Union bills bound for court By Jan Teague, President/CEO
Two bills to liberalize union organizing were heard this week that have no chance of passing legal challenges that will definitely be filed if the Legislature and the Governor pass the law. HB 1528 and SB 5446 both had hearings with union members packing the hearings. At the core is a fundamental restriction on freedom of speech by not allowing businesses to talk to their employees about political, religious, or union organizing. Unions call it "worker privacy".
This issue is a top priority for the retailers. Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that California's similar law was illegal and threw it out. But not before millions of dollars were spent by the State of California to defend the law.
It occurred to me that Washington State would also incur legal costs to defend such a law. I am concerned that those legislators who are most willing to pass such a law are not thinking about the cost to taxpayers to defend something like this. Why would they decide the costs were OK when the U.S. Supreme Court already gave them an answer?
I hope that someone in the Legislature takes the time to evaluate the cost of this lawsuit as well as the chances of winning. I think the answer would be "any legal costs are too much right now" and "we already know we would lose in court, so why bother?"
It is still early in session and there is a strong chance that good judgment will prevail. The process of letting the unions beat their drums in hearings is a necessary one, given the power and influence that unions hold in Washington politics.
WRA testifies on bill to increase felony theft limits
Mark Johnson, Vice President Government Affairs, testified in the Senate Judiciary Committee February 3 on Senate Bill 5225 prime sponsored by Senator Adam Kline (D-Seattle). The bill seeks to raise the felony theft limit from $250 to $1,000 among other things. The felony theft limit was put in place by the Legislature in 1975. Senator Kline has introduced a version of this bill over the past several years and WRA has always opposed it.
WRA met with Senator Kline and other stakeholders prior to the hearing to discuss potential additions to the bill to increase the rate of apprehension and prosecution of retail thieves. SB 5225 now includes a provision to form an Organized Retail Crime Task Force. The task force would among other things look at the impacts of raising the felony limits, provide civil immunity to retailers who share a common data base and any other policies or procedures that would enhance the successful investigation and prosecution of these crimes. WRA would have a seat on this task force.
SB 5225 also would increase civil penalties provisions from $200 to $850 and the item value penalty from $1,000 to $3,800. WRA supports both these important changes that would allow our members to recoup more of their losses.
Additionally, the bill would allow a county to request the Attorney General to prosecute a case that occurred in multiple jurisdictions and proportionately allocate the costs to the involved parties. This would be a helpful and optional tool for going after these criminals.
The one sticking point that WRA still has is over the proposed increase amount. If something were to go forward our members oppose a limit of more than $750. A similar bill in the House is proposing a $750 limit.
WRA concerned with stop-work orders, HB 1554
Washington Retail Association members could be hurt financially by House Bill 1554, which has been introduced into this session of the state Legislature.
It would allow the Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) to issue stop-work orders on employers for violations of certain workers' compensation provisions. Besides being required to stop work and lose income, the bill calls for a $1,000 daily penalty for violating a stop-work order.
Tammie Hetrick, WRA's Vice President of Retail Services, said the association is concerned about the bill because some legal definitions are unclear. One area of concern is the definition of "willful misconduct" which is a requirement for issuing a stop work order. Hetrick has commented on the bill to the House Commerce and Labor committee.
Hetrick is concerned that WRA members who refer work to installers and independent contactors could be forced to close their stores or pay fines if the independent contractor was out of compliance, including not paying insurance premiums. If Labor and Industries determines the store was responsible for the contractor as an employee, that would put that store into a non-compliant situation.
Hetrick believes the bill's intent is unclear and could result in WRA members paying unfair penalties if they refer business to an independent contractor who chooses not to pay workers compensation premiums. In Washington, owners have the choice of whether to opt out of the workers' compensation program. Labor and Industries has made attempts to declare those owners employees of the store that has referred business to them and tacked several thousands of dollars in fines to the store. WRA has been successful in helping members fight these premium charges.
Hetrick is working with L&I to clarify the intent of the bill. Until its intent is clarified and WRA members are protected, WRA will continue to testify with concerns to the current bill as written, Hetrick said.
"The last thing a member needs when they are having economic challenges or premium payment issues is to be forced to shut their doors," Hetrick said.
The bill includes a three-year fiscal impact of $276,195 for additional L&I staffing.
WRA opposes bill limiting doctor contacts
The Washington Retail Association has opposed House Bill 1402 in the House Commerce & Labor committee that would disallow employers from communicating with physicians during a workers' compensation appeal. The bill was heard on Jan. 28.
This would cause delays in the management of claims and could delay benefits to workers, said Tammie Hetrick, WRA's Vice President of Retail Services.
