Many states have released their state unemployment insurance taxable wage bases for 2021. Employers should be aware that due to UI trust fund balances that are lower than anticipated and economic concerns regarding employer taxes, some states may change their taxable wage bases later this year or early next year. You can download a list of state unemployment taxable wage bases from 2018 to 2021 (currently updated as of October 26, 2020).
Following the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) scheme, state unemployment contributions (taxes) are determined by applying a certain percentage to the taxable wages paid by the employer. FUTA requires that each state’s taxable wage base must at least equal the FUTA taxable wage base of $7,000 per employee, and most states have wage bases that exceed the required amount. For more information, see APA’s Guide to State Payroll Laws, Table 8.2 – Unemployment Insurance Taxable Wage Bases, Contribution Rates, and Experience Rating Methods.
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Lia Coniglio, Esq., is Managing Editor of PayState Update and Manager of State Payroll Information Resources for the APA.