TOP STORIES
House, Senate budgets to be released this week
This week, it’s all about the budget in Olympia. Today, Senate Democrats unveiled their operating budget proposal which included $3.8 billion worth of cuts, including $1.3 billion to K-12 and higher education. The House Transportation budget, including a $4.6 billion appropriation for 400 transportation projects, was also announced. Tomorrow, the House Democrats will roll their operating budget out at 10 a.m. and the House capital budget is set for release on Wednesday. AWB will produce a special issue of Fast Facts on Thursday outlining the various proposals. For more information, contact AWB’s Amber Carter.


March 30 marks another milestone on the legislative calendar
Today is the last day to read in committee bills from the opposite house, except in fiscal committees. Bills that are not passed out of committee by the end of today will die. AWB will include bills of interest in Thursday’s special issue of Fast Facts.


Rep. Morrell succeeds late Bill Grant as caucus chair
Rep. Dawn Morrell, D-Puyallup, who has been filling in as caucus chair since the death of former caucus chairman, Rep. Bill Grant, won the permanent job last week.


Dittman appointed to workers’ comp board
Gov. Chris Gregoire has appointed Larry Dittman as the business representative on the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals, the body that decides administrative appeals in workers' compensation, workplace safety, and related cases. Nominated by AWB, Dittman comes to the board from Integrated Claims Management, Inc., a company that assists in the management of claims for self-insured employers and retrospective ratings groups. Prior to his work at ICM, Dittman managed the workers' comp program at Swedish Health Services for nearly 20 years. He replaces Cal Dickinson, who passed away unexpectedly last October.


Unions continue pressure for employer gag bill
Last week, union leaders met with Gov, Gregoire, House Speaker Frank Chopp and Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown, pressuring them to reconsider suspending the employer gag rule bill. Contact your legislators and tell them to bury this legislation: It is bad for the economy, bad for jobs and bad for working families. Read more on AWB’s blog, Olympia Business Watch.


KEY HEARINGS, MEETINGS
Lobby Lunch #10: Linville and Alexander discuss budget
Rep. Kelli Linville, D-Tacoma, chair of the House Committee on Ways and Means and Rep. Gary Alexander, R-Olympia, that committee’s ranking minority member, spoke to AWB members at last week’s Lobby Lunch. “We can balance this budget without tax increases,” said Alexander. “We have the ability and the process if we use the Priorities of Government to determine how best to live within our means. It’s going to require some difficult, but doable decisions on where to make changes, reductions and sometimes eliminations in programs.”


Zarelli at AWB’s Lobby Lunch on April 2
The next Lobby Lunch will be this Thursday, April 2, beginning at noon at AWB. This week’s guest is Sen. Joseph Zarelli, R-Ridgefield, ranking minority member of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. Attendees should RSVP by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, March 31. Individual lunches are $14. For more information, contact AWB’s Connie Grande.


PRIORITY LEGISLATION
House saddles employers with costly amendments to UI bill — tell legislators to reject House amendments
Last week, the House Committee on Commerce and Labor added costly amendments to SSB 5963, sponsored by Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, D-Seattle, and also removed the voluntary quits provisions from this piece of AWB priority legislation. At a time when unemployment rates are rising, it is totally destructive to saddle Washington employers, who already pay the second highest UI rates in the United States, according to the 2009 WashACE Redbook. Additionally, these amendments place in jeopardy the good faith effort to put Washington’s UI laws in conformity with the federal standard. Read more on AWB’s blog, Olympia Business Watch. Contact you legislators today and tell them to adopt the Senate version. For more information, contact AWB’s Donna Steward.


AWB opposes newest version of Gov. Gregoire’s greenhouse gas reduction bill
Last Friday, the House Ecology and Parks Committee passed Gov. Gregoire’s greenhouse gas reduction legislation. SB 5735, sponsored by Sen. Phil Rockefeller, D-Bainbridge Island. AWB was supportive of the changes made to SB 5735 as it passed the Senate earlier this month, however in this latest version has raised significant concerns in a number of areas, including requiring regional transportation plans to reduce annual per capita vehicle miles traveled by 18 percent by 2020, 30 percent by 2035 and 50 percent by 2050. This could mean new restrictions for citizens and businesses, including curtailing suburban development, congestion pricing, taxes on vehicle mileage or even banning parking in some areas. Perhaps more concerning is that language on vehicle miles traveled is now creeping into several pieces of legislation this session, including HB 2010, which conditions local governments’ receipt of state funding for certain projects on the reduction in vehicle miles traveled and reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Other bills with this new funding requirement include SB 5138, sponsored by Sen. Phil Rockefeller, D-Bainbridge Island, and SB 5560, sponsored by Sen. Kevin Ranker, D-San Juan Island. AWB is working to amend these bills and asks you to contact your legislators to remove the vehicle miles traveled language from this legislation. For more information, contact AWB’s Grant Nelson or Chris McCabe.


