Washington Business Fall 2017 | Legislative Review & Vote Record | Page 21

washington business
understood or appreciated in a state with a booming
metropolitan economy.
While unemployment continues to drop in the Puget
Sound region, it remains much higher elsewhere in the
state particularly in rural areas where manufacturing
jobs are especially prized because of their relatively
high wages and benefits. On average, a manufacturing
position in Washington pays nearly $87,000 per year,
compared to $56,780 in other sectors.
But while manufacturing remains a key component
of Washington’s economy, employing more than
284,000 people, it is showing signs of distress. Since
2000, the state’s manufacturing sector has lost more
than 50,000 jobs.
So, a 40 percent reduction in the business and
occupation (B&O) tax rate for manufacturers, which
lawmakers had approved as part of their budget
agreement, would have provided a needed boost to
all manufacturers, but especially to those in rural
communities.
Many of the manufacturers that have held on in
rural Washington are multi-generation family-owned
operations such as Simpson Door in McCleary or
Lampson International in Kennewick.
AWB staff visited with Simpson Door and Lampson —
and dozens of other manufacturers — during a statewide
bus tour this fall highlighting the manufacturing sector.
Hundreds of workers signed the sides of custom-
wrapped buses to show their support for manufacturing
and many also signed a petition calling on lawmakers to
restore the B&O tax relief for manufacturers.
Following the governor’s veto, which 23 legislators
requested in a July 3 letter, AWB called on lawmakers to
override it. “We should be doing everything we can to sup-
port manufacturers,” said AWB President Kris Johnson.
Restoring the tax relief would help Washington’s
existing manufacturers survive and thrive in a
competitive regional, national and global market. It would help make Washington, which is a relatively expensive
state for business, attract new employers.
And perhaps most important, it would send a message that Washington’s leaders understand and appreciate the
challenges facing manufacturers — and the value they bring to the state’s economy, communities and families.
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