Congratulations to the Jubilee Foundation on the groundbreaking ceremony on Tuesday, February 13, 2024 for their Tierra Vida Phase III apartment project. The apartments will be just east of 3209 E. A St. in Pasco.
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Congratulations to My Garden Over Floweth on their ribbon cutting ceremony on Friday, February 9. Check out their beautiful shop inside the Public Market at CRW in Kennewick (10 E. Bruneau Ave., Bldg. C). Thanks to everyone who attended Business After Hours at Jewelry Design Center on Thursday, February 8. We hope you made some valuable new business connections! Senators from the Tri-City Region have been busy during the 2024 Legislative Session. We’ve already highlighted a few bills that may emerge from the House of Representative, now we’ll look at a few from the Senate side. The 8th Legislative District is represented by Senator Matt Boehnke. Senator Boehnke recognizes that tourism is a huge part of the Tri-Cities Regional economy. Sen. Boehnke and Sen Dozier have teamed up to put forth SB 6080 that would make it easier for State tourism funds to automatically be deposited into the State Tourism account. Senator Mark Schoesler, from the 9th, has been working for the last two years to get a bill passed out of the Senate. SB 5344 would establish a Public-School Revolving fund to issue low-interest or interest-free loans to qualifying school districts for capital projects. Organized Retail theft is the target of a bill sponsored by Senator Nikki Torres of the 15th Legislative District. Sen. Boehnke and Schoesler have also joined the fight. After two years SB 5160 has made it through the committee gauntlet and is on the Floor Calendar. The bill adds an additional way to commit organized retail theft in the 2nd degree. Rounding out the Tri-City Regional delegation is Senator Perry Dozier from the 16th Legislative District introduced SB 6238 which would increase assistance amounts for the property tax assistance program for widows and widowers of veterans. Each of these bills have made it out of their committees and are waiting to get placed on the Senate Floor Calendar.
Local lawmaker bills are making progress. Tri-City Regional lawmakers have introduced bills into the 2024 Legislative Session that began on January 8, 2024. Each year hundreds of bills get introduced and many fail to make it past the first gate. The first half of the legislative session is almost over, and local Legislative Representatives are making progress. Here are a few examples. Representative Stephanie Barnard from the 8th Legislative District recently had success moving HB 2120 out of the House Finance Committee. Her bill would make it possible to allow cities to extend certain tax exemptions for nuclear facilities, to continue research and development in Clean Energy. Another 8th Legislative District Representative, April Connors, has managed to usher HB 2464 out of the House Committee on Housing. The bill would open additional land within an Urban Growth Area for new manufactured home communities. This bill could assist in alleviating the housing crunch across the state. Expanding training programs at our state corrections center was the target of Representative Mary Dye, from the 9th Legislative District. A feasibility study authorized by HB 2210 would help determine if a wild horse training, holding and farrier program would fit into the Washington State Correction system. Representative Mark Klicker from the 16th Legislative District has HB 2428 a bill that would alter the way Cities and Counties can share certain tax revenues. The bill would allow interlocal agreements between local governments or other public agencies to cooperatively conduct government activities. Fifty five representatives signed on to support Representative Skyler Rude’s HB 1915. Representative Rude’s bill was passed unanimously out of the House Committee on Education. The bill would make financial education instruction a graduation requirement. The bill has strong bipartisan support. Each of these bills will still needs to be passed on the floor of the House before February 13th and go through the Senate process before they will become law. We're headed into the 4th week of the Washington State Legislative Session. Here are the pieces of legislation we're tracking that could impact the business community: Free up 16- and 17-year-olds to participate in CTE on the job trainingThe legislation: House Bill (HB) 2035 Why it matters: Currently youth are not allowed to participate in any work during school hours. Current regulations prevent a high school student from participating in a bona fide career and technical education (CTE) program if it includes work-based learning during the school day. Students can work in these programs if the work falls outside of school hours. This legislation would allow students to work in a bona fide CTE program during the school year and during normal school hours. It also allows students enrolled in a bona fide college program to work the “extended” hours also. What you can do: Send a comment or your position to your legislators. Mandatory payroll deductions for personal retirement accounts The legislation: House Bill (HB) 2244 and Senate Bill (SB) 6069 Why it matters: Studies have shown that many Americans are not preparing for retirement and are relying on Social Security as their retirement plan. The process of setting up a personal IRA account may also be daunting. The House bill and the Senate companion bill would create a mandatory payroll deduction for employees who work for a company that does not currently have some kind of retirement account. The employer must enroll in the program, but the employee must opt out if they don’t want to participate. What you can do: Send a comment on the House bill or comment on the Senate bill. You can also just state your position. Allowing more time clean energy manufacturers to get up and running The legislation: House Bill (HB) 2120 Why it matters: The development of clean energy facilities is a long process. There is currently legislation in place that allows a property tax exemption for up to 5 years on the development of new facilities. That may not be long enough to complete the design and construction. This bill would allow local governments the option to extend the property tax exemption for up to four additional years. This change would allow existing project to be completed and may encourage new projects in clean energy. What you can do: Send a comment or your position to your legislators. New real estate transfer tax could affect affordable housing The legislation: House Bill (HB) 2276 and Senate Bill (SB) 6191 Why it matters: Real estate excise taxes are paid to both the state and local jurisdictions. The state rate is based on a sliding scale depending on the sales price. It goes from 1.1% for sales less that $525,00 up to 3% for sales above $3,025,000. This new law would raise the 1.1% rate up to $750,000 and impose an additional real estate transfer tax (in addition to real estate excise tax) on all sales above the $3,025,000 amount. The new tax could adversely affect the development of new residential housing and multi family dwelling units. The additional tax on multifamily housing would have a negative impact on affordable housing. It could also stymy new commercial construction. What you can do: Send a comment on the House Bill or comment on the Senate Hill. You can also just state your position. Update on last week's bills:House Bill 2114 Rent Control Passed out of Committee and is in House Appropriations Committee Senate Bill 6188 Wind Farm Siting Passed out of Committee and is Senate Environment, Energy & Technology Read last week's Advocacy Update Do you know of legislation that you'd like to see us address? Contact Matt Murphy, Government and Regional Affairs Director, at matt.murphy@tricityregionalchamber.com.
