TOP STORIES
Caseload forecast delivers $200 million windfall
Lawmakers received a bit of good news last week from the Washington State Caseload Forecast Council: Fewer students enrolled in school and fewer people used state health-care services than expected. As a result, Marty Brown, the governor’s budget director, said lawmakers are expected to have about $200 million more to work with than previously expected as they attempt to close a $1.5 billion budget shortfall.

Cities still intent on stopping B&O tax simplification
For a moment last week, it appeared the two sides fighting over Gov. Chris Gregoire’s proposed business and occupation tax streamlining measure were close to reaching an agreement. At least that’s what Sen. Ed Murray, D-Seattle, was told. But as soon as Murray brought SB 6176 up for a hearing in the Senate Ways & Means Committee, it became obvious that the cities that were opposed to the bill remain committed to killing the legislation rather than looking for ways to compromise – and making it easier for small businesses to pay their taxes. “I don’t think we’re anywhere near a good relationship,” Seattle City Councilmember Richard Conlin said. Despite the setback, AWB is determined to keep pushing the issue. “That’s really our goal here, to try to simplify filing taxes,” AWB’s Amber Carter told lawmakers.

Don’t let labor unions, trial attorneys unravel workers’ comp reform
Workers’ compensation insurance rates remained flat this year for most employers thanks to historic 2011 workers’ comp reform. But labor unions and trial attorneys are back this session with a series of bills that threaten to turn back the clock. One of them, House Bill 2359, prime-sponsored by Rep. Chris Reykdal, D-Tumwater, “could eliminate the savings” expected from the new Medical Provider Network, according to the Department of Labor & Industries’ fiscal note. Another one, Senate Bill 6302, prime-sponsored by Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, D-Seattle, would create a new way for attorneys to get paid, driving up the number of settlement appeals. A series of AWB Issue Briefs provide details on these and several other harmful proposals. For more information, and to find out how you can help preserve workers’ comp reform, contact AWB’s Kris Tefft.

House Democrats vote to establish another new health care program
House Democrats voted Saturday to establish yet another new health care program, evidence that they must not believe the state is spending enough on it new health exchange. The new program, a federal Basic Health Program, will serve the same low-income individuals that Congress intended the exchange to serve. Instead of allowing people with incomes between 134-200 percent of the federal poverty level into the exchange, they will instead be forced into this new program. In addition to creating new administrative costs and another level of bureaucracy, the program makes the state assume full responsibility for insuring these people – no eligible person may be denied coverage, similar to Medicaid. This is a completely unnecessary and overreaching program that commits taxpayers to spending untold millions of dollars. Please contact your legislators and tell them to oppose 2SHB 2319 and SSB 6178. For more information, contact AWB’s Donna Steward.

Lawmakers approve bills forcing 6-year balanced budgets
House and Senate committees both approved legislation last week aimed at forcing lawmakers to take a more responsible approach to budgeting. Senate Joint Resolution 8222 requires the Legislature to adopt balanced budgets, both for the current fiscal year beginning in 2014 and for the subsequent five fiscal years as forecast by the Economic and Revenue Forecast Council. House Bill 2607 would require the Office of Financial Management to publish a six-year outlook based on the governor’s operating budget proposal to the Legislature. The developments are welcome, even if they should be unnecessary. The outlook for SJR became cloudy this morning, however, with the introduction of SB 6596, another bill requiring a balanced budget.

Senate passes transportation fee bill as lawmakers pull back agenda
The Senate Transportation Committee passed a bill last week that will give cities and counties more power to raise local gas taxes or vehicle fees and taxes. Specifically, they could choose to enact a 1 percent motor vehicle excise tax, a $40 annual car-tab fee or a local gas tax up to 3 cents per gallon. AWB opposed the bill, arguing that it puts local businesses at a disadvantage. A statewide approach is better, Amber Carter told lawmakers. Still, the bill is representative of lawmakers scaling back of a transportation agenda, at least for now, and a focus on fees. The goal, according to transportation committee leaders who spoke at last week’s AWB Lobby Lunch, is to come back in 2014 with an ambitious agenda funded by a gas tax.

Capital gains tax idea surfaces as lawmakers turn focus to budget
Sen. Ed Murray, D-Seattle, floated the idea of a permanent capital gains tax last week – in addition to the half-cent sales tax hike proposed by the governor – but it was quickly shot down by Sen. Joe Zarelli. “It’s solving a problem by raising a bunch of taxes,” Zarelli, R-Ridgefield, said of Murray’s proposal, which also envisions hikes in B&O, cigarette and beer taxes.

