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Center for Small Business

The Center for Small Business focuses on improving the state’s small business climate through researching and analyzing ways to improve the taxation and regulation of small businesses in order to encourage economic development. Since 2001, WPC’s Small Business Center has held conferences, roundtables and forums to help educate small business owners, as well as glean policy recommendations from those that make up the economic backbone of the state economy.

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Small Business Publications | Small Business Blog

Lead the Way: Small Business & the Road to Recovery

It is a known fact that small businesses often lead the way out of economic downturns. But for a variety of reasons the Great Recession is providing small businesses extra obstacles to recovery. However, there are steps that policymakers in Washington state can take to help alleviate some of the burden that the small business community is undertaking. "Lead the Way: Small Business & the Road to Recovery" contains 24 specific policy priorities from small business owners who attended WPC's 2009 Statewide Small Business Conference. This report is a tool for policymakers to guide them as they craft policies to help improve our state's business climate.

Read the full report here >>

State taxes due to rise in 2010, hurting small business recovery

On Dec. 11, 2009, Gov. Christine Gregoire announced she intends to seek tax increases of 54 percent in 2010 in Unemployment Insurance rates.

No sooner had the dust settled from the Governor’s announcement than the state’s Employment Security Department announced that Unemployment Insurance taxes for the state’s employers are going up in 2010.

Read the full op ed in the Snohomish County Business Journal here

Study: Tax Increases Threaten More Job Losses in Washington

The Biz Coach quotes Carl Gipson, Center for Small Business Director

Read the article at The Biz Coach here

2009 Statewide Small Business Conference

Lunch crowd at 2009 Statewide Small Business ConferenceSmall business owners, legislators,andpolicymakers from all overWashington gathered in SeaTac on Tuesday, November 10th, to discuss the state's business climate at Washington Policy Center's 2009 Small Business Conference. During several interactive issue breakout sessions, business owners suggested and discussed solutions to improve the climate for small businesses in Washington. Co-sponsored by nearly 50 businesses, trade associations, and chambers of commerce across the state, this was the fourth statewide small business conference hosted by WPC since 2003. The conference featured a morning Legislative panel, as well as breakout sessions on important policy topics that affect small business owners, from access to health care, to business taxes, to regulatory reform, unemployment insurance, workers' compensation and more. These breakout sessions provided opportunities for those in the audience to offer recommendations and vote on their favorite ideas. These ideas will then be passed on to state policymakers prior to the 2010 Legislative Session.

Read more, see pictures, videos and more here >>

Small Business Owners Offer Solutions to Improve Business Climate at Statewide Small Business Conference

Help Grow the Economy by Repealing the Estate Tax

October 2009

The tens of thousands of owners of Washington family businesses know all too well the sacrifices required to build a successful enterprise that can reinvest in new jobs and expanded work opportunities for people in the community.

These business owners also know that their hard work, in the end, might be for naught, and that when they die their families may have to sell the business to pay federal and Washington state estate taxes.

The government requires payment of estate taxes following a death, demanding, in the case of business owners, a large percentage of the combined value of all family and business assets, including homes, cars, savings accounts, retirement accounts, business equipment, inventory, buildings, land and more. 

Read the full op ed here >>

Citizens’ Guide To Proposition 4 In Spokane
“Community Bill Of Rights”

This November, voters in the city of Spokane will vote on a Community Bill of Rights ballot measure. The measure, promoted by a community action group called “Envision Spokane,” seeks to amend the Spokane City Charter to either expand current entitlement programs or institute new ones.

The measure would codify rights for various entities. Also referred to as the “Spokane Community Bill of Rights,” the measure is a first of its kind in the United States. The aim is to use government authority to guarantee the legal right of every citizen to a sustainable and locally-based economy, affordable preventative medical care, affordable housing, and affordable and renewable energy. The bill would also assign legal rights to the natural environment and to neighborhoods so that communities could determine their own futures. The proposal would direct how workers would be paid, how many apprentices must be employed, and that union rights are mandatory in the workplace.

Read the full Policy Note here (PDF)

Carl Gipson testifies on House Bill 1617

Carl Gipson, director of the Center for Small Business, testified before the House State Government and Tribal Affairs Committee on House Bill 1617, which would require legislative approval of significant agency rule-making. The bill would also require up to a one year waiting period from the time the agency passed a new rule until the rule is implemented. His testimony begins at the 10 minute mark.

