WHAT: Newly released U.S. Labor Department figures show that states improperly paid nearly $19 billion in unemployment benefits to recipients who weren’t eligible to get the money.

WHERE: The highest error rates were found in Virginia, Indiana, Colorado, Washington, Louisiana and Arizona. Wrong payments took more than 10 percent of the $180 billion in nationwide benefits in the past three years.

WHY: The Labor Department called it misleading to compare different states’ payment accuracy because of differences in state laws. But it will start monitoring the worst-offending states more closely.