TOP STORIES
Unemployment insurance, climate change escape cutoff
Last Thursday, March 12 marked the official legislative bill cutoff, meaning all legislation had to be out of its house of origin by 5 p.m. that day. Among the survivors were bills affecting unemployment insurance, cap and trade, homeowner warranties and association Retro programs. Among the casualties: the utility tax, GMA climate change and so-called Worker Privacy bills. Read updates on these and other bills in our Priority Legislation section below.


New state economic forecast to be released Thursday
The Washington State Economic Revenue and Forecast Council will release a new economic forecast this Thursday, March 19. The state faces an $8.31 billion deficit and lawmakers will receive additional revenue information Thursday that could further impact that figure. AWB will post information from the forecast briefing. Until Thursday’s announcement, you can listen to AWB’s podcast with the state’s chief economist, Arun Raha, and review his March 5 AWB Lobby Lunch presentation.


Governor names former Microsoft executive as commerce director
Last week, Gov. Chris Gregoire named former Microsoft Vice President Rogers Weed as the director of the new Department of Commerce (pending legislation) to lead Washington state through the deepening national recession. Weed will begin his job Tuesday, March 17 and earn a salary of $147,000.


KEY HEARINGS, MEETINGS
Conway and Condotta at AWB’s Lobby Lunch on March 19
The next Lobby Lunch will be this Thursday, March 19, beginning at noon at AWB. This week’s guests are Rep. Steve Conway, D-Tacoma, chair of the House Committee on Commerce and Labor and Rep. Cary Condotta, R-East Wenatchee, that committee’s ranking minority member. Attendees should RSVP by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, March 17. Individual lunches are $14. For more information, contact AWB’s Connie Grande.


PRIORITY LEGISLATION
UI conformity bill passed by Senate, fund diversion bill amended
AWB priority legislation SSB 5963, sponsored by Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, D-Seattle, which will revise the state’s unemployment insurance tax structure and reinstate voluntary quit provisions, passed the Senate by a vote of 38-11.Senators who opposed the bill on the floor said this measure did not provide enough discretion to determine whether an individual voluntarily quit their job for good cause in order to qualify for UI benefits. Broader discretion will allow more individuals to access UI benefits for reasons beyond an employer’s immediate control.The bill now moves to the House where it will be heard on Wednesday, March 18 in the House Committee on Commerce and Labor.Another UI measure, SSB 5809, sponsored by Sen. James Hargrove, D-Aberdeen, would have diverted unemployment insurance taxes from the trust fund to support community college enrollment slots. It was eventually amended to include a new funding source and the bill passed 48-1.As a strong supporter of workforce training and our community college system, AWB is pleased to see this legislation moving in a direction the business community can support. For more information, contact Donna Steward.


Governor, legislative leaders kill employer gag rule bill
Gov. Gregoire, House Speaker Rep. Frank Chopp, D-Seattle,and Sen. Majority Leader Lisa Brown, D-Spokane, tabled the employer gag rule bill (SB 5446, sponsored by Sen. Margarita Prentice, D-Renton) in response to an e-mail from the Washington State Labor Council (AFL-CIO) linking support for the legislation to campaign contributions. A criminal investigation by the Washington State Patrol is now underway. View AWB’s statement on the bill’s demise here and on AWB’s blog, Olympia Business Watch. For more information, contact AWB’s Kris Tefft.


Gov. Gregoire’s much-improved greenhouse gas bill passes Senate
Gov. Gregoire’s greenhouse gas reduction legislation, SB 5735, sponsored by Sen. Phil Rockefeller, D-Bainbridge Island, passed the Senate last week by a vote of 29-19. The bill that passed the Senate is very different — though much improved compared to the original bill, which would have required major industries to participate in a cap and trade system by 2012 and purchase permits for current emissions. The revised bill requires the Department of Ecology to report back to the Legislature in 2010 with recommendations and alternatives to meet the state’s greenhouse gas emissions targets established last year. The report must also include an economic analysis that estimates the program’s impact to Washington businesses and citizens of the state and the increased costs for food, housing, energy, transportation and other expenses. AWB will continue to work with stakeholders on making additional improvements to this bill. For more information, contact AWB’s Grant Nelson.


