Hawaii's Troubled Trust Fund
Faced with a record trust fund balance in 2008, Hawaii instituted an unemployment insurance tax holiday with a trigger that would dramatically increase taxes if the balance went too low. When unemployment spiked from 3 percent to 8 percent, the fund's balance dropped precipitously, triggering a business tax increase from $90 to $1,070 per employee, on average.
This news application is no longer being updated as of February 3, 2011. The historical data is still accurate.
| Bankrupt and Borrowing: Hawaii's unemployment fund is currently bankrupt and Hawaii is borrowing from the federal government. |
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| Borrowed Amount | Unemployment Rate (November) | Net Income (December) | Avg. Weekly Benefit | % of Unemployed Receiving Benefits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $28.3m | 6.5% | $-21.9m | $420.2 | 48.0% |
| National: 9% | Rank: 21 of 51 | Rank: 1 of 51 | Rank: 7 of 51 |
Unemployment Reserves (millions)
Reporters: You are free to use this data to report your stories. Just remember to credit Propublica. Here's a CSV Download of our unemployment data. (Last update February 02, 2011)
Sources: Google Public Data, Department of Labor, Treasury Department.