Hetrick said the bill would put small businesses without legal representation at a huge disadvantage and complicate the already complex workers compensation system. WRA would prefer that the Legislature put more study into this proposal rather than cause undo financial hardship on companies and employees, Hetrick said.
Businesses oppose state cap and trade bills before Senate, House
Several Washington businesses testified before Senate and House committees this week that two "cap and trade" bills to reduce greenhouse gases could cost jobs, cause them to look to other states to expand, are vague and premature.
House Bill 1819 was under consideration by the House Ecology and Parks committee and Senate Bill 5735 was heard by the Senate Environment, Water & Energy Committee. Both hearing rooms were overflowing with spectators and others waiting to testify.
Washington is part of the Western Climate Initiative, which contemplates a market-based "cap and trade" program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 15 percent below 2005 levels by 2020. Under the plan, major energy uses including retailers would reduce carbon dioxide releases and be allowed to trade for the rights to emit the gases.
While the Washington Retail Association supports the reduction of greenhouse gas and carbon emissions, WRA opposes arbitrary and mandatory reductions that would increases business costs and lead to layoffs in the state's currently fragile economy with rising unemployment. Mark Johnson, WRA's Vice President of Government Affairs, signed in opposition to both bills during the committee hearings.
Steve Smith, plant manager of the Cardinal Glass Industries plant in Lewis County, said a cap and trade system would add to the cost of producing the company's new line of solar panels and prevent it from meeting demand for the product.
Smith said such a regulation would cause Cardinal Glass to look to other states with fewer regulations to expand.
An analysis of cap and trade by the Washington Alliance for a Competitive Economy (WashACE) concluded it would raise gasoline and diesel fuel costs and pose a significant financial burden on manufacturing businesses. A WashACE report estimated that cap and trade regulations could add $8.4 million annual in new Boeing expenses and $1.8 million in new annual costs to a large pulp and paper mill in the state.
A Wall Street Journal story last week found that California's three-year-old anti-global warming regulations have been an economic failure. Senior economics writer Stephen Moore found that economic analysis of the California standards underestimated its costs to the economy and that competing states are using the higher business costs in California as a recruiting tool to convince companies to move out of California. Since passage of tougher environmental regulations, California has lost jobs and its unemployment rate hit 9.3 percent last December, The Journal reported.
Rep. Joel Kretz, R-Wauconda, expressed doubt that passage of the bills would revive the state's economy with so-called "green jobs." Also, Smith testified about the irony that Cardinal Glass already has created green jobs of people assembling solar panels without "cap and trade" legislation.
Representatives of the state's forestry and food processing industries also testified against the bills as too vague, poorly-timed and costly to the state's economy.
Other businesses objected to the bills that make the state Department of Ecology, not the state Legislature, the final arbiter of whether companies would comply with the requirements of a cap and trade system.
"We believe the Legislature should make the final calls," said Dave Warren, a representative of the Washington Public Utility District Association.
Still others said a pending federal cap and trade bill might supersede any state greenhouse gas emissions requirements and confuse companies over which set of standards to meet.
Retail tax receipts down in December
The state's latest report on monthly tax receipts confirms the struggle of retailers during the holiday shopping season last December.
Excise tax payments in the retail trade category were down 12.7 percent in December, compared to the same month a year earlier. Tax payments for all state industries were down 10.7 percent for the same December 2008 to December 2007 comparison.
The report records monthly sales and business and occupation tax payments.
All retail trade categories showed declines in tax payments except for food and beverage sales, which showed a 9.5 percent increase in December compared to the same month a year earlier.
Tax receipts for furniture and home furnishings stores showed the largest decline, 30 percent, followed by motor vehicles and parts businesses, down 26.8 percent; gas stations and convenience stores, down 19.9 percent; and apparel and accessories stores, down 18.6 percent.
Updates of more Legislature bills
As the 105-day Legislative session reaches the quarter pole, bills continue to be introduced, heard, debated and amended as the first filing deadline of February 25 nears.
Several bills of concern to retailers are being tracked by Washington Retail Association officers including Jan Teague, President/CEO; Mark Johnson, Vice President Government Affairs; and Tammie Hetrick, Vice President Retail Services; and Jim Szymanski, Director of Public Affairs.
A summary of bills and issues being tracked includes:
*Tax preferences. Jan Teague reports that House and Senate Finance committees are focusing attention on the 550 tax incentives currently on state books. A bill could affect retail rates, but no bills have yet been introduced.
*Mark Johnson reports a tax is being considered on miles traveled by company and personal vehicles, though no bill has yet been introduced.
*SB 5329, HB 1406 - pet food tax. Johnson reports Legislative committee member are reluctant to approve the proposal, which would increase the cost of pet food by imposing a fee on retailers per ton of pet food they sell. Amendments to the bills are possible, Johnson said.
