Regular legislative session ends By Jan Teague, President/CEO
Yes, the legislators worked into the night on Sunday and fifteen minutes before midnight, at the very end of session, they passed their last bill, the unemployment insurance bill. SB 5963 will stave off rate increases for many retailers.
The business efforts on the bill were a significant demonstration of how important it is for legislators to hear from members. They heard from many companies concerned that high unemployment would increase their taxes at a time when many are struggling to keep their doors open. The influence of unions was very strong with many legislators supporting the amendments to increase benefits. But with Governor Gregoire getting her bill passed early in session to increase benefits by $45 per week and the Feds increasing weekly benefits another $25, legislators decided to vote for the bill without additional benefits.
We were successful on many of our priorities. Members had concerns that legislators would increase taxes as many other states have done to fill their budget gaps. This did not happen, although a number of fees were increased on businesses to the tune of over $400 million dollars.
But no major tax increase passed in large part thanks to Initiative 960 that requires any proposed new tax to have a supermajority vote of the Legislature or go to the voters. Had the economy shown a sign of recovery in March during the official economic forecast, it would have emboldened legislators to pass a tax proposal on to the voters. But with no sign of recovery and no polls showing support for taxes, legislators left session without a tax bill.
The unions' top priority bill that would have helped them organize new labor unions also failed. This sweeping legislation was stopped in its tracks largely because the unions shot themselves in the foot when they sent out an e-mail during session threatening no political donations to any legislator who did not vote to support the bill. This heavy-handedness was frowned on by the Governor who requested a legal investigation on the e-mail.
Associations were under attack this session by Senators who sponsored a bill to restrict how associations used their Retro fees. A legal opinion that warned the ideas in the bill were unconstitutional helped moderate it, but did not deter the bill from moving through the House Commerce and Labor committee before it died in House Rules. This bill will likely be back next year.
The Legislature increased the felony theft limit to $750. The bill contains many key provisions that will help manage organized retail theft, a growing problem for retailers. Included are provisions for a task force to make recommendations on ways to control theft and the ability for retailers to share information on crimes without the threat of lawsuits. The bill also allows law enforcement officials to prosecute suspects based on a series of theft crimes rather than for each individual crime.
A cap & trade bill that most businesses opposed failed to pass. Businesses feared dramatic increases in the cost of energy if a cap & trade system became law. This bill was a priority for Governor Gregoire, who has committed the state in a regional effort to lower greenhouse gases. But uncertainty about its impact during the recession trumped her priority.
The budget was passed using $5 billion dollars in one-time funds for a total budget of about $35 billion dollars, including $3.3 billion in capital spending. Legislators are keenly aware that their $4 billion dollars in cuts will not be enough. Even Governor Gregoire has voiced concern that if the economy doesn't show improvement, there likely will be the need for further spending cuts after the next two economic forecasts are released.
The Washington Retail Association worked on over 150 bills this year. In the end, most bills did not make it through the process. The focus on budget cuts took a great deal of attention off of bills that might have otherwise passed.
I want to thank everyone whose efforts helped this year. The Board of Directors, the Government Affairs Committee, and individuals willing to write or call their legislators - you all made a difference. In a representative government, your views are noticed. As we work through this recession, let's all be thankful for the moderation shown by the Governor and the Legislature. These are unprecedented times both politically and economically.
Legislature passes new tools to fight organized retail theft By Mark Johnson, Vice President Government Affairs
SB 6167 passed the Legislature late in the session giving retailers new tools to fight organized retail theft (ORT). The bill now goes to the Governor for her consideration. ORT accounts for millions of dollars in losses each year for Washington retailers. In these tough economic times, reducing the amount of theft is important for keeping our businesses viable.
Several important components are contained in the bill. First, it creates an ORT task force. The task force will be made up of legislators, and one each: prosecutor, defense attorney, city rep., county rep., food industry rep., retail industry rep., superior court judge, and municipal court judge. The task force is charged with identifying any policies or procedures that would enhance the successful investigation and prosecution of ORT rings.
Second, the bill increases the penalties a retailer can collect from a thief from the current $1,000 to $2,850 plus an additional penalty of currently between $100 and $200 to a new level between $100 and $650.
Third, the bill allows prosecutors to aggregate thefts over a period of time to increase sentencing for ORT members.
Fourth, the bill instructs the court or prosecuting attorney to check the judicial information system to determine if the ORT member is a habitual thief.
Finally, the bill protects retailers who create a database of ORT gang members who have been apprehended, fined or convicted in order to share that information with other retailers, law enforcement or legal professionals.
While these improvements are beneficial in the fight against ORT, they came at a price. The felony theft limit, currently at $250 will be raised to $750 on September 1, 2009. The limit has not been raised since 1975. Some retailers believe that the higher threshold will embolden thieves to take more for lack of fear of serious penalties. The task force will review the impacts of the new level. The original bill proposed a new level of $1,000. WRA and its members were able to successfully negotiate to the $750 level with the ORT components included. We consider this a win and look forward to participating on the new ORT task force.
Special thanks to Jason Moulton of Safeway, Jennifer Spall of Wal-Mart and the other stakeholders for lending their expertise and time to the discussions. Also, thanks go to Senator Adam Kline for working diligently with all parties concerned to come up with a workable solution.
Will there be a special Legislative session?
Gov. Gregoire was meeting with legislative leaders this week to determine whether to call the Legislature back into a short special session after Monday's adjournment.