Congratulations to PorterKinney, PC on their brand new, beautiful location in Kennewick! Visit them at 8109 W. Grandridge Blvd., Ste. 110. The Tri-City Regional Chamber of Commerce (TCRCC) has appointed Karen Irey as the organization’s Office Administrator. In this role, Irey will serve as the primary point of contact for visitors to the TCRCC office, while also providing support for various functions within the membership, programs, and events departments. With a background as a Funeral Director at Einan’s Funeral Home, Irey brings a wealth of experience in event coordination, schedule management, and efficient supply handling under tight deadlines. Her previous roles as an Office Assistant for the Snohomish County Corrections Guild in Everett, WA, and Front Office Coordinator for the Northwest Center for Optimal Health in Marysville, WA, showcase her versatile skill set. TCRCC President & CEO Lori Mattson, IOM, expressed enthusiasm about Irey, stating, “We are delighted to welcome Karen to our team as the new Office Administrator. She brings a unique blend of compassion, organizational skills, and attention to detail that aligns seamlessly with our commitment to fostering a supportive and efficient Chamber environment.” Irey can be reached at 509.736.0510 or karen.irey@tricityregionalchamber.com. The Tri-City Regional Chamber of Commerce is the catalyst, convener and champion for community and business prosperity. For further details about the Regional Chamber, visit www.tricityregionalchamber.com or call 509.736.0510. The 2024 Washington State Legislative Session is underway! We're tracking these pieces of legislation that could impact the business community: Gift cards could cost your businessThe legislation: House Bill (HB) 2095 and Senate Bill (SB) 5988 Why it matters: The proposed legislation would require businesses to remit to the State the balance of any unused gift cards if they are not redeemed within three years of purchase. Businesses would still be obligated to honor the cards if they were subsequently redeemed. The business would have to request reimbursement from the State. The proposal would cause a tremendous amount of additional paperwork for businesses in both tracking gift card sales and in requesting reimbursement if the cards are later redeemed. What you can do: Send a comment or your position to your legislators. Linking Washington's carbon market to the California carbon marketThe legislation: HB 2201 and SB 6058 Why it matters: This legislation would open the California Carbon Marketplace up to Washington businesses for the purposes of purchasing carbon credits. It would create a larger marketplace for carbon credits, potentially reducing the cost of carbon credits, which may reduce the pass-through cost to consumers. What you can do: Send a comment or your position to your legislators. Statewide Rent Control The legislation: HB 2114 and SB 5961 Why it matters: The proposed legislation would place a cap on the amount of rent increase during any 12-month period. It would allow a tenant to immediately terminate their lease if a rent increase of 3% was implemented. It also has other limits to fees and restrictions on lease terms. Rent control would eliminate a landlord's ability to recoup expenses resulting from property ownership costs. In the event of a rent increase, landlords could face additional burdens from terminated lease agreements. What you can do: Send a comment or your position to your legislators. Restore local control to wind farm sitingThe legislation: HB 2117 and SB 6188 Why it matters: These bills would require permitting authorities to consider aerial firefighting and wildfire suppression efforts into consideration when siting utility-scale wind facilities. This legislation could limit the size and scope of potential wind farms and provide local jurisdictions more input on siting. What you can do: Send a comment or your position to your legislators. Do you know of legislation that you'd like to see us address? Contact Matt Murphy, Government and Regional Affairs Director, at matt.murphy@tricityregionalchamber.com.
Gallery - Kennewick School District's Ridge View Elementary School Ribbon Cutting Ceremony1/18/2024 Congratulations to the Kennewick School District on their ribbon cutting ceremony for Ridge View Elementary School on Wednesday, January 17. The school is located at 7001 W. 13th Ave. in Kennewick. |
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