BILL REQ. #:  S-1680.1 

Read first time 02/13/09.   Referred to Committee on Higher Education & Workforce Development.

     AN ACT Relating to significantly increasing telework in Washington through the establishment of a statewide telework program; and adding a new section to chapter 47.01 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 47.01 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The secretary shall work with the Washington State University extension's division of governmental studies and services to develop a statewide telework program. The department shall serve as the program administrator, and Washington State University extension shall serve as the program manager. The purpose of the statewide telework program is to promote, assist, and provide research to accelerate the use of telework in Washington state. The goals of the program are to: (a) Improve the effectiveness of our transportation system; (b) decrease greenhouse gas emissions; and (c) enhance our state's competitiveness in the global economy.
     (2) The duties of the program include, but are not limited to, the following:
     (a) Promote telework in Washington state as an important economic development, transportation, and environmental strategy through presentations, publications, employer seminars, industry events, and executive briefings;
     (b) Alert industry, government, and nonprofit leaders to the availability of statewide resources and telework support;
     (c) Develop and maintain a comprehensive set of telework resources, including ongoing enhancement of the online toolkit developed during the Kitsap telework pilot project, best practices and case studies, research, and news, as well as establish and maintain connections to telework activities, resources, and leaders in Washington state and across the country;
     (d) Implement the community template developed during the Kitsap telework pilot project to enable local and regional governments, transit agencies, and other organizations to institute telework efforts;
     (e) Offer a suite of services to assist employers and communities in meeting the range of telework needs, from limited assistance in using the online toolkit to technical assistance, such as assessment, program and policy development, and training;
     (f) Secure expertise to support statewide and local telework initiatives;
     (g) Coordinate telework efforts across the state through collaboration and communication in order to share resources and lessons learned while avoiding costly duplication of efforts and inconsistencies; and
     (h) Conduct telework research to identify current telework use and business benefits, barriers to implementation, employer needs related to program development and expansion, impacts on organizational culture, transportation, and the environment, as well as opportunities related to technology, economic development, and telecenter establishment and use.
     (3) The program must report biennially to the transportation committees of the legislature on the progress of the program in meeting goals and duties provided in this section. By December 2010, the program must evaluate and make recommendations on strategies to further telework expansion, including how the state should be organized most effectively to support telework activities.