RALEIGH, (SGRToday.com) - Saying the payoff of debt will give North Carolina employers certainty about the cost of doing business, Gov. Pat McCrory and legislative leaders announced Tuesday that they have paid off the state's $2.8 billion unemployment insurance debt to the federal government.

The debt began during the Perdue administration when officials borrowed money to pay generous unemployment benefits to North Carolinians who'd lost jobs during the Great Recession. There was no plan to pay back the debt.

When Pat McCrory took office in January 2013, the debt stood at $2.5 billion. It was projected to grow to $3 billion if the state took no action. The governor and legislative leaders agreed on a plan of shared pain.  Unemployment benefits were pared back to the level offered by neighboring states and businesses were forced to pay penalties and interest on the debt.

"Had the debt not been paid by November 2015," said state Department of Commerce Assistant Secretary Dale Folwell, "employers in this state would have been subjected to an additona $282 milion in additional FUTA (Federal Unemployment Tax Act) penalties. These monies can now be used by the employer community to assist with the expansion of their business and workforce."