House Energy Committee passes modified I-937 bill
The House Committee on Technology Energy and Communications Committee adopted a striking amendment modifying ESSB 5840, sponsored by Sen. Chris Marr, D-Spokane, and voted the bill out of committee by a vote of 12-3.Discussions concerning ESSB 5840 are surely not over. Stay tuned as the full House takes up consideration and debate of this hot issue. For more information, contact AWB’sChris McCabe.


AWB priority wellness legislation approved by House committee
The House Committee on Health Care and Wellness passed SB 6019, sponsored by Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Des Moines. AWB favors this bill, which provides small employers with incentives to develop long-term wellness programs. Urge your representatives to support this important bill. For more information, contact AWB’s Donna Steward.


House Committee on Commerce and Labor retro ‘reform’ bill headed for House hearing
A bill imposing several new regulations on the workers' compensation retrospective ratings program — SB 6035, sponsored by Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, D-Seattle — passed out of the House Committee on Commerce and Labor. AWB believes this measure is unnecessary and a regrettable politicization of a very successful workers' comp program. Read more on AWB’s blog, Olympia Business Watch. For more information, contact AWB’s Kris Tefft.


Deeply-flawed health care reform bill passed by House committee
On Thursday, the House Committee on Health Care and Wellness approved SSB 5945, sponsored by Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Des Moines. This measure aims to revise the health care coverage system in our state into a state-run system funded through an employer tax equivalent to $23 billion in the first two years of operation and specifically calls for making Washington into a model of President Obama’s health care plan. The impact of such an effort on employers during these difficult economic times is of great concern; AWB remains opposed to this measure. For more information, contact AWB’s Donna Steward.


Health care transparency measure passed out of Senate committee
House Bill 1869, sponsored by Rep. Barbara Bailey, which would require all health care providers to disclose all fees and charges for health care to patients upon request, is now one step away from a Senate floor vote after being passed out of committee. AWB supports this bill to bring greater transparency in health care. For more information, contact AWB’s Donna Steward.


"Ex parte" bill passed by Senate committee
The Senate Committee on Labor, Commerce and Consumer Protection passed HB 1402, sponsored by Rep. Brendan Williams, D-Olympia. AWB opposes this measure because it introduces a more adversarial legal process into the state's workers' comp appeals system. It is designed to prevent effective communication between employer representatives and claimant medical providers by channeling those contacts through the claimant's attorney. For more information, contact AWB’s Kris Tefft.


AWB opposes bill to revive county utility tax
On Friday, the House Committee on Finance approved SB 5433, sponsored by Sen. Debbie Regala, D-Tacoma. AWB opposes this bill as currently amended because it includes language to resurrect the county utility tax and the brokered natural gas tax proposals, which did not survive cutoff. For more information, contact AWB’s Amber Carter.


Sensible budget stabilization measure heard in House committee
The House Committee on Ways and Means heard the AWB-supported SJR 8209, sponsored by Sen. Joseph Zarelli, R-Ridgefield. This bipartisan effort is a common sense measure that would require extraordinary revenue growth transferred to the budget stabilization account to prevent unsustainable spending of one-time revenue. For more information, contact AWB’s Amber Carter.


Basic education definition passes Senate committee
HB 2261, sponsored by Rep. Pat Sullivan, D-Covington, received Senate committee approval. The bill redefines basic education, uses existing money for funding rather than relying on new taxes, and has a strong focus on accountability, which is critical to the success of our education system. For more information, contact AWB’s Amber Carter.


Bill to improve middle school science and technology programs moves forward
Senate Bill 5676, sponsored by Sen. Rosemary McAuliffe, D-Bothell, was approved by the House Committee on Education. AWB supports the bill, which would encourage middle schools to improve their science and technology programs. For more information, contact AWB’s Donna Steward.


House committee approves annual revaluation bill
On Thursday, the House Finance Committee approved, SB 5368, sponsored by Sen. Margarita Prentice, D-Renton. The bill would make counties value property annually for tax purposes, and is an AWB priority. For more information, contact AWB’s Amber Carter.


