Illinois Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund Facing Nearly $5B Deficit

The Illinois Unemployment Trust Fund is facing a nearly five-billion-dollar deficit. The fund had a surplus of just over two- billion dollars before the pandemic hit. The resources then swung seven-billion in a negative direction within 18 months, leaving the fund with the almost five-billion-dollar current deficit. An astronomical increase in unemployment during the pandemic led to the historic decline, with lawmakers debating possible solutions.