The 2009 session of the 61st Legislature officially adjourned sometime after midnight last night and already we are hearing about the possibility of a Special Session to address a small scattering of bills which the House of Representatives failed to take action on.
The Governor
confirmed the rumor this morning that there will indeed be a special session, though the date and duration is still unclear.
SB 5735, regarding Cap & Trade, was one of the bills still on the floor when time ran out last night. This was a top priority of the Governor and plays a good role in her decision to re-convene.
Some good news includes the absence of any bill that would send a tax measure to the ballot for the voters to approve. There was an extensive polling campaign to find the right way to package extra programs into the budget, but there was never sufficient support for such a measure. Additionally, bills that initiated both and income tax and an increase in the sales tax never garnered the necessary momentum for final passage.
The Legislature was able to offset nearly $9 billion in spending deficits through a combination of Federal Bailout money and $4 billion in spending cuts. This will result in significant layoffs in the public sector including education... there is also a significant cut to the Basic Health program.
Updates on other business related bills:
Unemployment Insurance Reform Reached
After some intense back and forth between the Senate and the House, the
SB 5963 was finally passed by the Legislature in a form that is acceptable to businesses in Washington State.
According to the
Seattle Times:
The House wanted to redefine voluntary quits, allowing workers who quit under duress to collect jobless benefits. The House also wanted to bump up benefits by recalculating the benefit formula to match what is was until 2005, which could have added $8 to $12 a week to the typical worker's unemployment checks.
The Senate refused to accept Senate amendments and sent the bill back to the House, which finally receded from its position on the amendments at 11:30 p.m., a half hour before adjournment of the session.
Under two scenarios outlined by Senate Republican staffers, the reduction in rates will save businesses anywhere from $122 million in the worst-case scenario during 2010-2015 to a high of $385 million in the best case.
SR-520 Bridge Tolling Bill Headed to Governor's Desk
According to
Senate Democrats, the newest Transportation budget includes $4.7 billion and funds over 400 road projects and hopes to create in the neighborhood of 49,000 jobs.
Of major significance to the Eastside is the authorization of tolling on the SR-520 Bridge. There is no cap on the amount of the tolls and the rates will vary depending on the time of day and traffic conditions.
The bonds that are included in the legislation can only be used to fund construction of a replacement bridge and the necessary landings. The bill also creates a workgroup that will work on any additional design elements.
WSDOT will administer the tolling project and is expected to begin tolling around the Fall of 2010.
The Worker Privacy Act
The effort to defeat the Employer Gag Rule was a top priority this year. Multiple stakeholder groups from the business community teamed up to defeat this bill, though it was ultimately killed after a controversial email was sent to members of the legislature.
Governor Gregoire later confided that she would have vetoed the bill anyways because of its effect on the business community. Please be aware that this will likely be an ongoing fight that will last at least until the end of the next legislature.
Moving Forward
We aren't out of the woods just yet.
A special session of the Legsilature could present new challenges that we haven't yet seen this year and it's important to stay vigilant.
There is much reason, however, to be satisfied with our accomplishments thus far.
In the midst of a recession and a huge budget deficit we were part in parcel of the successful effort to not raise taxes, to enact common sense public policy and to kill legislation harmful to our economic viability.
Thank you to all our readers, especially those who took the time to write an email, send a fax, pick up the phone or make the trip to Olympia and play an active role in our democratic process.
The next update will come when the stage is set for the Special Session... stay tuned.