House wisely rejects GMA/climate change bill
Two bills that would have imposed a wide variety of unfunded mandates on local governments to create super-dense development, including low-income and affordable housing around transit centers did not survive cutoff last week. SHB 1490, sponsored by Rep. Sharon Nelson, D-Maury Island, and SB 5687, sponsored by Sen. Chris Marr, D-Spokane, addressed climate change and greenhouse gas reductions through local land use planning by amending the Growth Management Act. This bill, as well and an attempt to reduce vehicle miles traveled and require climate change considerations in the planning goals of the GMA. Both bills would have significantly increased litigation and appeals under the GMA and took the wrong approach in prescribing affordable housing requirements around transit centers. For more information, contact Chris McCabe.


Senate passes weakened I-937 fix legislation
By a vote of 27-21, the Senate passed ESSB 5840, sponsored by Sen. Chris Marr, D-Spokane. Unfortunately, a striking amendment on the Senate floor removed important items from the list of qualifying renewable energy resources including existing small hydropower projects, all biomass projects started before March 1999 and all energy conservation done in excess of a utility’s biennial conservation targets. A floor amendment reinstated small 30 MW hydro projects, but the biomass and conservation components were left out. As passed, ESSB 5840 includes graduated increases in the existing renewable portfolio standards to 4 percent by 2014, 10 percent by 2016, 16 percent by 2020 and 20 percent by 2025. ESSB 5840 now moves to the House Technology, Energy & Communications Committee for debate. AWB will support ESSB 5840 with the biomass and conservation amendments. Another measure amending I-937, HB 1133, sponsored by Committee Chair Rep. John McCoy, D-Tulalip, HB 1133, died in committee. For more information, contact Chris McCabe.


Basic education definition passes House and Senate
The House and Senate have both passed their own legislation to continue the discussion on redefining basic education and the corresponding funding formulas. HB 2261, sponsored by Rep. Pat Sullivan, D-Covington, and SB 6048, sponsored by Sen. Eric Oemig, D-Kirkland, redefine education with a prototypical school and provide funding deadlines for the future. The key difference is the Senate version does not include a strong focus on accountability, which is critical to the success of our education system. AWB prefers HB 2261 and will continue to monitor the progress of these bills. For more information, contact Amber Carter.


House and Senate pass damaging home construction warranty legislation
The Senate narrowly (25-24) passed E2SSB 5895, sponsored by Sen. Rodney Tom, D-Medina, mandating that contractors provide a variety of statutory warranties for residential construction. AWB believes the broad, vague nature of these warranties will lead to increased litigation during a time when contractors – particularly small business contractors – are struggling just to keep their doors open. These undefined warranties will be uninsurable and will do nothing to protect homeowners. Similarly, by a vote of 52-45, the House passed E2SHB 1393, sponsored by Rep. Larry Springer, D-Kirkland. Although less egregious than its Senate counterpart, this bill requires all residential contractors and subcontractors to provide an express, “off-the-shelf” warranty which uses FHA/VA- backed loan warranties as a basis. Unfortunately, many small contractors will likely have difficulty qualifying for and obtaining these warranties. Both bills also establish an Office of Consumer Education for Home Construction in the Office of the Attorney General to handle and expedite consumer complaints. For more information contact AWB’s Chris McCabe.


So-called retro "reform" bill squeaks through Senate floor vote, 25-24
SB 6035, sponsored by Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, D-Seattle — a bill imposing several new regulations on the workers' compensation retrospective ratings program — barely passed the Senate by a vote of 25-24, with several Democrats splitting off and joining Republican opposition to the measure. AWB will follow this bill in the House and believes it is an unnecessary and regrettable politicization of a very successful workers' comp program. AWB’s blog has background, analysis and a link to AWB's testimony and don’t miss the Seattle Times’ editorial on the issue. For more information, contact Kris Tefft.


