TOP STORIES
House, Senate prepare to reconcile budgets
Now that the House and Senate have released their operation, transportation and capital budgets, the many differences between these plans must be ironed out before a single budget emerges from the Legislature. This process must be complete by April 26, the last day of the legislative session. Read last Thursday’s special budget edition of AWB’s Fast Facts to learn more about the House and Senate proposals.


Today is cutoff for measures in opposite house fiscal committees
Today is the last day for lawmakers to consider bills from the opposite chamber in House and Senate fiscal committees. The next major cutoff is Friday, April 17, the last day for consideration of bills by the opposite house, except matters necessary to implement the budget.


Senate lawmakers propose an income tax
Hints of a state income tax proposal in Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown’s blog became reality last week with the introduction of SB 6147. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, D-Seattle, would impose a 1 percent tax on "the rich". In a statement last Thursday, Gov. Chris Gregoire opposed the measure, saying, “I do not support a state income tax. The new proposal will undoubtedly raise constitutional and legal challenges and probably wouldn’t bring in new revenue in time to address the economic crisis we face.”


KEY HEARINGS, MEETINGS
Lobby Lunch #11: Tom and Zarelli reflect on budget
The budget loomed large at last week’s Lobby Lunch, which featured Sen. Rodney Tom, D-Medina, vice chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means, and Sen. Jospeh Zarelli, R-Ridgefield, the committee’s ranking minority member. Said Zarelli, “This is the beginning of what is going to be a worse budget in two years. About $5 billion is resolved through spending one-time money to grow entitlements in programs that we won’t be able to afford in two years.”


Don’t forget AWB’s Lobby Lunch on April 9
The next Lobby Lunch will be this Thursday, April 9, beginning at noon at AWB. Attendees should RSVP by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, April 7. Individual lunches are $14. For more information, contact AWB’s Connie Grande.


PRIORITY LEGISLATION
Unemployment insurance bill remains in jeopardy
Amendments to the unemployment insurance reform measure, SSB 5963, would add a permanent increase in the UI benefit and make it easier for people who voluntarily quit their jobs to receive benefits. The changes, made in the House Commerce and Labor Committee, mean the employer community can no longer support this bill. What started as an agreed upon solution to reduce the impact of necessary changes to our system in order to meet federal conformity requirements now contains elements that reflect labor’s desire to increase UI benefits and raise UI taxes. An additional change to the language also eliminates the tight parameters under which an individual may voluntarily quit employment and receive UI benefits. This change negates protections to ensure employees do not receive UI benefits for quitting their job in response to a personal rather than employment related issue.

The employer community is united in fighting these detrimental changes to the bill.Contact your legislators and ask them to vote against the House Commerce and Labor Committee amendment and vote in favor of SSB 5963 as it passed the Senate.


AWB opposes Gov. Gregoire’s greenhouse gas reduction bill
On Saturday, the House Committee on Ways and Means heard testimony on Gov. Gregoire’s greenhouse gas reduction legislation, SB 5735, sponsored by Sen. Phil Rockefeller, D-Bainbridge Island. The bill passed out of committee along party lines and is now in the House Rules Committee. AWB remains deeply concerned about the bill, especially the addition of language related to vehicle miles traveled and is working with lawmakers to remove the VMT requirements and other changes in the legislation. For more information, contact AWB’s Grant Nelson.


“Ex parte" bill nears House floor
House Bill 1402, sponsored by Rep. Brendan Williams, D-Olympia, is one step away from the House floor. 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.


So-called retro ‘reform’ bill one step from House floor
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 committee last Friday. This measure is now one step from the House floor. AWB believes this bill 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 Kris Tefft.


Initiative 937 ‘fix’ bill dead, or an April Fool’s joke?
The most recent version of ESSB 5840, sponsored by Sen. Chris Marr, D-Spokane, was heard on Wednesday, April 1 by the House General Government Appropriations Committee. In its current form, ESSB 5840 provides additional flexibility for qualifying utilities to meet I-937’s standards, which translates into savings for Washington’ families and businesses that pay power bills. AWB supports ESSB 5840 in its current form, but is working to remove two unnecessary standard increases of .25 percent in the bill. Notwithstanding its broad support, the committee failed to pass the bill. Does this mark the end of the I-937 debate for the 2009 legislative session? Stay tuned. For more information contact AWB’s Chris McCabe.


