Support Small Businesses by Replenishing the UI Trust Fund with ARPA & Surplus Funds

 Support Small Businesses by Replenishing the UI Trust Fund with ARPA & Surplus Funds

We are disappointed that the legislature has not embraced Governor Baker’s proposal to use $1b in budget surplus money to help restore the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund and strongly encourage our elected leaders to include such funding in future plans. Massachusetts small businesses continue to forge ahead with resiliency and grit, standing as pillars of our communities and values. During the COVID-19 surge, our small businesses protected the people of our region by temporarily closing. Now, our legislature must protect small businesses and their employees from overwhelming Unemployment Insurance (UI) Trust Fund payments.  As our state forges ahead on the road to economic recovery, we must stand with our small businesses and urge our legislature to use American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds and surplus funds to replenish the UI Trust Fund. Thirty other states have stepped up using ARPA recovery funds for this purpose as they were intended.  Our small business owners and workforce need relief from costly and devastating UI bills, and a total of $2 billion in funding to the UI Trust Fund will drive an equitable recovery throughout the Commonwealth.   

James E. Rooney

President & CEO

Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce