Maryland Labor Secretary Portia Wu in a file photo. She told a legislative panel Tuesday that the state’s unemployment insurance trust fund is at risk of falling below federal solvency guidelines and that the situation could get worse by an economic downturn or rise in the jobless rate. (File photo by Bryan P. Sears/Maryland Matters)
Maryland’s unemployment insurance trust fund faces potential solvency issues that could worsen in the wake of massive federal employee layoffs or a recession, lawmakers were told Tuesday.
Labor Secretary Portia Wu told members of the Joint Committee on Unemployment Oversight that the state’s insurance trust fund of $2 billion currently meets federal solvency requirements. But she said that picture could change dramatically with new analysis reflecting economic downturns and unemployment levels that more closely reflect rates during those times…