Newly adopted redistricting plan challenged in state Supreme Court
A Vancouver man who helped redraw the state’s political lines has filed a legal challenge over the plan that was just adopted. The News Tribune reports that John Milem, who was honored for his volunteer work, claims the new plan violates the 1983 law creating the bipartisan redistricting process. Specifically, he said that King, Snohomish, Pierce, Thurston and Kitsap counties have too much influence in the new Congressional districts.

Election Watch: Inslee releases jobs plan, draws early endorsement from labor
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jay Inslee received an early endorsement last week from the Washington State Labor Council. The move is hardly a surprise, though the timing may be unexpected. The announcement followed the Feb. 6 release of Inslee’s jobs plan, which includes tax breaks for some industries. The state Republican Party criticized the plan, particularly its focus on green energy – a sector that has seen some high-profile failures.

Election Watch: Becker draws an opponent — race for Tacoma House seat draws a crowd
Eatonville farmer Bruce Lachney has announced he will run as a Democrat for the 2nd District seat held by Republican Randi Becker. He ran unsuccessfully against Rep. Jim McCune in 2010. In the 27th District, Tacoma City Councilwoman Lauren Walker announced she will join fellow council member Jake Fey and Jim Merritt, a Tacoma architect who ran unsuccessfully for Tacoma mayor, in the race for the seat being vacated by Rep. Jeannie Darneille, a Democrat who is running for Senate.

Record gas prices by May?
That’s what NBC Nightly News is reporting. Nationwide, gas prices are higher than ever before for this time of year, and could go much higher in the next few months. Some experts are predicting possibly the most expensive gas ever by May.

PRIORITY LEGISLATION
Bill to allow purchase of health insurance across state lines advances
House Bill 6440, an AWB-backed proposal that would increase competition and lower the cost of health care to small employers, moved out of the Senate Ways & Means Committee last week. The committee action came following testimony from a half dozen AWB members, as well as other business representatives, in support of the bill. As of Monday, the bill had advanced to the Senate floor calendar. Please call your senator and urge them to pass it. For more information, contact AWB’s Donna Steward.

Title-only bills resurrect education proposals, but in dramatically weakened form
A pair of title-only bills received hearings last week in the Senate Ways & Means committee, partially reviving some education reform measures that appeared to be casualties of a clash within the Democratic Caucus. The measures, SB 5895 and SB 5896, deal with teacher and principal evaluation, but they do not include a charter school provision and are nowhere near the level of reform that Sen. Rodney Tom, D-Bellevue, had been pushing. For more information, contact AWB’s Donna Steward.

HB 2412 a misguided approach to workplace safety
House Bill 2412, prime-sponsored by Rep. Phyllis Gutierrez Kinney, D-Seattle, purports to modernize Washington’s health and safety laws, but the measure actually does nothing to promote safe workplaces. By enacting ambiguous new rules as well as new penalties, it will have a chilling effect on honest employers trying to do the right thing. What’s more, the bill threatens to provoke more friction between the state’s labor and business communities just a year after the two sides came together on a significant abatement bill. Please contact your lawmaker today and tell them to oppose HB 2412. For more information, contact AWB’s Kris Tefft.A

Children’s safe products bill scaled back
A scaled-back version of a bill dealing with children’s products passed out of the Senate Ways & Means Committee last week. In its latest form, SB 6120 would ban the use of the flame retardant TCEP in amounts greater than 100 parts per million. An earlier requirement that manufacturers of children’s products containing certain chemicals must complete a so-called alternatives assessment is no longer included, changing AWB’s position on the bill to neutral. For more information, contact AWB’s Courtney Barnes.

Industrial stormwater bill moves to second reading
AWB-request legislation aimed at giving some relief to industrial stormwater permit holders advanced a second reading last week in Rules Committee. House Bill 2651, prime-sponsored by Rep. Larry Springer, D-Kirkland, would allow the Department of Ecology to substitute the current numeric standard regarding fecal chloroform contamination in 2009 stormwater legislation with a narrative standard. “This is the solution our businesses need,” Springer said. For more information, contact AWB’s Courtney Barnes.

