Title 42 › Chapter CHAPTER 7— - SOCIAL SECURITY › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER XII— - ADVANCES TO STATE UNEMPLOYMENT FUNDS › § 1322
A Governor can ask to move money from the State’s unemployment account to the Federal unemployment account to pay back some or all of the loans the State got under federal law. The Secretary of Labor tells the Treasury how much to transfer, and the Treasury must make the transfer quickly to reduce the State’s loan balance. States must pay interest on those federal advances unless certain rules say otherwise. The yearly interest rate is a percentage (no more than 10%) set by a formula based on amounts credited to State accounts and their average balances. No interest is required if the advance is paid in full before September 30 of the same year, no later advance is made that year, and the State meets funding goals set by the Secretary of Labor. Interest for a fiscal year is due before the next fiscal year starts, with special timing rules if another advance is made after September 30 or if the advance was made in the last five months of a fiscal year. States with high unemployment (7.5% or higher in the first six months of the prior year) may spread required interest payments into four equal 25% payments over four years. States may not pay the interest from their unemployment trust fund; if they do (or cut taxes in a way that is the same as paying from that fund), the Secretary of Labor will refuse certain federal tax code certification. Voluntary repayments (those the Governor requests to transfer) are applied to the most recent advances first; other repayments are applied to the oldest advances first. These rules apply to advances made on or after April 1, 1982. There are special deferral options for interest due on September 30 of 1983–1985 if a State meets solvency tests, and a grace deferral of up to 9 months is allowed if the State’s 12-month average unemployment rate is 13.5% or more. For the period March 18, 2020 through September 6, 2021, any interest that would have been due was treated as paid and no interest accrued on advances. All interest paid is credited to the Federal unemployment account under the Unemployment Trust Fund.
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The Public Health and Welfare — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
Legislative History
Reference
Citation
42 U.S.C. § 1322
Title 42 — The Public Health and Welfare
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73