The Chamber

Over 50 percent of Washington’s revenue is collected in business related taxes and fees compared to 35-40 percent in neighboring western states. To close this gap and enhance the ability of Washington business to compete more effectively, tax and fee policies that burden Washington businesses must be addressed. To achieve this goal, the Chambers will:

• Support repealing the paid family and medical leave act. If not repealed,the FMLA should be funded through employee payroll deductions, notemployee/employer contributions or workers’ compensation unemployment insurance reserves
• Support efforts to lower workers’ compensation costs by creating asettlement option for workers, employers and L&I, better defining “occupation disease”, establishing provider networks and reevaluating the wage replacement rate.
• Support efforts to reform Washington’s unemployment insurance program that work to clarify and limit good causes for voluntary quitting and ensure tax rates are reduced when the trust fund balance is high
• Support changes to the state’s B&O tax structure including increasing the B&O tax exemption to help small and struggling businesses, maintaining B&O tax credits for specific industries, establishing a retail sales tax collection allowance and the simplification and lowering of B&O tax rates for all businesses
• Support repealing the state estate tax
• Support eliminating the annual automatic minimum wage increases and to allow for tip credit as most competitive states permit
• Support restoring spending limits
• Oppose mandated “pay or play” medical insurance and/or single payerinsurance
• Support reasonable standards for city designation including citizenelected governance, transparent budgets, and provision of municipal and essential services