Changes to tax preferences rules must target new preferences
The latest versions of SB 6088/HB 2530 move a step in the right direction by extending the automatic expiration date for new or expanded tax preferences from five to 10 years, at least in the House version. But the legislation still requires a number of amendments before AWB could support it, including provisions that would emphasize a bright line between new and existing preferences. In addition, steps must be taken to retain the confidentiality of data reported by employers, lawmakers must remove a requirement to report relative tax burden and scale back penalties for failing to file, which are punitive. For more information, contact AWB’s Amber Carter.

HB 2335 requires state show science behind decisions
Legislation aimed at requiring state agencies to back up their policy decisions with science passed out of the House Environment Committee last week. House Bill 2335, prime-sponsored by Rep. Shelly Short, R-Addy, would require the state departments of Ecology and Fish and Wildlife to identify the sources of information officials reviewed and relied upon before they take a significant agency action. That includes peer-reviewed literature, as well as any other sources of information used. For more information, contact AWB’s Brandon Houskeeper.

Bill removing writing requirement for graduation moves out of committee
House Bill 2538, governor-request legislation that would lower the requirements needed to graduate, moved out of the House Ways & Means Committee last week. The legislation proposes a number of changes affecting school districts, including limiting the frequency of fiscal and performance audits and the elimination of the writing requirement for high school graduation. For more information, contact AWB’s Donna Steward.

OTHER NEWS
Disaster relief offered for non-farm small business
Small, nonfarm businesses in 35 Washington counties are now eligible to apply for low-interest disaster loans from the U. S. Small Business Administration (SBA). These loans offset economic losses because of reduced revenues caused by the combined effects of excessive rain, flooding, below normal temperatures, high winds, frosts and freezes occurring January 1 through July 31, 2011, according to the SBA’s disaster field operations center – west. The counties included in this program are Clallam, Clark, Franklin, Island, Jefferson, King, Kitsap, Klickitat, San Juan, Skagit, Snohomish, Stevens, Wahkiakum, Whatcom and Yakima. Small, nonfarm businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and most private, nonprofit organizations of any size may qualify for Economic Injury Disaster Loans of up to $2 million to help meet financial obligations and operating expenses which could have been met had the disaster not occurred. For more information visit the Small Business Administration website or call 800.659.2955.

Roadkillers to address Lobby Lunch
The group of moderate Democrats known as the Roadkill Caucus are once again making themselves heard in the Legislature. To hear their take on this year’s legislative session, and to learn where lawmakers might end up, make plans to attend this week’s AWB Lobby Lunch meeting. Invited guests are Sen. Steve Hobbs, D-Lake Stevens, and Rep. Chris Hurst, D-Enumclaw. It starts at noon Thursday. Can’t make it? Check out Olympia Business Watch that afternoon for more on their visit.

Legislative bill tracking available to members
Sign up to receive in-depth reports about bills moving through various legislative committees this session. Our weekly reports, crafted by AWB’s government affairs directors, give the latest news about bills affecting everything from education and health care to the environment, workplace safety, the environment, tax and fiscal and more. Contact Connie Grande at 800.521.9325 to be added to the weekly distribution of these reports, which are based on issue areas.

Friday Phone Briefings: 30 minutes and you’re up to speed!
Need a quick recap of what’s happening in Olympia? Join AWB each Friday at 7:30 a.m. during session for the Friday Phone Briefing. Find out what’s happening in the Legislature and how it will affect employers. Listeners will also have a chance to ask questions about legislation or other policy issues. If you haven’t yet done so, register online for this Friday’s call; a confirmation email will be sent to you and a reminder e-mail will alert you the day before and one hour before each Friday’s call. Questions? Contact Jocelyn McCabe, AWB vice president, communications, at 360.943.1600.

Nominations open for 2012 Environmental Excellence Awards
AWB is currently seeking nominations for its Environmental Excellence Awards, marking the 20th anniversary of the program. The program, sponsored by Tupper Mack Wells PLLC, is a showcase for companies successfully implementing programs that demonstrate initiative in the area of environmental protection. Award categories include: Sustainable Communities & Green Building, Green Enterprise & Technology, Resource Conservation and/or Pollution Prevention, Leading Environmental Practices and Environmental Innovator. The awards focus on actions that create a better environment, products that help environmental quality, actions to prevent or reduce environmental problems as well as conserve resources and processes; including education and business operations that improve the environment. Awards will be presented June 12 in Spokane at the Davenport Hotel and Tower, in conjunction with the AWB Spring Meeting. Download a nomination form today; entries must be submitted by Feb. 22. For additional information contact Karlee Glasgow at karleeg@awb.org at 800.521.9325.

