. 

Greyhound Bus Lines in North Carolina will probably see an upsurge in one-ticket sales to Florida, Texas, and California.