The Texas Workforce Commission says most Texas employers will see a decrease in their unemployment insurance tax rates next year as the economy continues to improve.
The commission says Texas unemployment insurance rates are down, on average, more than two-tenths of a percent and initial claims have declined by more than 25 percent over the last 12 months.
Sixty-seven percent of Texas' 400,000 employers will pay the minimum tax rate of 0.4 percent for 2006. This rate is a result of measures undertaken in 2003 by the commission to issue bonds in order to sustain the Unemployment Insurance Trust fund.
The average tax rate of 1.51 percent for 2006 is down from 1.74 percent in 2005, while the average experience tax rate is down from 1.63 percent in 2005 to 1.37 percent for 2006. The experience tax rate is the sum of the general tax rate, the replenishment tax rate, and the obligation assessment tax rate for the year.
In announcing the rate cuts, the commission says it is dedicated to finding ways to lower the financial impact of unemployment on Texas employers.
As part of that ongoing effort, the commission instituted initiatives to ensure program integrity in several areas, and to increase fraud detection and prevention. Through the use of increased work-search verifications, improved automated processes and database cross matches with other agencies, the commission says it has seen a reduction in insurance overpayments since January 2004.
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