No Unemployment Insurance Tax hike for 2022

By NFIB,

In an otherwise dismal year for Oregon’s small-business owners, 2022 will open with some good news for them—their UI taxes will be lower.

“The Employment Department has good news for Oregon employers contributing to the Unemployment Insurance (UI) Trust Fund,” said the department in a news release. “Oregon is lowering the payroll tax rate to an average rate of 1.97 percent (tax schedule three) for the 2022 calendar year. This is down from an average rate of 2.26 percent (tax schedule four) in 2021. House Bill 3389 allows Oregon to lower tax rates when other states are increasing UI tax rates and continuing to borrow funds.”

NFIB helped lead the effort for passage of HB 3389, which Gov. Kate Brown signed into law July 27.

“Oregon’s small businesses urgently needed this legislation,” wrote Anthony Smith, NFIB Oregon state director, in July. “HB 3389 will aid in the state’s economic recovery from the crippling consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic by allowing employers to invest in their business operations, their employees, and their communities. Its significance cannot be overstated.”

In a Key Vote letter sent to the Oregon Legislative Assembly, Smith told lawmakers, “HB 3389 will provide Oregon employers with much-needed relief, holding businesses as harmless as possible for pandemic-related layoffs, while at the same time providing partial deferral and forgiveness for 2021 tax increases to address near-term costs, and keeping Oregon in a lower overall tax schedule over the next decade to address long-term costs. The Employment Department estimates that HB 3389 will save Oregon employers $2.4 billion through 2029.”

NFIB Oregon has prepared this handy, printable one-page document, Unemployment Insurance Tax Relief. What Small Businesses Need to Know. Also check out the state Employment Department’s webpage on the new UI rates for 2022.

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