On Wednesday, October 8th, New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced an increase in the maximum weekly unemployment insurance (UI) benefit for all unemployed workers in the state from $504 to $869. This increase is part of Governor Hochul’s 2026 fiscal year budget, with an investment of nearly $7 billion to repay federal loans to the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund, ensuring its solvency and allowing for enhanced benefits for the unemployed population in New York.
This announcement comes at a time when the federal government shutdown has affected 115,000 federal employees in New York and the expansion of unemployment benefits timely assists these individuals.
“Trump and Washington Republicans… decided to shut down the federal government, leading to tens of thousands of New Yorkers losing their jobs without support,” stated Hochul in a press release. “With the increase in the maximum weekly benefit starting this month, we are able to assist unemployed New Yorkers, including those let down by Washington Republicans, while also reducing costs for businesses.”
Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund had a balance of nearly $2.5 billion. However, due to the economic downturn caused by the pandemic, this balance was depleted after payments to New Yorkers, prompting the state to borrow from the federal government to continue the payments. The state’s budget to repay the debt and enhance the fund’s solvency allows New York to raise the maximum unemployment insurance rate and adjust the taxable wage base to build reserves and stabilize the trust fund for the future.
The increased unemployment benefits will be distributed starting the week of October 13th, with clients receiving a maximum weekly amount of $869, up from $504, although many clients are not currently receiving the maximum amount. The weekly benefit amount depends on the worker’s earnings during a specific base period. New Yorkers can use the state’s benefit rate calculator tool website to estimate their weekly unemployment insurance amount.
Furthermore, by repaying the debt, New York State will also return funds to employers’ pockets, as their contribution rates have been steadily increasing during the repayment period. Employers will no longer receive annual Interest Assessment Surcharge (IAS) bills, leading to an estimated average savings of $100 per employee by 2026 and $250 by 2027. Additionally, the taxable wage base will increase in 2026, gradually strengthening the fund and helping to maintain affordable tax rates for New York employers in the long term.
In 2019, the New York State Legislature first raised the maximum amount for unemployment insurance benefits.