By the Association of Washington Business Institute

​Businesses are still working through the pandemic — but local economies in Washington are posting strong recoveries.
 
That includes the Tri-Cities economy. The proof is in the numbers.  
 
At the Association of Washington Business Institute, we’ve created a set of economic indicators called the Recovery Vitals. It’s an easy-to-access set of stats that shows whether counties, MSAs and the state are making progress — and how your local economy stacks up against others. And it’s regularly updated by our partners at the Eastern Washington University Institute for Public Policy & Economic Analysis.
 
In the Kennewick-Pasco-Richland-West Richland area, you’re making progress. Among other strengths, the Recovery Vitals show improvement in the Tri-Cities’:
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• Taxable quarterly retail sales. In Q2 of 2021, the Tri-Cities saw a 32.8% year-over-year increase. That’s a great sign, because it reflects a steep rise in consumer spending — the largest part of any economy. That local figure compares with a 33.6% increase in the state.
• Residential building permits. After a steep decline that started in Q3 of 2020, permits were back up in Q2 of 2021. In fact, they were way up — to 1.76 permits per 1,000 residents, compared with 0.09 permits per 1,000 in Q1 of 2021. The statewide rate was 1.48 in Q2. An increase in residential permits signals ramped-up activity in the construction trades and real estate. It’s also a signal to local governments about future sales tax revenue, because home building leads to taxable sales.

 
Different indicators in the Recovery Vitals are updated monthly, quarterly or at longer intervals, depending on how the data is collected. More recent data can help businesses and communities adjust immediate plans and focus resources where they’re most needed. Longer-term data, such as median household income and per-capita personal income, is helpful for understanding big-picture progress and challenges.

We encourage you to explore the Recovery Vitals. They’re part of a free, interactive resource that brings together more than 30 key economic indicators for every county or MSA in Washington. You also can compare one area’s stats with another’s or against the state average.
 
The tool is part of Washington in the Making, a framework for the state’s economic recovery that envisions lasting prosperity for every community in Washington. In the Tri-Cities, we’re glad to see a business community that’s building back strong.

​The Washington State Building Code Council (WSBCC) seeks public comment on two proposed changes to the State Energy Code for commercial buildings.

These proposals would ban the use of natural gas for space and water heating in new and retrofit commercial buildings. If passed, all new commercial buildings would only be able to use electricity for heating and hot water after 2027. This will significantly raise the cost of energy for commercial building owners and those costs will then be passed onto building tenants, often the local small and medium businesses that have been the hardest hit by Covid and form the core of many downtowns.

If you are interested in listening to, or participating in, the public comment period at the next WSBCC meeting on Nov. 19 at 10:00 am, use this Zoom link to join. (See Agenda). 

Chamber by-laws govern the process for the selection and election of the Board of Directors. In compliance with those by-laws, a Nominating Committee was appointed. The Nominating Committee assembled to select candidates to fill vacancies coming due on December 31st of this year. After having been nominated by the Nominating Committee and approved by the Board of Directors, the Chamber submits the following individuals to serve on the Chamber’s Board of Directors:

RETURNING – 3-year term
Jim Arneson, Community First Bank
Amy Basche, HMIS
Paul Carlisle, elevate
Dee Gray, Jacobs
Jodi Henderson, Benton PUD
Trish Herron, Battelle
Katherine Sierra-Kelly, Gravis Law

RETURNING – 2-year term
Brian Moreno, Moreno & Moreno
Cynthia Vaughn, Magnolia Music Studio

NEW – 3-year term
George Booth, Booth & Sons Construction, Inc.
Mike Eutsey, Cascade Natural Gas Corp.
Megan Hughes, Barnard Griffin Winery
Michael Lemon, CLA

2022 Update: This Pilot Program has expired

OMWBE is pleased to partner with the Washington Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) to provide an electronic Bid Match Service to in-state OMWBE state certified firms. The Bid Match Service is a software subscription that searches 1500 government bid sites for solicitations based on keywords and other criteria. With the assistance of the PTAC Advisors, once the customized business profile is set up, the system will search multiple government websites to uncover new government bid opportunities.  Based on the search results, the firm will receive a daily email with bid opportunities that match the firm’s profile and link directly to the public posting. 

