4419.E AMS HONE GORR 028

EHCR 4419 - S AMD

By Senator Honeyford

Strike everything after the enacting clause and insert the following:

    "WHEREAS, issues of international trade, overseas outsourcing, and government procurement contracts have recently generated concern and discussion in Washington and across the nation; and

    WHEREAS, the issue of outsourcing is deeply connected with legal, economic, social, cultural, and technological aspects of international and domestic trade; and

    WHEREAS, the State of Washington is the most trade-dependent state in the United States, with approximately one of every four Washington jobs dependent on international trade; and

    WHEREAS, the extent to which the State of Washington contracts for state services where work is done in whole or in part at jobsites overseas is only now beginning to be compiled; and

    WHEREAS, reliable data is only now emerging to accurately assess the benefits and impacts of outsourcing on a local and national level, including the impacts of outsourcing on Washington's trade-dependent status; and

    WHEREAS, balanced and impartial collection, study, and evaluation of such data is necessary to ensure adequate legislative oversight of state agency outsourcing and the potential ramifications of such oversight, positive and negative, for Washington's economy and business climate;

    NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, By the House of Representatives of the state of Washington, the Senate concurring, That a study of

outsourcing work on state agency contracts be conducted to evaluate the following issues:

    A full survey of state contracts, and any subcontracts awarded

under such contracts, the work on which is being performed at locations both outside the State of Washington and outside United States;

    The applicability of federal interstate commerce law and international trade agreements to state procurement policies, and the degree to which legislative oversight is preserved or preempted under such laws and agreements;

    The economic benefit of awarding personal services, purchased

services, civil service, and public works contracts to Washington

companies or United States companies where some or all work is performed overseas, including a comparison of the availability and cost of contracts using only Washington or United States labor;

    The impact of performing work on state agency contracts overseas on the development and furthering of relationships with new and existing trading partners;

    Issues relative to retraining workers who are separated from

employment because their positions were outsourced to locations outside the United States, and issues relative to their eligibility for training benefits under RCW 50.22.150; and

    The number of workers in Washington whose jobs are dependent in whole or in part on work from overseas companies or governments or the governments of other states; and

    To what extent, if any, Washington's trading partners have retaliated historically in response to legislative actions that limited trading opportunities;

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the study be conducted by a joint task force of the House of Representatives and the Senate consisting of the following: One representative to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, one representative to be appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives, one senator to be appointed by the majority leader of the Senate, and one senator to be appointed by the minority leader of the Senate; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the joint task force may as needed appoint an advisory committee composed of an appropriate number of representatives from the business and labor interests in Washington state, as well as individuals with any economic, legal, or other technical skill necessary to analyze the issues set forth above;

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the findings and recommendations of

the joint task force shall be reported to the house of representatives committees on commerce and labor, state government, technology, telecommunications, and energy, trade and economic development, the senate committees on commerce and trade, economic development, government operations and elections, and technology and communications, and the joint legislative oversight committee on trade policy, or their successor committees, by December 1, 2005."

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