The IRS reminded unemployed workers that some or all of the unemployment benefits they receive in 2009 will be tax free. “This morning we learned that a record 5.6 million people were receiving unemployment benefits in the middle of March. This underscores the need for the relief provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act,” said IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman. Under the Recovery Act, every person who receives unemployment benefits during 2009 can exclude the first $2,400 of those benefits when they file their tax return next year. For a married couple, the exclusion applies separately to each spouse. The new law doesn’t affect the 2008 return taxpayers are filing now-unemployment benefits received in 2008 and prior years remain fully taxable.