HB 1138 - use of employee restrooms. The bill to allow customers with certain medical conditions to use employee restrooms under certain conditions was heard on Jan. 29. Banks and restaurants have expressed some concerns but Johnson reports many safeguards have been introduced into the bill, including protecting stores from lawsuits.
HB 1149, SB 5564 - data breach. The Senate bill is scheduled to be heard on Thursday of this week. Johnson testified against the House bill on Jan. 22. Restaurants oppose the bills that would shift cost from credit unions to retailers for issuing cards after a breach.
HB 1819, SB 5735 - greenhouse gas emission reductions. Szymanski reports the business community remains solidly against these bills, which would add costs to businesses struggling during the recession and cause confusion because a similar federal bill is pending. WRA favors a federal, not regional, approach to the issue.
SB 5626 - cigarette tax. Retailers who sell cigarettes are opposed to the bill that would impose a new tax on cigarettes. The tax would hurt retail sales and poor customers.
In other matters:
*Hetrick is attending a series of weekly meeting with Republican House and Senate leaders of Commerce and Labor committees and House Commerce and Labor chairman Steve Conway. She also meets weekly with Senate Labor, Commerce and Consumer Protection chai, Senator Jeanne Kohn-Welles.
*WRA leadership meets weekly with House Speaker Frank Chopp and every other week with Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown to discuss bills, legislation and their impacts on retailers.
Lead testing delay leads to more confusion
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission last week granted a one-year stay of enforcement for certain lead testing and certification requirements for manufacturers and importers, including products intended for children 12 years of age and younger.
The Washington Retail Association signed a petition last week with manufacturers and other state associations asking for the delay in implementing lead content restrictions in children's products.
The CPSC and Congress had been inundated with complaints from industry groups concerned about the vagueness of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act and its onerous regulatory obligations.
For a complete report on the CPSC's unanimous vote granting the testing delay, click here.
Regardless of the stay to February of next year, it has caused confusion for the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM).
The stay applies only to testing and certification, not to the sale of products that may not be safe, NAM noted.
"Retailers will not sell products where there is a question and may demand test data to prove their products meet standards," NAM wrote in an analysis of the stay.
Joe Rinzel, a spokesman for the Retail Industry Leaders Association, said this week he was unsure how or whether the manufacturers' concerns about the stay would be resolved.
Sources: Consumer Product Safety Commission; National Association of Manufacturers; Retail Industry Leaders Association
Wal-Mart announces "green jobs" grants
Wal-Mart this week announced three environmental initiatives including working with a Washington State-based truck manufacturer to test alternative fuel trucks.
The company announced it has partnered with Bellevue-based PACCAR to test two types of alternative fuel trucks to achieve its goal of developing a more energy-efficient trucking fleet. The company said it has improved fleet fuel efficiency 25 percent since 2005 and aims to double fuel efficiency by 2015, using the year 2005 as a starting point for comparison.
The experimental truck models include a diesel-electric powered Peterbilt and other Peterbilts that could operate using liquid natural gas as fuel.
The Wal-Mart Foundation also has contributed $5 million to the U.S. Conference of Mayors for programs to train employees for the emerging green economy. The foundation also has contributed $750,000 to Veterans Green Jobs to support the development of four training sites where veterans can develop green job training skills. Wal-Mart announced that one of those training centers would be built in the State of Washington.
Source: Wal-Mart
Revenue updates Website for flood victims
The Department of Revenue has updated its Website to help flood victims from the winter snow and rain storms.
Links on the site offer information on obtaining extensions for filing taxes and other agencies that can offer help. When the page loads, scroll down to the "more information" section to find links to help for flood victims.
Best Buy will expand its electronics recycling program to all of its 1.006 stores nationwide beginning on February 15.
Consumers will be able to bring in two units per day, per household, for recycling. The stores will accept most consumer electronics including televisions and monitors up to 32 inches, computer CPUs and notebooks, small electronics, VCR and DVD players and phones, and accessories including keyboards, mice and remotes.
A $10 recycling fee will be charged for items with screens such as televisions, laptops and computer monitors. The consumer will instantly receive a $10 Best Buy gift card in exchange for paying the recycling fee.
Items that will not be accepted include televisions or monitor screens larger than 32 inches; console televisions; items containing Freon such as air conditioners, dehumidifiers and mini refrigerators; microwaves and appliances. The company offers an appliance haul away and pick up program.
Source: Best Buy
The Washington Retail Association, WRA, is a 501 C 6 trade association formed to advocate for Washington State’s retailers at the local, state and national level. Since 1987, the WRA has protected Washington's retailers from unreasonable taxes, fees, regulations and legislation. The efforts of the WRA benefit all Washington state retailers and help fuel statewide economic growth.
