California employers are paying higher payroll taxes because the state never repaid its pandemic unemployment debt. The state borrowed about $20 billion from the federal government during COVID, and it’s now the only one that still hasn’t paid it back. Instead of using stimulus funds to cover the loan, state leaders chose other spending priorities, pushing the cost onto businesses. Employers will now pay an extra $42 per worker next year, with that amount climbing every year until the debt is cleared.