Vick proposals to help improve Washington business climate pass Senate

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 4, 2016

CONTACT: Kurt Hammond, Senior Information Officer - (360) 786-7794

Vick proposals to help improve Washington's small business climate pass Senate

This week the Washington State Senate unanimously approved two measures that would simplify regulations for accounting businesses and employers who pay local sales and use taxes. The bills are prime-sponsored by Rep. Brandon Vick.

"For our smaller employers, navigating the laws on top of the rules and regulations implemented by state agencies can be cumbersome. If we, as lawmakers, can remove unnecessary regulations and obstacles, we can start to make Washington a friendly place to do business again for the little guys," said Vick, R-Felida. "These two bills take that approach as we work toward finding longer-term systemic changes to strengthen our business climate."

House Bill 2565 would change the frequency local sales and use taxes may be changed from four times a year to three. Changing tax rates can take a matter of hours or days, and businesses are put on hold while computer systems are updated.

"Reducing the number of times local governments can raise taxes will help alleviate this burden on our neighborhood businesses," said Vick.

House Bill 2433 would allow certified public accountants in Washington to do business in other states, under the same rules and guidelines out-of-state CPA's have in Washington.

"This legislation will allow our CPA’s to grow their practices and revenues. It will also allow our business owners to have access to specialized firms from outside of the state that they may want or need to work with," said Vick.

Both bills are now headed to the governor's desk for his signature. The measures are scheduled to take effect 90 days after the end of the regular session.

The final day of the 60-day regular session is March 10.

For more information about Rep. Vick, visit: www.representativebrandonvick.com.

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