The supplemental unemployment insurance benefits created a financial incentive for people to stay home instead of returning to work. Texas was wise to terminate the program early.
- The supplemental unemployment insurance benefits disincentivized working and exacerbated unemployment.
- Many people received more on unemployment than they did while working.
- The supplemental benefits’ effects were seen at both the national and state levels. Those states that terminated the program early converged to pre-pandemic employment levels substantially faster.