Governor and DWS Celebrate Job Data and Work with Legislators to Further Support Wyoming Businesses and Workers

Wyoming’s economy continues to show signs of growth, specifically within the workforce. The most current data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey shows an estimated 18,000 job openings in Wyoming as of July 2023. At that same time, Wyoming only had 1,835 individuals receiving UI benefits. The state’s unemployment rate fell to 2.9 percent, lower than the current U.S. unemployment rate of 3.8 percent. As a result, Wyoming’s employers are seeing the positive impacts.

In 2022, for the first time in the history of the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund, the minimum tax rate for Wyoming employers was lowered to zero percent. The zero percent rate remained in effect for 2023. To provide additional funds for training and on-the-job opportunities, DWS is exploring ways to reallocate the UI funding distributions to the Workforce Development Training Fund that helps offset the costs of, or completely pays for, employer training, internship/apprenticeship, and workforce development opportunities.

DWS has worked with the Joint Appropriations Committee to propose changes that could reduce Workers’ Compensation premiums paid by employers. The result of this work is a legislative bill draft that would allow a portion of the investment income to be considered during the employer rate-making process. Currently, the Workers’ Compensation Division has an actuary who completes an annual Economic Capital Model review to project the future distribution of assets, liabilities, pricing, and catastrophic risks. A review of 14 years of data revealed that using 2.5% of the interest income on the Provision for Adverse Deviation fund could have resulted in a decrease of approximately $325 million in employer-paid premiums.