Utility tax legislation dead — for now!
Legislation to establish a King County utility tax, HB 2249, sponsored by Rep. Ross Hunter, D-Medina, failed to pass the House. AWB previously testified against allowing counties to raise sales taxes without a vote of the people and to impose a 6 percent tax on water, sewer and electrical utilities. While that bill is dead, the issue may return. SB 5433, sponsored by Sen. Debbie Regala, D-Tacoma, is a potential vehicle that lawmakers may use to resurrect the county utility tax proposal. AWB will continue to oppose the creation or expansion of a utility tax. For more information, contact Amber Carter.


Digital goods legislation still alive after cut-off
HB 2075, sponsored by Rep. Ross Hunter, D-Medina, which would establish greater clarity in the tax code on electronically delivered products, is still alive after last week’s cutoff. The bill is necessary to implement the budget after amendments have been offered to provide additional safeguards for employers. AWB members continue to recommend that we work to keep HB 2075 moving as a work in progress. The legislation creates a broad imposition statute for the taxation of digital goods with an equally broad exemption for business inputs. Amendments will include amnesty for taxpayers. A vote is expected this week. For more information, contact Amber Carter.


Senate passes sensible budget stabilization measure
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 to be transferred to the budget stabilization account. For more information, contact Amber Carter.


AWB priority wellness legislation passed by Senate
SB 6019, sponsored by Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Des Moines, which provides small employers with incentives to develop long-term wellness programs, was passed by the Senate last week. The bill is scheduled for public hearing in the House Committee on Health Care and Wellness on Friday, March 20 at 1:30 p.m. Urge your representatives to support this important bill. For more information, contact Donna Steward.


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.


AWB EVENTS & RESOURCES
AWB is now on Twitter
AWB recently joined the microblogging site, Twitter. This allows us to post brief (140 characters) updates about AWB events, ask members quick questions, share breaking news and link to resources. Twitter is the third most popular social networking application on the Internet, right behind MySpace and Facebook. Learn more about the site and start following AWB on Twitter today!


Ten AWB members receive training grants from state
Washington’s State Board for Community and Technical Colleges awarded $1,099,650 in workforce training grants to 10 members of AWB, benefitting 1,194 trainees. Washington’s Job Skills Program provides short-term training customized to meet businesses’ specific needs. Training is delivered to new or current employees at the work site or in a classroom. For more information, contact AWB’s Mike Hudson.


AWB holding issues briefings in Puget Sound region
AWB President Don Brunell will continue his legislative briefings Tuesday, March 24 (Redmond); Wednesday, March 25 (Mountlake Terrace and Seattle); and Wednesday, April 15 (DuPont). View the entire briefing schedule online or RSVP to AWB’s Bonnie Millikan.


Mitigating 401(k) plan fiduciary liability workshop
Join us for this FREE two hour workshop exclusively for AWB members on Tuesday, March 24 at AWB. As an employer and sponsor of a 401(k) plan, your company shoulders a significant responsibility. Fiduciaries can be held personally responsible for the plans they oversee, making it critical that you take appropriate steps to reduce potential liability. This educational workshop will provide a best practices review and overview of ERISA fiduciary responsibilities that will help you optimize your company’s 401(k) plan. For additional details or to register, please click here or contact Jennifer Costello.


Forklift: Train the Trainer workshop - Wednesday, March 25
Proper forklift safety training will make your company a safer place to work — and keep you in compliance with the law. Attendees who complete the course will receive a certificate of completion, a CD of workshop materials and a PDF manual they can reproduce to train their own employees on proper forklift safety. Register online or contact Jennifer Costello.


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.


THEY SAID IT
“It’s an economy killer. Our small businesses can barely keep their doors open now. Jobs are hanging by a thread.” - Sen. Jerome Delvin, R-Richland, on cap and trade (The Columbian , March 5)


This week's President's Perspective: High taxes jeopardize jobs