Tell lawmakers to oppose bill that would encourage consumer lawsuits
Senate Bill 5531, sponsored by Sen. Debbie Regala, D-Tacoma, is a deeply flawed measure to expand the Consumer Protection Act. This bill would overturn decades-old case law; create new incentives to file more lawsuits, more easily; place an additional liability burden on Washington businesses and service providers; and increases the treble damages limit by 250 percent. For more information, contact Kris Tefft. 


Urge legislators to oppose deeply flawed home warranty bill
On March 30, the Senate Labor, Commerce and Consumer Protection Committee passed E2SHB 1393, sponsored by Rep. Larry Springer, D-Kirkland. In amending the bill, the committee added, among other things, the statutory warranty language contained in E2SSB 5895, sponsored by Sen. Rodney Tom, D-Medina. This approach will greatly increase contractor liability and insurance premiums without providing any meaningful relief for homeowners. Urge your legislators to oppose this terrible piece of legislation. Ask them to support a more bipartisan approach that protects homeowners without devastating home builders. For more information contact AWB’s Chris McCabe.


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.


Basic education definition bill now in Senate Ways and Means
House Bill 2261, sponsored by Rep. Pat Sullivan, D-Covington, is now in the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. 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 Amber Carter.


Annual revaluation bill one step from House floor
Senate Bill 5368, sponsored by Sen. Margarita Prentice, D-Renton, is one step from the House floor. The bill would make counties value property annually for tax purposes, and is a priority for AWB this session. For more information, contact Amber Carter.


Budget stabilization measure pending action in House committee
The Senate passed 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. This legislation prevents lawmakers from overspending in good fiscal times while developing a fiscally adequate reserve for poor economic times. AWB testified in favor of the bill in the House Committee on Ways and Means where the bill is pending further action. For more information, contact Amber Carter.


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


OTHER NEWS
David Taylor newest state lawmaker
County commissioners in the 15^th Legislative District selected Republican David Taylor, an agriculture consultant and rancher from Moxee, to succeed Dan Newhouse, who resigned from the House in February to become director of the state Department of Agriculture.


Anti-arbitration bills proliferating in Congress
For more than 80 years, federal law has encouraged agreements to resolve disputes through arbitration rather than litigation. There is now an effort to change the law dramatically and effectively prohibiting arbitration agreements in literally hundreds of millions of contracts. The so-called “Arbitration Fairness Act,” HR 1020, sponsored by Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Ga., would effectively eliminate arbitration agreements in nearly every context. Also, there are additional anti-arbitration bills that have either been introduced or are expected to be introduced in the near future. Learn more about the U.S. Chamber’s Institute of Legal Reform and how it is fighting these bills in Congress or join the Chamber’s Facebook page for this effort. 


Skinner memorial scheduled for May 9 in Yakima
A celebration honoring the late Dr. Harlow "Hal" Skinner and former Rep. Mary Skinner will be held Saturday, May 9, at 2 p.m. at the Stone Church Assembly of God, 3303 Englewood Avenue in Yakima. Dr. Skinner died on Jan. 17 and Rep. Skinner died on Feb. 5. A memorial scholarship fund set up through the Yakima Valley Community College Foundation in honor of the Skinners is still accepting donations. Donations may be sent to: Dr. Hal and Rep. Mary Skinner Memorial Scholarship c/o YVCC Foundation, Box 22520, 16th and Nob Hill Avenues, Yakima, WA 98907-2520.


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 Thursday, April 30.


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!
Nominate your company or other AWB members who have made efforts to improve their communities for AWB’s Community Service Awards. These honors recognize our members’ volunteerism and contributions which make our communities better places to live and work. AWB will present the 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.


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 visit the AWB Web site to view a detailed agenda and register online. 


Online HR training at your fingertips — special pricing for AWB members
In light 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. Watch a two-minute course preview online or contact Jennifer Davis for your AWB member discount code.


THEY SAID IT
"State lawmakers must use these tough times as an opportunity to improve the budget process. It's not about getting through the next two years with a patchwork budget; it's about ensuring our state never finds itself in this position again," - Rep. Barbara Bailey, R-Oak Harbor