Ohio employers have been paying millions in higher taxes because the state has failed to repay a federal loan to cover unemployment benefits during the recession.
The Columbus Dispatch reports that the state's failure to repay the $1.5 billion federal debt has left Ohio employers with a $272 million tax increase over the past 18 months.
Employers pay state and federal payroll taxes to fund jobless benefits. But Ohio was among 36 states forced to borrow from the federal government to keep paying jobless benefits when the recession hit.
The newspaper reports that Ohio has repaid about $1 billion in principle the past two years. And Gov. John Kasich's spokesman says the state will continue to look for ways to pay the remaining debt down.