Bill with relief for Washington businesses, unemployed workers heads to governor’s desk
A bill that would increase the minimum weekly benefit for unemployed workers and curb an increase in employers’ unemployment taxes has passed both houses of the Washington state legislature with broad support.
The state Senate passed the bill, which was requested by Gov. Jay Inslee, in a 42-7 vote Wednesday night. It then moved to the House, which fast-tracked it to the floor and passed it in a 89-8 vote Friday afternoon.
As written, it would go into effect immediately when Inslee signs it into law.
“This issue is urgent,” said prime sponsor Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Des Moines, in a statement after it passed off the Senate floor earlier this week. “Employers are seeing increases of 300 to 500 percent and more in their unemployment premiums. SB (Senate Bill) 5061 provides a bridge for those who need it most.”
Rep. Larry Hoff of Vancouver, the ranking Republican on the House Labor and Workplace Standards Committee, introduced one of three amendments from members of his caucus that were voted down Friday. In the end, he and several others Republicans expressed their general support for the bill ahead of the bipartisan vote.
“As session continues, we will continue making the case that employers should not be held responsible for the layoffs that occurred because of the governor’s shutdown orders,” part of a prepared statement from Hoff reads.
“Furthermore, they should not be asked to replace the hundreds of millions of dollars stolen from the Employment Security Department by an international fraud ring. We have much more work ahead, but this is a fine starting point in our effort to support our job creators, grow the economy, and bolster the state’s unemployment trust fund.”
Lawmakers have repeatedly called the bill a first step.
“I think if there’s anything I learned quickly about this, was we’re not gonna solve it overnight,” Rep. Mike Sells of Everett, who sponsored a companion bill in the House, said on the floor Friday. “But we are gonna begin the journey, and we begin the journey here with this particular bill tonight.”
What’s in it for workers
Starting with claims with an effective date of July 1, the floor for who can get more than half their wages replaced by unemployment benefits would raise from people earning 15% of the state’s average weekly wage to people earning 20%, a spokesperson for Sen. Keiser confirmed.
The result: The minimum weekly benefit would be projected to rise to $270 in July. The benefit is currently $201, according to the Employment Security Department’s website.
People making between $21,000 and $27,800 per year would see the share of their wages that gets replaced increase.
What’s in it for employers
In the wake of massive unemployment caused by the pandemic, the bill prevents an automatic unemployment insurance tax increase of $1.7 billion from 2021 to 2025, according to a House Democrats press release.
Part of the relief is a result of wiping out the effects of $1.2 billion in benefits paid out during Gov. Inslee’s Stay Home, Stay Healthy order last spring from future tax calculations, so businesses won’t have to pay back the state’s trust fund for those benefits.
“That’s like having an accident wiped off of your car insurance record,” said Sen. Keiser in a statement earlier this week. “It keeps the insurance company from increasing your rates later on.”
The bill also waives the solvency tax through 2025, which usually automatically applies if the unemployment insurance trust fund has been depleted, staff confirmed. And it caps part of the unemployment insurance tax so that it increases gradually over the next five years rather than spiking.
What’s in it for the future
With an aim to be more responsive the next time Washington faces a public health crisis, the bill also includes changes that would automatically go into effect the next time the governor declares an emergency such as the COVID-19 pandemic or the federal government provides money.
Next time, employers wouldn’t be charged unemployment insurance benefits for employees who are high-risk and unable to work from home, for example. And businesses could request that benefits not be charged when they’re a result of closing due to an infectious disease that’s part of the emergency.
People who are high-risk or live with someone who’s high-risk would be able to get unemployment benefits after they voluntarily quit for good cause if they can’t work from home, according to nonpartisan bill report. And the one-week waiting period will be waived for people when federal funds are available.
This story was originally published January 30, 2021 at 5:45 AM.
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