“I grew up with six brothers. That is how I learned to dance--waiting for the bathroom.”
Bob Hope
As important deadlines are past and/or upcoming, negotiations between leadership, caucus members, and legislators of the opposite party are occurring behind closed doors. Those outside must wait to see what emerges. The assumed to be conference budget is a key piece yet to come. But other bill proposals also await action. So, it remains critical to continue to push/advocate with individual legislators while we learn to dance.
Below are bills that appear still ‘alive’ and are either reflected in the budget or awaiting further action by the opposite house. Remember that negotiations between both houses are still to occur. Bills from the opposite house that have been amended once passed the floor will either need to be approved by their house of origin or not.
Retirement Related Proposals
SHB 1007: Concerning interruptive military service credit for members of the state retirement systems.
Comment: Retirement credit can be awarded if, in any armed conflicts, the participant was awarded the respective campaign or expeditionary badge or medal…. the ‘expeditionary badge qualifier was added.
This bill passed the Senate 49/0 and has been sent to the Governor.
HB 1008: Concerning participating in insurance plans and contracts by separated Plan 2 members of certain retirement systems.
Comment: It allows certain individuals who separate from a position covered by the Public Employees', School Employees', and Teachers' Retirement System Plans 2, without retiring, the opportunity to participate in retiree benefits of the Public Employees' Benefits Board.
This bill is in Senate Rules awaiting further action.
SHB 1056: Repealing some postretirement employment restrictions.
Comment: Changes the postretirement employment restrictions on benefits eligibility for Public Employees' Retirement System, Teachers Retirement System, and School Employees Retirement System Plans 2 and 3 members that retired under the 2008 Early Retirement Factors (ERFs). • Permits 2008 ERF members to work in retirement system–covered employment for up to 867 hours per year without suspension of retirement benefits. • Adjusts benefits for individuals that chose the 3 percent per year early retirement reduction to the level of reduction in the 2008 ERFs for future benefit payments. Effective 1/1/2024.
This bill is in Senate Rules awaiting further action.
*Note Regarding Pension Funding**: The good news about the bills mentioned below is that contribution rates/surcharges will be reduced. This will save districts dollars they are paying for staff not funded by the state’s basic apportionment formula. The ‘bad’ news is that some of the bills assume rosy investment returns will offset the loss of dollars that were previously dedicated to paying down the unfunded liabilities in Plan 2. WSSRA has been working with legislators and favors SSB 5294, which offers a stepped-down reduction in rates that may help prevent both an eventual increase again in unfunded liabilities and a rate increase or reinstatement.
ESSB 5294: Concerning actuarial funding of state retirement systems.
Comment: This bill was amended by the House Appropriations Committee. It lowers the contribution rates in effect for the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) and the Teachers' Retirement System (TRS) Plans 1 UAAL rates in effect from Fiscal Year 2024 until Fiscal Year 2028 by increasing them generally from 0.50 to 1.0. This was done to address concerns that with the original rate proposal, the unfunded liability may continue or worsen. It continues to reduce the scheduled payment of $800 million into the TRS 1 fund to $250 million. The substitute Senate bill was included in their budget.
This bill is in House Rules awaiting further action.
SSB 5350: Providing a benefit increase to certain retirees of the public employees' retirement system plan 1 and the teachers' retirement system plan.
Comment: This would grant a one-time, capped 3% COLA for TRS1/PERS1 plan members. It also directs the SCPP to recommend a path to regain a permanent COLA for these retirees. It was amended by the House Appropriations Committee. Delays the impact of the benefit cost on the contribution rate for benefits added to the PERS and TRS 1 after June 30, 2009, until July 1, 2027. Specifies that a supplemental contribution rate shall not be charged for the benefits granted in the bill. “The rate for benefit improvements that became effective after June 30, 2009, shall not include a rate for the improvements in this act until July 1, 2027.” (ESHB 1057 is the companion but differs regarding rates. The surcharges go away to be reinstituted later. (Dates are specified))
Both bills have been referred to their respective Rules committees for further action.
SSB 5121: Extending the expiration date of the joint select committee on health care oversight.
Comment: Extends the expiration date of the Joint Select Committee on Health Care Oversight from December 31, 2022, until December 31, 2026, and renames it the Joint Select Committee on Health Care and Behavioral Health Oversight.
The Governor signed this bill 3/30/23. Expires Dec. 31, 2026.
