LONG-TERM CARE
Important update on WA Cares Fund
Two weeks ago, as reported in AGC WORKS, Gov. Inslee and state legislative leaders released a statement saying that they would delay implementation of the premium assessment for the WA Cares Fund while they seek to make changes to it during the upcoming legislative session this was a good sound bite but did nothing to protect the employer if they don’t collect the tax. Without a change to the rule which Governor Inslee and ESD are unwilling to implement at this time the employers’ liability still exists, despite public statements by policy makers.
Click here to read more about the confusing information that was provided from policy makers regarding the delay of the Long-Term Care tax. This is an evolving issue, and more information is expected during the 2022 session.
For additional information, visit the WA Cares Fund website. We recommend that you consult your advisors on whether you should or should not collect premiums beginning Jan. 1.
We will continue to monitor the issue and provide information as it becomes available. If you have additional questions, please contact AGC’s Michele Willms or Jerry VanderWood.

Unemployment insurance:
What’s new in EAMS?
Standard Occupational Classification Codes (from the State‘s Employment Security Department):
You may have noticed a new feature in the State's Employer Account Management Services (EAMS) for Single Filers: You can now include Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes starting with your fourth quarter 2021 tax report.
Including SOC codes is currently optional, but all employers will be required to report SOC codes starting with their fourth quarter 2022 tax report. The feature will be available for bulk filers starting in fourth quarter 2022... Read more.

New resources and numbers to use in the new year (from the State‘s Employment Security Department): Starting Jan. 1, 2022, you’ll want to be familiar with new numbers to use for your Paid Leave premium calculations and more. The State has updated its downloadable resources, too, to help ensure that you have the information you need.
Premium rate and social-security wage cap: Starting Jan. 1, 2022, the premium rate is 0.6 percent of each employee’s gross wages, not including tips, up to the 2022 Social Security cap ($147,000). Use this rate for Quarter 1 of 2022.
The split of the employer and employee share of the premium rates will also change. Read more...

A 365-DAY CELEBRATION
AGC of Washington marks 100 years
If you've been counting, you might know that yes, it's now been one-hundred years since the the inception of the first iteration of AGC of Washington, and we will be celebrating our centennial often and in a variety of ways throughout 2022. To mark the occasion, AGCW will be using a new centennial logo (above) through the rest of the year, created by Bill Thompson of AGC-member firm Charter Construction.
Keep an eye out in all the usual AGCW media for more centennial celebration news and events.

AGCW's Legislative Huddles start Jan. 13
AGC of Washington's Legislative Huddle meetings will start on Thursday, January 13 at 7:30 and will be weekly until the end of session on March 10. We will be holding these meetings virtually, via MS Teams again in 2022, as last year we had record participation using this platform.
An Outlook calendar invite with the link to the meetings will be sent to all who sign-up (contact Michele Willms), along with the agenda, any meeting materials and the bill-tracking list. If there are any bills you would like to discuss, please let Michele know.

The AGC Education Foundation continues to offer virtual continuing-education classes in a live, interactive, remote environment. We are working closely with instructors to maintain high-quality training programs and are finding great success in the virtual environment.

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