The Idaho Senate passed HB 335 Tuesday Morning. The bill aims to save employers a total of $115 million over the next three years by reducing a key component in how Idaho calculates the unemployment insurance tax rate.
It would also reduce the cost of unemployment insurance taxes by 30 percent.
The bill passed on a 33-0 vote.
Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter and officials with the Idaho Department of Labor say the change is needed because the trust fund Idaho uses to pay unemployment benefits has more money than it needs to survive an economic crisis. Currently, the fund is on track to have roughly $1 billion by 2020.
The legislation contains an emergency clause making it retroactive to Jan. 1, 2018.
The bill now needs Otter's signature for approval.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
