Office of Governor Gary Locke
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - November 17, 1999
Contact:  Governor's Communications Office, 360-902-4136

Locke wants to cut unemployment taxes paid by businesses

OLYMPIA — Gov. Gary Locke has written Carver Gayton, Commissioner of the state Department of Employment Security, to express his strong opposition to an automatic increase in the Unemployment Insurance taxes paid by businesses.

Instead, Locke said, he wants to cut the UI tax. He asked Gayton to draft suitable legislation that Locke will introduce in January.

The UI tax increase is scheduled to automatically take effect on Jan. 1, 2000, under a formula that is part of state law. The scheduled tax increase is attributable in part to the dramatic rise in average wages in the state's strong economy.

Locke wrote, "Instead of this increase, I would like to provide the prudent and sizable tax cut that our healthy Unemployment Insurance trust fund will permit. The trust fund has enough revenues to provide for both a cut in employers' UI contributions and to fully support benefits for employed workers.

"Toward this end," Locke wrote Gayton, "please draft proposed legislation for the upcoming legislative session. This proposal should cut unemployment taxes and provide opportunities for dislocated workers to find well-paying employment or obtain needed training."

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