With short-term solvency and an ongoing pandemic in play, the head of Maryland’s Department of Labor recommended lawmakers not make any tax policy changes to the state’s unemployment insurance (UI) system for at least another year. Labor Secretary Tiffany Robinson went before the state Joint Unemployment Insurance Oversight Committee on Jan. 6 and discussed a range of issues about the system, which has been used extensively since the pandemic first emerged nearly two years ago. With the UI Trust’s solvency projected through at least 2025 under current protocol, Robinson told panelists, “MDL does not endorse or recommend a higher tax burden on the Maryland employer community at this tenuous economic time.” Pointing to worker shortages and ongoing uncertainty as new variants of COVID-19 emerge, Robinson said, “We need [employers] to emerge strong before we add any new burden.” At the committee meeting, which served as an opportunity for lawmakers to …