Requiring Specific Legislative Authority for Agency Rule-Making Would Help Washington Businesses, by Carl Gipson Director, January 2009

Business Rankings Once Again Declare "All is Well with Washington." Not so., by Carl Gipson, January 2009

Regional Small Business Forums Wrap up; More than 600 Gathered to Discuss Issues across Washington

Over the past several weeks Washington Policy Center has held Small Business Forums in Spokane, Tri-Cities, Bellevue, Wenatchee, Tacoma, and Vancouver. We've been holding these forums for three years and 2008 brought the most participants ever!

Read more and watch the videos here>>

24 Ways to Improve the State's Small Business Climate24 ways to improve small business

Last November, several hundred small business owners convened at Washington Policy Center’s Statewide Small BusinessConference to discuss and rate policy recommendations in order to improve the state’s small business climate. Eight breakout sessions sought small business owners’ feedback on policy proposals in access to affordable health care, transportation, tax reform, workers' compensation, eminent domain abuse, data security, streamlined sales tax, and the state's new paid family leave program.
At the core of “24 Ways to Improve the State’s Small Business Climate” are small business owners’ top three recommendations in each of these policy areas.

 


 

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Washington Policy Center's
Winter 2010 Small Business Update

Dear Small Business Supporter,

I hope you are having a happy, safe and prosperous New Year. Of course, prosperity is something we all hope for but during times like these perhaps prosperity should be replaced with "survival." As was impressed upon me at a recent gathering of small business owners in Olympia, "we small businesses are hanging on by a very thin thread. One more hit like a tax increase could put us under and send our employees to the unemployment insurance benefit line."

Unfortunately, I'm not sure everyone in Olympia has received that message. 

Last November, WPC hosted our biennial Statewide Small Business Conference. The result of almost 300 small business owners, trade association and chamber representatives participating is a new report called, "Lead the Way: Small Business and the Road to Recovery."  We names the report this because small businesses often lead the economy out of recessions, but policies that make doing business more difficult or expensive will stunt economic growth; and this is not what we need right now. If you are interested in having WPC staff come to your chamber or other civic group to speak about this report and its findings, please contact us.

See below on the issues that WPC is working on during the 2010 Session that involve small businesses or watch WPC's Annual Legislative Briefing courtesy of TVW. 

I am also excited to announce that WPC now has a full-time presence in Eastern Washington, with offices in Spokane and Tri-Cities. The office is staffed by former KXLY producer and Gonzaga alum Chris Cargill. This will allow much greater interaction between the small business community and WPC, especially regarding Eastern Washington issues. Call Chris at 509.570.2384 or email him at ccargill@washingtonpolicy.org.

Lastly, as the 2010 Legislative Session reaches fever pitch with the proposed tax increases being rolled out, be sure to keep track of those and any other legislation at WashingtonVotes.org. It's a great tool to keep informed of the latest legislative action.

Regards,

Carl Gipson
Director, WPC's Center for Small Business

Small Business & the Road to Economic Recovery

 

Small Business & the Road to Economic RecoveryAbout 300 small business owners, policymakers and other concerned citizens turned out on November 10th for WPC's 2009 Statewide Small Business Conference in SeaTac.

The purpose of the conference was for attendees to make policy recommendations and then prioritize their top three in each breakout session -- the end goal being a list of priority recommendations that will help improve the state's business climate. 

WPC compiled the recommendations into a report, "Lead the Way: Small Business & the Road to Economic Recovery," which was released at WPC's 2010 legislative briefing at the state capitol and distributed to all state legislators. It is available here.

Attendees also heard a bi-partisan panel discussion with Reps. Reuven Carlyle (D-Seattle) and Gary Alexander (R-Olympia) and the new state Department of Commerce director Rogers Weed on what to expect from the legislature in 2010. Videos of this panel, along with most of the other breakout sessions are available online. 

We look forward to working with those in the legislature and business community to turn these policy recommendations into reality.

Economy / Small Business Concerns

 

Workers' Comp Reform on High Priority List this Session
An op-ed by WPC Small Business Director Carl Gipson in Seattle Business magazine lays out the business community's concerns with the current state of affairs with the state's monopoly workers' comp system. The piece also lays out small, incremental-type policy reforms that will help cut costs without curtailing the benefits of injured workers. Read the op-ed online. 

Audit Hammers State's Workers' Comp System
In December 2009, the state auditor released a financial audit of the Workers' Compensation Fund. The findings were very worrisome because the Auditor is sounding the alarm that there is a good chance that the Fund could become insolvent in the next several years if steps aren't immediately taken. With the cost to business going up an average of 7.6% for 2010, there are several steps policymakers can take that will not cost businesses money in order to shore up the Fund and avoid huge future cost increases. Read more about this online. 

Budget & Taxes

 

Lawmakers Cannot Count on Sin Taxes for Budget Relief
In an effort to increase revenue, some lawmakers are proposing an increase in so-called “sin” taxes in hopes of killing two birds with one stone. They want to discourage people from engaging in certain behaviors, like smoking, drinking, even overeating, by making it more expensive to purchase products related to these behaviors. At the same time, they want to alleviate state budgetary pressures with the additional money they hope to collect from higher sin taxes. Read the rest here.

Tax Increases Will Cost More Washingtonians Their Jobs
Washington Policy Center (WPC) ran a full-page ad in The Olympian warning lawmakers about the impact of tax increases.  The ad uses information from Washington Research Council’s new study, “The Economic Impact of Hiking Taxes to Close the Budget Gap.” “As legislators wrestle with the state budget shortfall, it’s important that they recognize the effects of tax hikes on job preservation and creation,” says Dr. Kriss Sjoblom, VP for Research and Economist with the Washington Research Council. According to the study, increasing the state Business and Occupation tax (B&O) by $1 billion would eliminate up to 15,072 jobs.  A $2.6 billion B&O tax increase would cost 38,968 Washingtonian’s their jobs.

Regulatory Reform

 

Give Businesses Two Days to Comply with Minor Violations
A new WPC Legislative Memo addresses House Bill 2603, which would require state agencies to provide a small business owner a copy of the state law or rule the business is violating and give a "two business days" grace period for small businesses to comply. It's a small but important step towards making Washington a better place to conduct business.  Click here for more information.

Reorganize the Department of Commerce to Focus on Job Growth
In 2009, lawmakers renamed the Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development (CTED) to the Department of Commerce and instructed the new Department to refocus its core mission on "growing and creating jobs" in Washington State. The old CTED department had over 130 programs, many of which arguably fall outside the scope of Commerce's new mission. This Legislative Memo looks at one of the bills tasked with reorganizing the Department. Click here for more information.

Other Publications

 

\STUDY: How Government Officials Increase Home Prices

WPC Op-Ed: The Impact of National Health Care Reform in Washington State

WPC BLOG: Leave for parents to attend school activities?

WPC BLOG: Time running out for legislature to help business community

WPC BLOG: U.S. losing ground in global competitiveness 

WPC BLOG: Workers' Comp reform and straw man arguments

WPC BLOG: Bill drops to privatize state's workers' comp system

The Center for Small Business focuses on improving the state's small business climate through researching and analyzing ways to improve taxation and regulation in order to encourage economic development. Since 2001, WPC's Center for Small Business has held conferences, roundtables and forums to help educate small business owners, as well as glean policy recommendations from those that make up the economic backbone of the state economy.

The Center for Small Business

Since 2001, the Center for Small Business has focused on improving Washington's small business climate by providing public policy recommendations from small businesses to policymakers. The Center provides accurate information and analysis on the state's regulatory climate, tax structure, health insurance systems, transportation infrastructure, and more. The Center holds conferences, issue forums, legislative briefings, and testifies before the state legislature by invitation. In order to provide the public with timely research the Center publishes studies, Policy Notes, opinion editorials, and Legislative Memos.

Director Carl Gipson

Carl Gipson is Director for Small Business, Technology and Telecommunications at WashingtonCarl Gipson Policy Center. He was formerly Director of Communications and Operations and regularly writes opinion pieces, legislative memos, policy notes, and is the author of Reviving Washington’s Small Business Climate, 24 Ways to Improve Washington’s Small Business Climate, A Citizen’s Guide to Initiative 920 — the Estate Tax, and other publications. He has been published in several papers across the state including the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Tacoma News Tribune, Everett Herald, Washington CEO magazine and the Puget Sound Business Journal and regularly speaks to chambers of commerce and other civic groups. He was a columnist for The Daily Olympian in 2003 and received his bachelor’s degree in political science from Western Washington University in 2001.

Contact Information

For questions or for more information from the Center for Small Business please
e-mail cgipson@washingtonpolicy.org.

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