BOSTON – Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey announced Monday that the state has agreed to repay the federal government $2.1 billion because of a mistake made years ago with pandemic-era unemployment benefits. 

An audit revealed “an improper overdraw of federal pandemic unemployment benefits,” a statement from the governor’s office said. Healey said that former Gov. Charlie Baker’s administration “misspent billions of dollars in federal relief funds” on unemployment payouts that were supposed to be covered by the state.

Massachusetts to pay back money over 10 years

Healey said her administration has negotiated with the U.S. Labor Department for the past year and a half to reduce the state’s tab that could’ve been more than $3 billion with penalties and interest. Starting in December, Massachusetts will pay the money back over a 10-year period. Anyone who received jobless benefits during that time will not be impacted, Healey’s office said.

“It is incredibly frustrating that the prior administration allowed this to happen, but we are going to use this as a moment to come together with the business and labor community to make meaningful reforms to the Unemployment Insurance system,” the governor said in a statement.

The agreement was finalized with former President Joe Biden’s administration, just before President Donald Trump took office. 

“Monumental error”

The National Federation of Independent Business said that small businesses in the state are already being “crushed” by unemployment insurance taxes.

“It is incomprehensible that the state made a monumental error, and it’s Massachusetts small employers that are required to today foot the $2.1 billion bill,” Christopher Carlozzi, the group’s Massachusetts state director, said in a statement.

Healey said businesses won’t see a hike on unemployment insurance rates through at least 2026. Whether they go up in the future depends on what the state does to reform the unemployment insurance system, she said.

The system is expected to be giving out more money than it takes in by 2028.

“We know Massachusetts’ unemployment insurance requires reform, especially as we focus on the long-term solvency of the UI trust fund,” Labor and workforce development Sec. Lauren Jones said in a statement. “Our administration is committed to working with all partners to propose and implement policy and system improvements that support employers and impacted workers.”   

Plymouth, Massachusetts, officials alerted the public on Sunday that more than 60 birds found dead at Billington Sea are suspected to have died of highly pathogenic avian influenza, or bird flu.

On Sunday morning, members of the Clean Harbor waste management who were contracted by the state Department of Environmental Protection, as well as state officials, responded to Billington Sea to remove numerous geese, swans and other dead wildlife from the pond.

The day before, the state ornithologist told town officials that a dead goose removed from Plymouth was “highly suspected” of having avian influenza, or bird flu.

Since there is only one lab in the U.S. that can officially confirm a positive bird flu case, it could take up to a week for a definitive answer, officials said.

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Still, state officials say they will begin testing the removed birds from Billington Sea to determine their official cause of death.

State and local officials advised the public to avoid contact with sick or dead wild birds and other animals that could be infected with avian influenza viruses, and to wear protective equipment if handling wild animals cannot be avoided.

Those who raise poultry should also take precautions as bird flu can spread through direct contact between birds.

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A pair of influenza A (H5N1) virions, a type of bird flu virus (Cynthia Goldsmith, Jackie Katz/CDC via AP/File)

“Poultry owners should keep their birds away from wild waterfowl, limit the number of people that have access to your flock, and if you share equipment with other bird owners, clean and disinfect between locations,” Plymouth Public Health Director Karen Keane said.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says handling infected birds is unlikely to lead to illness in people. However, there have been 67 human cases of bird flu since 2022, with 66 of those cases happening in 2024.

ONE STATE LEADS COUNTRY IN HUMAN BIRD FLU WITH NEARLY 40 CONFIRMED CASES

In fact, safety precautions continue to ramp up as cases of bird flu continue to surface across the U.S.

On Thursday, the CDC announced its recommendation to test hospitalized influenza A patients more quickly and thoroughly to distinguish between seasonal flu and bird flu.

The accelerated “subtyping” of flu A in hospitalized patients is in response to “sporadic human infections” of avian flu, the CDC wrote in a press release.

The goal is to prevent delays in identifying bird flu infections and promote better patient care, “timely infection control” and case investigation, the agency stated.

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These delays are more likely to happen during the flu season due to high patient volumes, according to the CDC.

Fox News Digital’s Angelica Stabile contributed to this report.