Audit finds Colorado Department of Labor over-collected millions of dollars from employers
Colorado employers paid $5 million more than they owed in unemployment insurance last year, according to a newly released audit.
The Office of the State Auditor says a programming error in the Department of Labor and Employment's MyUI+ system -- the system for unemployment benefits in the state -- led to some employers overpaying and others underpaying.
Up to 30,000 employers were impacted.
The audit also found that 4,100 employers who should have been paying into the Family and Medical Leave Insurance -- or FAMLI -- Program, have not made payments, while others who were exempt from the program paid $127 million.
The Labor Department refunded the money, but the audit found it failed to account for the refunds on its books.
"Fundamentally, what we have here -- between these two programs -- is a system that breeds a lack of trust," said Republican State Sen. Lisa Frizell, vice chair of the state's Legislative Audit Committee. "This is a system that is problematic for employers, it's problematic for those who pay into FAMLI. We need systems in the State of Colorado that citizens and businesses can trust and unfortunately in these two situations we have neither."
The Colorado Department of Labor released a statement saying it takes the findings seriously and is addressing the issues identified in the audit. It says it has also identified affected employers and will be crediting them for overpayments or billing them for underpayments.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Colorado Senate Minority Leader Paul Lundeen resigns to take national position
DNEVER (KDVR) — Colorado Senate Minority Leader Paul Lundeen has resigned from the Colorado Senate, the senator's office announced Monday morning. His resignation was effective Monday, June 9, as he heads to the American Excellence Foundation, a national investment nonprofit focused on supporting conservative causes where he will be the next president and CEO. The organization's board unanimously approved of Lundeen in the position. 11 Colorado companies named among top workplaces in nation: US News The Republican leader has been in Colorado's Senate for seven sessions and served as minority leader since 2022. He also served in the Colorado House of Representatives four sessions and four years on the Colorado State Board of Education. 'Serving Colorado has been an honor and blessing,' Lundeen said in a press release. 'I am grateful to the people of Senate District 9 for the opportunity to fight for policies that empower individuals, protect our communities, and promote prosperity. As I transition to a national platform, I am eager to continue advocating for personal freedom, economic opportunity, and common-sense conservative values.' According to a press release, Lundeen's achievements in Colorado's General Assembly include co-leading an effort to rewrite Colorado's public education funding formula, playing a key role in successfully cutting the state income tax rate, and sponsoring bills that have since become law to combat human trafficking. Colorado Senate Republicans in a statement congratulated Lundeen for his next steps. 'We are grateful for his many years of dedicated public service and thank him for his leadership over the years fighting for students, economic freedom, and safety for all Coloradans,' the statement read. 'We wish him well and are excited to see him succeed in his next endeavor.' The Senate Republican Caucus will hold a meeting on Thursday to elect its new minority leader. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Los Angeles Times
31 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Home Depot caught in the crosshairs of L.A. immigrations raids
America's best-known hardware store chain, Home Depot, has found itself at the center of the federal immigration raids in Los Angeles, and the subsequent protests. On Friday, a Home Depot in the Westlake neighborhood was among several locations hit by federal agents, who also raided Ambiance Apparel in the garment district in downtown L.A. as part of a crackdown that led to the arrests of dozens of people. The arrests outside Home Depot targeted day laborers hired by the chain's customers, including homeowners and contractors who rely on undocumented workers for home repair and construction jobs. Day laborers have been crucial to rebuilding efforts after Los Angeles County's devastating January firestorms. On Saturday, a Home Depot in the predominantly Latino suburb of Paramount, which is south of Los Angeles, also became the site of clashes between protesters and authorities. After a weekend of protests, officials also carried out raids at Home Depot locations in Whittier and Huntington Park on Monday morning, and reports of additional raids at other Southern California Home Depot locations spread across social media. A spokesperson for Home Depot confirmed Monday that the company had not been notified of any of the raids at its locations ahead of time and that the company was not involved in any of the operations. The Atlanta-based chain now faces a difficult situation, with its locations serving as a frequent site of raids, potentially turning away customers. Home Depot shares closed at $36.20, down 0.6%, on Monday. The company reported revenue of nearly $40 billion in its fiscal first quarter this year, up 9% from a year earlier. Net earnings for the quarter were $3.4 billion, down from $3.6 billion during the same period last year. It's not the first time the company has made headlines as the subject of controversy. Home Depot's co-founder Bernie Marcus donated at least $14 million to support Donald Trump's first presidency and