At this writing, it was uncertain whether or when Gregoire would call the Legislature back into session to address an expected short list of bills. During a Monday morning press conference, Gregoire said she wanted prior agreement from legislators on the issues they might address and that she wanted the session to last no more than a day or two.
Democrats have mentioned bills related to school district property tax levies and deporting immigrant offenders as possible subjects of a special session.
Though the Governor has the power to call a special session, she cannot dictate what's discussed or how long it lasts within the allowed 30-day maximum period.
If a special session is called, the Washington Retail Association will closely monitor whether any bills it has opposed get re-introduced for discussion.
Webcast will plan next steps after "tea party"
The Evergreen Freedom Foundation will host an Internet meeting at noon on Monday to discuss follow up planning after the April 15 anti-tax rally at The Capitol.
The event on the Capitol steps drew an estimated 5,000 who demonstrated against government proposing future tax increases. Those who attended dubbed the event a "tea party" in recalling the spirit of the 1773 Boston Tea Party. They also coined the acronym TEA for the phrase Taxed Enough Already.
Anyone interested in the anti-tax campaign can log on and submit questions or comments to the discussion panel by visiting www.Ustream.tv/channel/evergreen-freedom-foundation. The link will not be live until the start of the event.
Some members of the state Legislature have talked of proposals to institute income taxes or raise state sales taxes to respond to revenue shortfalls in state government. To date, no formal proposals have been made.
Amber Gunn, Director of the Evergreen Freedom Foundation's Economic Policy Center, said she hopes to schedule monthly meetings on ustream to continue discussions on opposing government proposals for higher taxes.
Sales tax increase would cost jobs, Freedom Foundation reports
A temporary state sales increase would hurt job creation and reduce consumer spending, the Evergreen Freedom Foundation reports.
During its regular 105-day session this year, the Legislature considered but scrapped the idea of proposing a temporary 0.3 percent state sales tax increase on the November ballot. The tax was under consideration to restore some health care cuts in the budget the Legislature adopted.
Higher taxes would reduce consumer spending and result in the creation of 6,800 fewer jobs than expected in the next three years, the Freedom Foundation reports on its Website. It arrived at the conclusion using what's called the State Tax Analysis Modeling Program.
The Washington Retail Association's Retrospective Rating program is encouraging employers to provide on-the-job training to injured workers.
Several potential benefits are available to employers who offer on the job training:
*Labor & Industries may offer training fees to compensate employers for the time they invest in training. This is true if L&I has approved the training as part of a worker's training plan.
*Training allows employers to evaluate a worker prior to making a decision about making a permanent hire. A recent vocational survey has shown that employers tend to retain employees as permanent after they offer them training.
*If employers hire trained workers who are granted Preferred Worker status by L&I, the employer is exempt from paying workers' compensation insurance premiums for three years. Also, the employer is protected from insurance risk for three years if the worker re-aggravates an injury or experiences a new work-related injury or illness.
On-the-job training offers employers a chance to increase the skills of their workers while offering the employer financial benefits.
If you are interested in learning more about the benefits of on-the-job training, contact Nancy Barnes at nancy@retailassociationservices.com or contact Nancy at 360-943-9198, Extension 17.
Thurston chamber opposes "card check"
Directors of the Thurston County Chamber of Commerce voted this month to oppose any legislation that would eliminate the secret ballot in union organizing elections.
Directors believe such legislation infringes on personal privacy and would unfairly remove a worker's right to a federally-supervised private ballot when deciding whether to join a union.
Proposed federal legislation would eliminate the secret ballot process. Under the federal bill, opposed by the Washington Retail Association, a union would automatically be formed if more than 50 percent of employees checked a card saying they wanted a union. In such a case, the current secret ballot election process would be bypassed.
The Washington Legislature, citing improper union campaign practices, declined to address a related bill in this year's 105-day session in Olympia. The bill would have prohibited companies from conducting employee meetings to discuss union organizing campaigns. WRA also opposed the state bill.
"Particularly in the current economic climate, the need for small business to retain their flexibility to hire, fire and lay off workers as needed to support growth is paramount," a chamber announcement reads.
The federal bill also calls for eliminating involvement by the National Labor Relations Board, which the chamber said would result in no union accountability while engaging in contract negotiations.
Gregoire signs bill regulating discount health plans
Washington has joined 33 other states in regulating discount health plans with Gov. Chris Gregoire's signing of The Discount Health Plan Act.
It requires discount health plans to be licensed by the Office of the Insurance Commissioner and bans them from using the term "insurance." Discount health plans are not insurance, but are rather membership organizations that charge a fee for a list of providers who offer discounted health care services or products, according to Mike Kreidler, the Washington Insurance Commissioner.
The act passed the Legislature as substitute SB 5480. It requires plan providers to submit an annual financial statement to the state and a procedure for handling complaints.
Since 2003, Kreidler said his office has received about 400 inquiries and complaints about discount health plans. In some cases, he said, consumers were misled into believing they had purchased insurance.
For more information about the new act and other background on the issue, click here.
More retailers offer deals to make sales
Hyundai's offer to make car payments for customers who lose their jobs has encouraged other retailers to ease the nerves of consumers during the recession.
Read more about this retail trend by clicking here.
Source: New York Times
Wal-Mart business with women, minorities expands 25 percent
The recession has not dampened Wal-Mart's business with minority and women-owned firms, the company reports.
Last year, Wal-Mart spent $8.1 billion with minority and women-owned suppliers, an increase of 25 percent, it announced. The numbers were verified by CVM Solutions, a third-party enterprise supplier management company, Wal-Mart said in its announcement.
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.