SSB 5490: Concerning health care coverage for retired or disabled employees denied coverage for failure to timely notify the authority of their intent to defer coverage.
Comment: Allows certain retired public employees who were denied retiree health care coverage by the Public Employees Benefits Board another limited opportunity to enroll. • Only retired or disabled employees who were denied coverage for failure to notify the Health Care Authority of their deferral of coverage, and appealed the denial before December 31, 2022, are provided the new opportunity to enroll.
This Governor signed this bill 3/30/23. This act takes effect immediately.
Other Areas of Potential Fiscal Impact (and often unfunded) to Districts
SHB 1068: Concerning injured workers' rights during compelled medical examinations.
Comment: Allows an injured worker to make an audio and video recording of an independent medical examination and to have one person of the worker's choosing present during the examination.
This bill is in Senate Rules awaiting further action.
SHB 1105: Requiring public agencies to provide notice for public comment that includes the last date by which such public comment must be submitted.
Comment: Requires that public agencies soliciting public comment for statutorily specified periods of time provide notice of the first and last date and time which public comment will be accepted. • • Establishes penalties for agencies failing to provide notice. The amendment summary reads, “Notice of the public comment solicitation period must also include the first date public comments may be submitted and the time by which comments must be submitted. An agency that fails to provide notice is subject to the same penalties as the member of a governing body who violates another provision of OPMA, and liability ensues regardless of whether a meeting occurs. Agency members are not personally liable for violations of the act.
Senate State Government amended the bill. It is before Senate Rules awaiting further action.
ESHB 1106: Concerning qualifications for unemployment insurance when an individual voluntarily leaves work.
Comment: Expands access to unemployment insurance benefits by adding circumstances where a person may voluntarily quit for a good cause.
This bill has been sent to Senate Rules for further action.
ESHB 1187: Concerning privileged communication between employees and the unions that represent them.
Comment: Creates a privilege from examination and disclosure for a union representative and a union employee concerning any communication between the union representative or union employee made during union representation, and creates exceptions to this privilege. • Applies the privilege from examination and disclosure to the union members and organizations that represent employees of college districts, employees of school districts, public employees, faculty at public four-year institutions of higher education, civil service employees, ferry employees, port employees, and labor unions.
This bill is before Senate Rules awaiting further action.
SHB 1200: Requiring public employers to provide employee information to exclusive bargaining representatives.
Comment: This bill was amended by the Senate. It requires certain public employers to provide exclusive bargaining representatives employee information, such as contact information, date of hire, salary, and job site location, of employees in bargaining units if the employer has that information in its records. • Allows an exclusive bargaining representative to bring a court action if a public employer fails to comply with the requirement to provide information.
This bill is before Senate Rules awaiting further action.
EHB 1210: Concerning the recording of school board meetings.
Comment: Requires all school district board meetings to be audio recorded, subject to exceptions for executive sessions and emergencies, with recordings kept for one year. • Specifies that a public records request for recordings of meetings of a school district board of directors must include the date of the meetings requested or a range of dates. • Encourages school districts to make the content of school board of directors meetings available in formats accessible to individuals who need communication assistance and in languages other than English.
This bill has been moved to the Senate floor calendar awaiting further action.
E2SHB 1320: Concerning access to personnel records.
Comment: This bill was amended by the Senate. It requires an employer to furnish an employee or former employee with a complete copy of their personnel file at no cost within 15 business days of a request. • Mandates an employer to furnish a former employee with a signed written statement with the effective date of discharge, whether the employer had a reason for the discharge, and if so, the reasons, within 14 calendar days of the written request. • Allows an employee or former employee to bring a private action for violations of certain rights regarding personnel files, discharge information, and redaction logs, and entitles the employee to equitable relief, graduated statutory damages up to $1,000, and reasonable attorneys' fees and costs of each violation. •
Allows for redaction of personnel files under certain circumstances.
Scheduled for public hearing Senate Ways and Means 3/31/23.
HB 1656: Concerning unemployment insurance benefits appeal procedures.
Comment: It adds disputes of unemployment insurance (UI) determinations of allowance or denial of allowance of benefits or redeterminations, in addition to a dispute of initial determinations, as issues in appeals proceedings regardless of the grounds in the notice of appeal. • Removes provisions that in a UI appeal on a dispute of a claimant's claim for waiting period credit or UI benefits claim that all UI issues relating to the claimant's right to receive such credit or UI benefits for the period in question are deemed to be in issue regardless of the particular grounds in the notice of appeal; and the claimant's availability for work is determined apart from all other matters.
