North Carolina § 96-9 - 2. Required contributions to the Unemployment Insurance Fund.

§ 96-9. 2. Required contributions to the Unemployment Insurance Fund.

Required Contribution. - An employer is required to make a contribution in each calendar year to the Unemployment Insurance Fund in an amount equal to the applicable percentage of the taxable wages the employer pays its employees during the year for services performed in this State. An employer may not deduct the contributions due in whole or in part from the remuneration of the individuals employed. Taxable wages are determined in accordance with G.S. 96-9.3. The applicable percentage for an employer is considered the employer's contribution rate and determined in accordance with this section. Contribution Rate for Beginning Employer. - The contribution rate for a beginning employer until the employer's account has been chargeable with benefits for at least 12 calendar months ending July 31 immediately preceding the computation date is one percent (1%). An employer's account has been chargeable with benefits for at least 12 calendar months if the employer has reported wages paid in four completed calendar quarters and its liability extends over all or part of two consecutive calendar years. Contribution Rate for Experience-Rated Employer. - The contribution rate for an experience-rated employer who does not qualify as a beginning employer under subsection (b) of this section is determined in accordance with the table set out below and then rounded to the nearest one-hundredth percent (0.01%), subject to the minimum and maximum contribution rates. The minimum contribution rate is six-hundredths of one percent (0.06%). The maximum contribution rate is five and seventy-six hundredths percent (5.76%). "Total insured wages" are the total wages reported by all insured employers for the 12-month period ending on June 30 preceding the computation date. The calculations in the table set out below are applied as of September 1 following the computation date. An employer's experience rating is computed as a reserve ratio in accordance with G.S. 96-9.4. An employer's reserve ratio percentage (ERRP) is the employer's reserve ratio multiplied by sixty-eight hundredths. A positive ERRP produces a lower contribution rate, and a negative ERRP produces a higher contribution rate. Notification of Contribution Rate. - The Division must notify an employer of the employer's contribution rate for a calendar year by January 1 of that year. The contribution rate becomes final unless the employer files an application for review and redetermination prior to May 1 following the effective date of the contribution rate. The Division may redetermine the contribution rate on its own motion within the same time period. Voluntary Contribution. - An employer that is subject to this section may make a voluntary contribution to the Unemployment Insurance Fund in addition to its required contribution. A voluntary contribution is credited to the employer's account. A voluntary contribution made by an employer within 30 days after the date on an annual notice of its contribution rate is considered to have been made as of the previous July 31. UI Trust Fund Balance as Percentage of Total Contribution Rate Insured Wages Less than or equal to 1% 2.9% minus ERRP Greater than 1% but less than or equal to 1.25% 2.4% minus ERRP Greater than 1.25% 1.9% minus ERRP History (2013-2, s. 2(b); 2013-224, ss. 5, 19; 2013-391, s. 2; 2015-238, s. 4.1(a); 2016-92, s. 5(a).) Editor's Note. - Session Laws 2013-2, s. 11, as amended by Session Laws 2013-224, s. 19, provides: "This act becomes effective July 1, 2013. Changes made by this act to unemployment benefits apply to claims for benefits filed on or after June 30, 2013. The requirements of G.S. 96-15(a1) apply to any week of an attached claim filed on or after June 30, 2013. Changes made by this act to require an account balance by an employer that is a governmental entity or a nonprofit organization and that elects to finance benefits by making reimbursable payments in lieu of contributions apply to advance payments payable for calendar quarters beginning on or after July 1, 2013. Changes made by this act to the determination and application of the contribution rate apply to contributions payable for calendar quarters beginning on or after January 1, 2014." Session Laws 2013-391, s. 9, provides in part: "Changes made by this act to unemployment benefits apply to claims for benefits filed on or after June 30, 2013. Changes made by this act to the determination and application of the contribution rate apply to contributions payable for calendar quarters beginning on or after January 1, 2014." Session Laws 2015-238, s. 4.1(b), made the substitution of "June 30" for "July 31" in the fourth sentence of subsection (c) of this section by Session Laws 2015-238, s. 4.1(a), applicable to contributions payable for calendar quarters beginning on or after January 1, 2014. Session Laws 2016-92, s. 5(b), made the fifth sentence in subsection (c) of this section, as added by Session Laws 2016-92, s. 5(a), applicable to contributions payable for calendar quarters beginning on or after January 1, 2017. Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2013-224, s. 5, effective June 27, 2013, substituted "its liability extends over all or part of" for "these quarters are in" in the second sentence of subsection (b). Session Laws 2013-391, s. 2, effective July 1, 2013, in subsection (a), added the third sentence, rewrote the fourth sentence, and deleted the former fifth through ninth sentences; in subsection (b), rewrote the subsection heading, which formerly read: "Standard Beginning Rate," substituted "contribution rate for a beginning employer" for "standard beginning rate applies to an employer," and added "is one percent (1%)"; in subsection (c), rewrote the subsection heading and the first sentence, and added the last three sentences, and in the table, deleted the former first column, deleted "All balances" preceding "Less than or equal to 1%" in the present first column, and deleted "1%" preceding "2.9% minus ERRP" in the second column. For applicability, see Editor's note. Session Laws 2015-238, s. 4.1(a), effective September 10, 2015, substituted "June 30" for "July 31" in the fourth sentence of subsection (c). For applicability, see editor's note. Session Laws 2016-92, s. 5(a), effective July 11, 2016, added the fifth sentence in subsection (c). See editor's note for applicability.