Put the spotlight on your company’s achievements with AWB’s Community Service Awards
Nominations are underway for AWB’s Community Service Awards, which honor members for their volunteerism and the contributions that make our communities better places to live and work. Tell us about projects that support education, youth organizations, community beautification, community organizations that help people in need or programs recognizing volunteerism. There’s also a special general category for projects that mobilize communities into action. Awards will be presented at The Davenport Hotel and Tower in Spokane in conjunction with AWB’s spring meeting. Don’t miss this opportunity to be recognized for your contributions to your community. Deadline is Feb. 22. Apply now. For more information, contact AWB’s Karlee Glasgow.

Free export seminars for food and ag businesses
The Washington State Department of Agriculture is offering free export seminars for small businesses interested in exporting food and agricultural products. The 90-minute sessions will be held in the Tri-Cities, Yakima and Seattle. Advance sign-up is required. To register, email Cameron Crump or telephone at 360.902.1940. The deadline to register is Friday.

AWB EVENTS & RESOURCES
Seattle's Paid Sick/Safe Leave Seminar, March 6 in Seattle
The City of Seattle’s new ordinance requiring employers to provide paid sick/safe time to employees takes effect Sept. 1. The law imposes new obligations on employers related to paid sick/safe time accrual, usage, carry-over, and notice requirements.Join us March 6 from 9:30-11:30 a.m. at The Columbia Center in Seattle to learn about the new law and how it will affect your existing policies and practices. Selena Smith, an attorney at Davis Grimm Payne & Marrra, will present hypothetical scenarios to illustrate how the law is applied and provide guidance for compliance.Register online or contact Karlee Glasgow at 800.521.9325.

2012 Wage & Hour Boot Camp, March 20 in Seattle
Join us for a half-day seminar, A Guide to Combating Wage & Hour Liability, and learn why employers should care about wage and hour compliance. The panel of seasoned attorneys from Littler will address significant wage and hour risks faced by employers today, including minimum wage and overtime basics, meal and rest periods, off-the-clock work, continuous workday issues, and employee misclassification. It takes place March 20 from 8 a.m. to noon at the Seattle Airport Marriott. Cost is $95 for AWB members, $145 for non-members. Register online or contact Karlee Glasgow at 800.521.9325.

Get in compliance for 2012!
On Jan. 1, 2012 the Washington’s state minimum wage increased to $9.04 an hour. In addition, The National Labor Relations Board has delayed the required posting date of its new NLRB posting until April 30, 2012. While there have been lawsuits filed objecting to the content of the posting, the NLRB asserts this time is to "allow for further education and outreach" to employers. Employers should still expect to be required to post this by April 30, 2012. Order your updated poster set today to ensure your company is in complete compliance with Washington state and federal labor law posting requirements. To order an updated state and federal poster set, contact AWB’s Karlee Glasgow at 800.521.9325.

Get Ready for the Elections with the AWB Spring Meeting, June 12-13 in Spokane
Employers can get a leg up on the 2012 elections this spring by attending AWB’s Spring Meeting, featuring two key debates between the candidates for attorney general and governor. The debates will be held at the historic Bing Crosby Theater and we are fortunate to again host our meeting at the beautiful Davenport Hotel and Tower. If you are interested in becoming a Spring Meeting sponsor, contact AWB’s Anne Haller at 800.521.9325.

New, low cost 401(k) program for AWB Members!
AWB is pleased to announce a new member service, the BenefitGuard 401(k) Plan. You don’t need to be a Fortune 500 company to have benefits like one! The plan is full-service and low cost and can be tailored to your company’s specific needs. The plan takes care of all the paperwork, plan audit and IRS filings so that your time is spent taking care of your business. To find out how to take advantage of this powerful retirement plan option, please call us toll free at 866.670.4015 or go to http://www.awbbenefitguardplan.com/.

THEY SAID IT
“When it comes to American energy, the president has a ‘listen to what I say, not what I do’ approach. His lofty rhetoric signals his support for American energy production, but the anti-energy policies of his administration expose the real truth.” ~ U.S. Rep. Doc Hastings, R-Wash., from a guest blog post on The Hill

This Week's President's Perspective: Social Security: The Hot Potato No One Wants to Touch