It is on the Senate Consent calendar awaiting further action.
2SSB 5048: Eliminating college in the high school fees.
Comment: It requires institutions of higher education to provide enrollment and registration in College in the High School (CHS) courses at no cost to students in grades 9 through 12 at public high schools. • Requires the Legislature to appropriate funds to fund CHS courses at inflation-adjusted rates. • Directs high schools that provide CHS courses to include information in the course catalog, and to notify parents and guardians by email and in beginning-of-the-year packets, that there is no fee for students to enroll in CHS courses. • Requires parental and guardian notifications to also explain CHS credit transfer procedures.
Moved to House Appropriations awaiting further action.
SB 5084: Creating a separate fund for the purposes of self-insured pensions and assessments.
Comment: Creates a self-insurance reserve fund for payments from self-insured employers related to workers' compensation pensions and from the overpayments reimbursement fund.
Referred to House Appropriations awaiting further action.
ESSB 5123: Concerning the employment of individuals who lawfully consume cannabis.
Comment: This bill was amended by the House. It prohibits employers, with some exceptions, from discriminating against a person in hiring if the discrimination is based on the person's use of cannabis outside of work or on certain employer-required drug screening tests.
Passed House 57/41 with amendments Will be sent to Senate for concurrence.
SSB 5127: Clarifying school districts' ability to redact personal information related to a student.
Comment: Creates a new exemption to the Public Records Act for personal information in any records pertaining to a student currently or previously enrolled in a local education agency.
This bill is in House Rules awaiting further action.
E2SSB 5174: Providing adequate and predictable student transportation.
Comment: It requires the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) to administer transportation safety net awards to school districts with excess special passenger costs for special education, homeless, and foster students, as defined in the operating budget. • Provides that, no earlier than for a contract affecting the 2024-25 school year, school districts may only enter into a pupil transportation services contract if the contractor provides certain health benefits and retirement contributions to employees who choose to opt-in for coverage. • Provides reimbursement subject to funding provided specifically for increased costs to school districts that are directly attributable to increased benefits as required in the bill.
It is in House Rules awaiting further action.
Note: A similar but not companion bill, HB 1248 concerning pupil transportation, remains in House Rules. It also requires that school district contracts for pupil transportation services must include sufficient funds to provide employees of the contracting employer with health benefits and pension contributions equivalent to those of school district classified employees. • Provides one-time supplemental allocations to districts that experience higher costs because of the new contract requirements. A proposed amendment, among other changes, replaces one-time supplemental allocations of $200 per employee working more than 630 hours per month for districts that experience higher costs under the new contract requirements with a reimbursement subject to funding provided specifically for increased costs.
SSB 5275: Expanding access to benefits provided by the school employees' benefits board.
Comment: Allows tribal compact schools, employee organizations representing school employees, and school board directors the option of providing health care through the School Employees Benefits Board through SEBB beginning January 1, 2024. Employers opting into coverage under SEBB may determine the terms of employee and dependent eligibility and must pay premiums set by HCA.
Passed House 97/0. The Governor signed bill 3/30/23. Becomes effective 1/1/2024.
SSB 5286:
Modifying the premium provisions of the paid family and medical leave program.
Comment: Modifies the statutory formula for determining the premium rates for the Paid Family and Medical Leave Program.
Scheduled for Executive Session before House Appropriations 3/31/23.
2SSB 5593: Improving equity in the transfer of student data between K-12 schools and institutions of higher education.
Comment: A proposed striker (1) Requires data-sharing between institutions of higher education and the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) to obligate the institutions to include the statewide student identifier for each student. (2) Requires institutions of higher education, in providing information about student enrollments and outcomes to the OSPI, to include the statewide student identifier for each student. (3) Requires the OSPI, in identifying a process for making information about a student's enrollment in an institution of higher education available to the student's district, to require that information provided to school districts include the statewide student identifier for each student. (4) Defines "statewide student identifier" as the statewide student identifier that is required by statute and included in the longitudinal student data system. (5) Establishes a new definition of "directory information" for the proposed data-sharing agreements by removing a reference to a federal definition and specifying that the term means the names, addresses, email addresses, and telephone numbers of students and their parents or legal guardians.
Scheduled for public hearing before House Appropriations 3/31.23.
Fred Yancey
The Nexus Group LLC