AWB supports air quality legislation restricting wood stove use
SB 5565, sponsored by Sen. Phil Rockefeller, D-Bainbridge Island, passed the House Environmental Health Committee last week and is now in House Rules. AWB supports this bill, which allows a local air pollution control authority or the Department of Ecology to prohibit solid fuel burning devices that do not meet certification requirements in areas of the state that are not complying with air quality standards. Wood smoke has been identified as a significant contributor of air quality pollution in Washington state, especially during winter months. By requiring that newer cleaner burning stoves be used in areas of the state that have known air quality problems, we can avoid serious impacts on the economy from costly regulations on businesses and loss of revenues for state transportation projects. For more information, contact AWB’s Grant Nelson.


Check JobMakers for the latest on legislation and how it affects the economy
JobMakers.com is an excellent online database of legislation affecting the creation of jobs in Washington state. Visit today and find out what your lawmaker is doing to support economic development in our state. This site will be regularly updated throughout the 2009 legislative session.


OTHER NEWS
Send in your nominations for AWB Board
AWB is seeking nominations for its Board of Directors. Please send the name and contact information of your nominees to Dick Walter, AWB vice president of operations, by April 30.


Tomorrow is deadline for federal disaster aid registration
Tuesday, March 31, is the deadline to file for homeowners, renters and businesses to register for federal disaster aid for losses in the January 2009 severe winter storm, landslides, mudslides and flooding. Contact FEMA online or call 800.621.3362 or via TTY at 800.462.7585. Phone lines are open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week. Registration is also available online any time at http://www.disasterassistance.gov/. Tomorrow is also the deadline for homeowners, renters and businesses to return completed disaster loan applications to the U.S. Small Business Administration. Being denied an SBA loan is a prerequisite for homeowners and renters to receive certain types of federal and state grants. Residents with disaster damage are urged to submit an application for an SBA loan, even if they do not want the loan.


Washington Work Zone Awareness Week is April 20-25
The Washington State Department of Transportation is encouraging work zone safety awareness through its Go Orange! Washington Work Zone Awareness Week, April 20-25.


AWB EVENTS & RESOURCES
AWB Community Service Awards now accepting nominations!
We invite you to nominate your company or other AWB members who have made efforts to improve their communities. These important awards recognize our members’ volunteerism and contributions which make our communities better places to live and work. AWB will present its Community Service Awards at a special dinner held in conjunction with its Annual Spring Board Meeting in Spokane on May 19. Submit your applications before Friday, April 10. Download a nomination form or contact Jennifer Costello.


OSHA 10-hour certification course in Spokane May 18-19
Get current on the latest in safety training and OSHA standards. Classes will be held from Monday, May 18 to Tuesday, 19 from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at the Davenport Hotel in Spokane. Registration starts at 8:30 a.m. Click here Register online or contact Jennifer Costello at 360.943.1600.


AWB Annual Spring Board Meeting in Spokane on May 19-20
Don’t miss AWB’s Annual Spring Board Meeting at Spokane’s Davenport Hotel. Hear a keynote address from Colleen Brown, President and CEO of Fisher Communications, Inc and enjoy the presentation of AWB’s Community Service Awards. To register, contact Jennifer Costello or register online and view a detailed agenda.


Online HR training at your fingertips — special pricing for AWB members
In view of the explosion of employment claims in recent years, employers of all sizes are vulnerable to employment disputes. New and proposed legislation continues to expand employers' exposure to claims. In fact, overall employment discrimination claims are up by 15 percent! In addition, state and federal harassment training mandates are quickly evolving; 2009 is a mandated training year for many organizations with multi-state operations. To help your company avoid problems and stay in compliance, AWB is offering a new member benefit giving you 20 percent off one of the best Online HR Compliance Training programs on the market. View a two-minute course preview movie here. To receive your AWB member discount code, contact Jennifer Davis.


THEY SAID IT
“While we need to be good environmental stewards, successful environmental policies are dependent on a healthy economy. Now is not the time to be increasing expensive mandates on businesses or citizens. Washington has some of the cheapest energy with hydro power — we need this in the future to encourage future employers to move to Washington in spite of our high regulatory environment and labor costs.”

- Rep. Bruce Chandler, R-Granger


This Week's President's Perspective: Is Big Brother Coming to Washington?