Washington Business Fall 2018 | Legislative Review & Vote Record | Page 37

issue area reports | infrastructure
Discussing rural broadband solutions at AWB’s 2018 Spring Meeting, from left: Melissa Sassi of the Airband Initiative at Microsoft; Philip Hankins of
T-Mobile West; Betty Buckley of the Washington Independent Telecommunications Association; and Rep. Ed Orcutt, R-Kalama.
required Sound Transit officials to adjust
the MVET valuation in different ways,
but both would have generally reduced
the amount charged to vehicle owners.
The sticking point between the two bills
centered on whether the money lost to
Sound Transit should be backfilled from
other sources. In the end, legislators could
not agree, and the bills died.
SB 6043 & HB 2716
regulating transportation
network companies
Failed/AWB Supported
AWB supported Senate Bill 6043, spon-
sored by Sen. Steve Hobbs, D-Lake Stevens,
and House Bill 2716, sponsored by Rep. Gael
Tarleton, D-Ballard, which would have cre-
ated a statewide regulatory framework for
transportation network companies (TNCs).
The bills would have defined how TNCs
operate in Washington state, established
enforcement criteria, created a permit
fee and per trip surcharge, and required
state preemption over all local ordinances
Bill considered as part of
AWB’s voting record
governing TNCs. Neither bill received a
floor vote and they died in their respective
chambers. extended the UCS program to 2025. E2SSB
5935 passed the Senate by a vote of 45-3 but
did not come up for a vote in the House.
E2SSB 5935 SHB 1422 & SSB 5208
broadband office & ucs
fund
Failed/AWB Supported
AW B s up p o r t e d E n g r o s s e d S e c o n d
Substitute Senate Bill 5935, sponsored by
Sen. Tim Sheldon, D-Potlatch. It would
h a v e e n h a nce d con s u me r a c ce s s t o
broadband services by creating a state office
on broadband access and extended the
Universal Communications Services (UCS)
program. The original state broadband office
was under the Department of Commerce
and was eliminated in 2014. The UCS
program was created in 2014 to provide
f unding to small telecommunications
companies meeting certain criteria. The
prog ram expires in 2019. E2SSB 5935
would have reestablished the broadband
office under the governor, amended some
eligibility criteria in the UCS program, and
Favorable outcome for
Washington businesses
rural jobs a ct
Failed/AWB Supported
AW B supported Substitute House Bill
1422, sponsored by Rep. Bria n Bla ke,
D-Aberdeen, and Substitute Senate Bill
5208, sponsored by Sen. Judy Warnick,
R-Moses Lake, which would have improved
access to financial capital in rural areas.
Known as the Rural Jobs Act, the bills
would have created a rural growth fund
and a tax credit on the state business and
occupation tax and insurance premium
taxes for individuals to invest or improve
a business. The bills also would have
created performance triggers requiring
the investment authority to pay back the
funds if certain job and growth criteria
were not met. The bills did not come up
for a vote in either the House or Senate.
Missed Opportunities
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