Snohomish County business groups will urge legislators to do more to lower taxes and regulatory controls on companies during the upcoming full session, while also improving highways, health care and education.
The Everett Area and South Snohomish County chambers of commerce have adopted a legislative agenda "demanding that policy makers take an aggressive bipartisan approach … to solve these crucial problems."
"We simply cannot afford to lose more jobs," the policy paper says.
The paper was developed with assistance from the Snohomish County Economic Development Council, and it has also been adopted by the Monroe Chamber of Commerce, said Jean Hales, the president of the South County chamber.
Given that, "it’s truly the position of county business organizations," she said.
Generally speaking, the groups are advocating policies, not backing specific legislation, Hales said. Instead of pushing for specific bills that could die in committee, the group wants legislators to adopt principals.
Their agenda calls for continued reform to reduce the cost of workers compensation and unemployment insurance to businesses, changes in the state’s business and occupation taxes to help small and struggling businesses, a repeal of automatic increases to the state’s minimum wage and lower estate taxes that match those levied by the federal government.
Businesses in Washington pay a greater share of all state taxes than those in neighboring states, the chambers maintain. Those policies "cost jobs in Washington by creating a non-competitive business environment."
But there are some specific projects mentioned — increasing funding for Highway 9 and speeding the construction of a new carpool lane through Everett, for example, and extending tax incentives for the technology and biotechnology industries.
The chambers also want the Legislature to "establish a culture within the regulatory agencies to help business get things done."
To do this, the groups are calling for the appointment of a state secretary for regulatory reform, and legislative support for programs to reform state Ecology Department permits and streamline local permit reviews.
The chambers also want the state to make "a significant investment in education." They’re calling for more coordination between schools, colleges and universities to meet the needs of businesses, and increased funds for community colleges and schools, so that they no longer have to recruit workers from out of state to fill high-skill, high-wage jobs.
And the chambers call for new economic development inducements, state assistance to ensure Naval Station Everett survives the next round of federal military base closures, changes in state health care policies and liability reform.
About 100 Chamber of Commerce members are expected for a meeting today with legislators to discuss the policy paper, Hales said. The groups did that last year, and "we felt we had more back-and-forth communication on some business competitiveness issues."
The chambers also plan to do more to keep members informed on events in Olympia, she said, using e-mail updates and a revised Web page that the South County chamber hopes to have running early in 2004.
"Communications are just critical," Hales said.
Reporter Bryan Corliss: 425-339-3454 or corliss@heraldnet.com.
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