Illinois Asks Federal Gov. To Freeze Interest On Unemployment Loans

Illinois is among eight states asking the federal government to reinstate a freeze on interest on money they borrowed to pay unemployment benefits early in the pandemic. Illinois owes nearly four-point-five-billion-dollars to the federal unemployment trust fund. As of last Friday, the state owed almost 20-million-dollars in interest. Comptroller Susana Mendoza says taxpayers shouldn’t be on the hook for interest just because the pandemic is lasting longer than projected.