The latest DES report has $1.67 billion, or 22%, in UI benefits coming from state resources.
The state had $3.85 billion in the state UI Trust Fund when the brunt of the pandemic began to be felt in mid-March.
Legislators said Sept. 2 that between $2.9 billion and $3 billion remains in the fund. The third COVID-19 relief bill added $87 million to the fund.
The bulk of payments, at $4.75 billion, came from the $600 federal weekly supplement.
About 70% of claimants, or 889,891, have been approved for benefits, while 28%, or 361,947, were determined to not be eligible.
The left-leaning N.C. Justice Center has said the state’s economy has been losing about $350 million each week since the expiration of the $600 federal supplement.
Since mid-March, 1.28 million North Carolinians have filed a combined 2.3 million state and federal jobless claims.
Some people have been required to file a second claim — after being determined to be ineligible for initial state benefits — in order to qualify for federal benefits that often include extended state benefits.
About 30% of the 4.29 million North Carolinians considered in the state’s workforce as of mid-July have filed a state or federal unemployment claim.
