COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- South Carolina employment officials are
taking steps to shore up the trust fund that pays benefits to
out-of-work residents.

The state has received a $15 million loan from the U.S. Labor
Department to supplement the remaining $64 million in the
unemployment insurance trust fund.

Employment Security Commission executive director Ted Halley
says South Carolina is paying about $10 million a week in benefits.
The state's jobless rate hit a 15-year high of 7.6 percent in
August with a slight improvement in September to 7.3 percent.

The commission is expected to release unemployment figures for
October on Friday.

Employers pay taxes to fund unemployment benefits. Halley says
the rate employers pay hasn't changed in seven years.