“I love argument, I love debate. I don’t expect anyone to just sit there and agree with me, that’s not their job.”
“Debate” (noun); Like wrestling, but with words.
Action now moves to the floor of each chamber as legislators act to move bills out to the opposite house. As always, but more so this year, given the budget blues, there is a sense of panic and woe as various groups see their proposals die. But some
bills are still alive.
(The usual caveat is that no bill is dead until the last day of session, and any bill deemed necessary to implement the budget (NTIB) remains alive until the end.
SSB 5085: seeks to establish a Legacy Retirement System. The bill merges the assets, liabilities, and membership of Law Enforcement Officers’
and Firefighters’ Retirement System Plan 1, Public Employees’ Retirement System Plan 1 (PERS Plan 1), and the Teachers’ Retirement System Plan 1 (TRS Plan 1) retirement systems into the new Legacy Retirement System.
Pension Contribution Rates. Beginning July 1, 2025, the UAAL rates and the supplemental benefit enhancement rate are eliminated at least through June 30, 2029. Beginning July 1, 2029, any UAAL of the Legacy Retirement System will be amortized
over a rolling ten-year period and paid through a UAAL rate that is imposed on PERS Plan 1, TRS Plan 1, School Employees’ Retirement System, and the Public Safety Employees’ Retirement System Plans 2 and 3. At no time would
contribution rates be imposed on LEOFF Plan 1 employees or employers
The bill was moved as part of a package pull to the Senate floor calendar. It is likely to be voted on this coming week.
SB 5113/HB 1292: Creates an annual
increase in the retirement benefits of retirees in the Public Employees’ Retirement System and the Teachers’ Retirement System Plan 1, of up to 3 percent. Both of these bills have had hearings but no further action. An optimist
would say that SB 5085 will be the vehicle for addressing the need for a COLA in Plans 1.
SB 5114/HB 1312: Concerning covering
the premium costs of insurance during the month of one’s death. It provides a full month of public pension benefits paid in the month that a retiree dies. Senate Ways and Means held a hearing on the bill Jan. 23rd and House Appropriations
1/27.
There is movement since early hearings. To repeat, there is sympathy for the need to do this, however, the cost makes either prohibitive.
SB 5357/HB 1467: Reset rates for
past benefit enhancements and amortizes the cost over a 15-year period (instead of the current 10-year period).
SB 5357 has been moved to Rules.
HB 5478: Concerning benefits authorized to be offered by the public employees’ benefits board. This bill would allow HCA to the following
employee-paid, voluntary benefit plans: 39 (a) Emergency transportation; (b) Identity protection © Legal aid; (d) Long-term care insurance; (e) Noncommercial personal automobile insurance; (f) Personal homeowner’s or renter’s
insurance; (g) Pet insurance; (h) Specified disease or illness-triggered fixed payment insurance, hospital confinement fixed payment insurance, (i) Travel insurance.
It has passed the Senate 48/1 absent.
SB 5738: Permitting individuals retired from the public employees’ retirement system, the teachers’ retirement system, and the
school employees’ retirement system additional opportunities to work for up to 1,040 hours per year while in receipt of pension benefits.
This bill is similar to HB 1936 below, except it sunsets in 2029. It has been moved to Rules.
HB 1474: Providing a benefit increase to certain retirees of the public employees’ retirement system plan 1 and the teachers’
retirement system plan. This bill provides a one-time 3 percent increase to the retirement benefits of retirees in the Public Employees’ Retirement System and the Teachers’ Retirement System Plan 1, up to $110 per month.
This bill is in Rules. It is a bill that WSSRA and its members view as a fall back option should SSB 5085 (above) not be successful in the House.
HB 1790: Increasing defined benefit accrual for specified years of service in the state retirement systems. For years of service earned
after the effective date of this section, a member of the retirement system shall receive an additional one-half of one percent of such member’s average final compensation for each year of service beyond 30 years.
This bill was a request from WSSRA to attract and retain experienced staff while also demonstrating the work of WSSRA to potential members. It is likely dead due to cost.
HB 1936: Extending the expiration of certain school employee postretirement employment restrictions to 2027.
The bill reads: Between March 23, 2022, and July 1, ((2025)) 2027, a retiree that retired before January 1, 2022, and who enters service in a second-class school district, as defined in RCW 28A.300.065, as either a district
superintendent or an in-school administrator shall continue to receive pension payments while engaged in such service, until the retiree has rendered service for more than 1,040 hours in a calendar year.
This is in House Rules awaiting movement to the floor calendar.
SHB 1213: Expanding protections for workers in the state paid family and medical leave program.
This substitute House bill: Extends employment protection rights and costs in the Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) Program to any employee who began employment with their current employer at least 90 calendar days before
taking leave, regardless of the size of the employer.
- Allows employers to prevent stacking certain employment protection rights by extending employment protection in the PFML Program to periods of unpaid leave protected by the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, so long as the employer
provides certain notices to the employee and providing that employment protection expires after certain periods.
- Expands health care coverage protection during any period in which an employee receives PFML Program benefits and is also entitled to employment protection.
- Expands access to grants for small employers to offset the costs of employees’ use of leave.
SHB 1213 has been moved to Rules. Costs to state/employers from fiscal note are indeterminate.
HB 1334: Modifying the annual regular property tax revenue growth limit. This bill changes the 101 percent revenue growth limit for state
and local property taxes to 100 percent plus population change and inflation, with a capped limit of 103 percent.
Should counties/cities be allowed to increase their taxes from .02% to .03%, this could affect M & O levy success/asks. This bill had a public hearing on 2/11 before House Finance. (NTIB)
- SSB 5041: Concerning unemployment insurance benefits for striking or lockout workers.
This bill: Allows individuals unemployed due to a labor strike to receive unemployment insurance (UI) benefits following a specified disqualification period and the waiting week, provided that the labor strike is not found
to be prohibited by federal or state law in a final judgment.
- Removes the provision disqualifying an individual for UI benefits based on an employer-initiated lockout resulting from a strike against another employer in a multi-employer bargaining unit.
It is scheduled for Executive Session 2/28. WASA and WSSDA have submitted letters in opposition to this bill.
SSB 5101: Expanding access to leave and safety accommodations to include workers who are victims of hate crimes or bias incidents.
This bill: Expands access to leave and safety accommodations available to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, to include victims of hate crimes.
This bill is in Senate Rules.
SSB 5291: Implementing the recommendations of the long-term services and supports trust commission.
The substitute bill: Prohibits out-of-state participants from withdrawing from the Long-Term Services and Supports Trust Program (Program).
- Make the exemption from the Program automatic for active-duty military service members with off-duty civilian work and employees holding a nonimmigrant visa for temporary work.
- Allows an exempt employee who previously attested to having long-term care insurance to rescind the exemption prior to July 1, 2028.
- Allows for a limited pilot program in 2026 to assess the Program’s processes and system capacities.
- Creates standards and requirements for supplemental long-term care insurance policies designed for coverage after Program benefits are exhausted.
SB 5291 has been passed to Senate Rules.
SSB 5292: Concerning paid family and medical leave rates.
This bill: Requires the Employment Security Department Commissioner to set the paid family and medical leave program premium rate based on the Office of Actuarial Services annual report.
- Mandates the Office of Actuarial Services annual report to provide for a rate to close the rate collection year with a three-month reserve beginning in 2030, in addition to the current requirement to maintain a four-year solvency.
- Eliminates the statutory formula used to calculate the rate.
The bill has been moved to Rules.