Why is OMWBE partnering with PTAC?
The 2019 Disparity Study recommendations included partnering with PTAC to increase government contracting opportunities to OMWBE state certified businesses. This pilot program moves the state closer to fulfilling these recommendations.

What are the eligibility criteria?

• The business must be headquartered in Washington State.
• The business must be a OMWBE state certified firm (i.e., MBE, MWBE, WBE, CBE, or a SEDBE).
• The business must be listed in the OMWBE online Directory of Certified Firms by the Bid Match start date.
• Complete the PTAC Bid Match Application found here.

To learn more about PTAC’s bid match service, go to www.washingtonptac.org/bid-match.  This website includes more information and an educational video about the bid match service. 

Is Bid Match a useful tool for my business?
If your business is actively searching for government contracting opportunities, Bid Match can save you time from searching multiple websites for bid notices. Consider talking with a PTAC Advisor about your government contracting goals to see if Bid Match fits into your firm’s strategy.

How does it work?
PTAC’s Bid Match Service will provide a no-cost 12-month electronic bid matching service subscription to three hundred (300) in state, OMWBE, state certified firms. Normally, a firm would pay $165/year for the bid match service.  The 12-month subscription starts when the firm’s Bid Match profile is set up by the PTAC Advisor.

The 300 no-cost subscriptions are offered on a first come, first serve basis.

When does the pilot start?
The Bid Match Service Pilot starts Monday, July 19, 2021 and runs through December 31, 2021 or when PTAC has accepted 300 in state, state certified firms.

Where do I apply?
If you are interested in the pilot and meet the eligibility requirements, please complete the PTAC Bid Match Application found here. Once complete, a PTAC Advisor will contact you to set-up your firm’s online bid match profile.

Who to you contact if you have questions?
Questions related to the PTAC bid match service, please contact Marnie Tyson at Marnie@WashingtonPTAC.org.
Questions related to OMWBE state certification, please contact Pamela Jorden at Pamelaj@omwbe.wa.gov.
 
FAQs:
Can I participate if my firm is state and federal certified with OMWBE?
Yes, as long as your firm is also OMWBE state certified (i.e., MBE, MWBE, WBE, CBE, or a SEDBE).

How long does it take to start receiving bid matches in my email?
Once you have submitted your Bid Match Application, a PTAC Advisor will contact you and go through the keyword search submitted on the application and other criteria. Your application will be thoroughly reviewed with you and fine-tuned by the knowledgeable PTAC Advisor with over 20 years of experience.  Common keyword misspellings and pluralization’s, wildcards, proximity statements, exclude statements, and many other Boolean logic operators will be added to your search profiles to produce the most accurate results possible.  As a result, please be patient after you submit your application.  It could take several days or longer to get it set up just right. 

Which government agencies does it search?
Bid Match searches federal, state, and local government websites.  There are about 1500 different websites across the United States.

Can I limit my search?
Yes. You can limit your search geographically by State to only include the states you want to search.  Additionally, you can limit it to just include state/local bids or just Federal. 

Can multiple people from my company get the daily email?
Yes.  We can add as many recipients from your company as you’d like to your subscription for no additional cost.  Each will receive the daily email.

What if I want to update my search criteria?
Contact your PTAC Advisor to make changes to your bid match search criteria.  PTAC wants your bids to be relevant to what you do!  We also encourage you to send us bids you may have found from other sources so we can further enhance your profile and/or the sites to our Bid Match searches. 

What if I need help understanding how to respond to a bid notice?
PTAC can help.  PTAC provides no-cost technical assistance on how to find, bid on, and win government contracts and subcontracts.  Set an appointment today with your local PTAC Advisor (Jody O'Connor - 509.491.3231 or jodyoconnor@tricityregionalchamber.com).