pledged to support his reelection bid. Marcus, who died in 2024, had a reputation as a Republican megadonor. Protesters called for a boycott of the company in 2019 over his donations. The chain has tried to distance itself from its founder, stressing that he left the company in 2002 and that his donations and statements were not on behalf of Home Depot. Home Depot locations have been for decades convenient spots for contractors and those embarking on home improvement projects to hire skilled laborers. The construction industry in Southern California depends heavily on immigrants and day laborers, a reliance that has been highlighted by recent fire recovery efforts in the region. Jorge Nicolás, a senior organizer at a day labor center run by the Central American Resource Center, or CARECEN, said day laborers often take on undesirable jobs or jobs with tough conditions, making them crucial to many construction jobs. 'The majority of immigrant workers usually are used to help developers control construction costs and stay within the timelines that they have projected,' he said. 'Those are the extra hands that are needed.' Nicolás was in Westlake on Friday when immigration officials carried out a sweep outside of the Home Depot there. CARECEN's day labor center is just minutes away from the store. He described the scene as chaotic, and even workers who he knows have legal status were fleeing in fear, he said. 'We felt powerless,' Nicolás said. 'They're not arresting motorcycle gang members. They're not arresting international drug dealers. They're arresting grandpas. They're just arresting people that are very humble and looking for an opportunity, just trying to get a decent living.' By Monday afternoon, the parking lot of the Home Depot in Huntington Park was busy, with nearly 100 cars and pickup trucks filling the lot. There were few signs that a raid had taken place just hours earlier, but Bradley Cortez and his friends stood in the lot, keeping their eyes peeled. They came shortly after they got word of the raid, but Cortez said they were too late. He drove from Bellflower, roughly 10 miles south of Huntington Park, in hopes of helping the 'hardworking men' who were being targeted by immigration officials. 'I'll put my life at risk because I've I got papers. I was born here, so if I'm able to help somebody, of course I'll help them,' said the 23-year-old, who works in construction and frequents Home Depot locations himself to find jobs. 'It is a little scary being out here, but that's what is being brave about,' he said. 'Being brave is when you're scared. And I'm being brave for my people.' Times staff writer Ruben Vives contributed to this report.
Yahoo
39 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Fired FTC commissioner formally resigns
A Democratic member of the Federal Trade Commission who refused to accept his March firing by President Donald Trump has resigned his post. Alvaro Bedoya submitted a letter to the White House Monday saying he is immediately stepping down — a move that comes months after Trump fired him and fellow Democratic Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter. Bedoya and Slaughter were part of an unprecedented wave of firings across federal agencies in which Trump has specifically targeted Democratic members of independent commissions. Bedoya and Slaughter both sued to overturn their March dismissal in federal court, arguing the president fired them for political reasons, a case Bedoya said he will continue to pursue. 'While being an FTC commissioner is a dream job, my number one job is to take care of my family,' Bedoya told POLITICO last week in an exclusive interview. 'We've been abiding by the ethical restriction that we understand to apply to commissioners, so I haven't taken another job, I haven't accepted outside income.' He said he's leaving not to abandon the fight, but to be legally able to take another job. Since the firing, Bedoya and Slaughter have used their public platform to issue dissenting opinions through social media posts, as well as the FTC's public comments portal, while waiting on a judge to rule in their case. Those symbolic opinions are meant to criticize Republican opinions written without Democratic input. The two Democrats have also continued to label themselves as commissioners when making public appearances. Bedoya appeared at the Iowa Farmers Union over the weekend, where he was listed as a sitting commissioner and spoke about antitrust and unfair pricing concerns within the agriculture industry. Bedoya and Slaughter's lawsuit against the Trump administration argues they were illegally fired for political reasons, and asks that they be allowed to continue their roles as FTC commissioners. Bedoya dropped the latter request in a court filing on Monday after submitting his resignation, and is only asking the judge to find that his termination was illegal. The White House has argued that the president has the authority to fire independent regulators at agencies like the FTC. Two Biden appointees challenging their firings at the National Labor Relations Board and the Merit Systems Protection Board suffered a setback last month when the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to fire them. In a rare move though, the justices sought to allay fears that allowing Trump to remove the labor officials would clear the way for the president to remove members of the Federal Reserve Board. The court said that's a separate issue and suggested that it might not uphold an attempt to fire the Fed chair. Bedoya declined to share what his next job will be. He said he will continue to meet with labor unions and business leaders, and publish unofficial dissenting opinions to FTC decisions.
