http://www.researchcouncil.org daily 1 2007-04-05T17:44:41Z http://www.researchcouncil.org/washace-publications/washace_cb_0604.pdf No publisher ksjoblom 2007-02-02T07:20:36Z Publication http://www.researchcouncil.org/washace-publications/Seatbelts%20Final.pdf Even if the state does skirt recession, the mortgage meltdown and its contagion to other markets will have fiscal consequences for the state. No publisher ksjoblom 2007-10-12T00:50:33Z Publication http://www.researchcouncil.org/washace-publications/education_and_earnings_final.pdf A brief on the value of education. No publisher ksjoblom 2007-02-03T01:26:28Z Publication http://www.researchcouncil.org/washace-publications/Healthcare%20Trends%202008%20Final.pdf No publisher ksjoblom 2008-04-03T18:52:10Z Publication http://www.researchcouncil.org/washace-publications/medicalcosts.pdf The state must control health care costs, which are growing at an unsustainable rate. The state should emulate the private sector and increase the share of costs borne directly by employees. With regard to health care provided to low-income individuals, the state should prioritize services and eliminate those with the least value. No publisher npsadmin 2007-01-04T22:07:02Z Publication http://www.researchcouncil.org/washace-publications/washace0202.pdf Washington's plunge from prosperity to recession caught many policymakers by surprise - and radically refocused theh competitiveness debate. No publisher npsadmin 2007-01-04T21:48:05Z Publication http://www.researchcouncil.org/washace-publications/workerscomp0204.pdf Workers’ compensation costs in Washington add to the state’s uncompetitive business climate. Proposed double-digit increases from the state’s Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) in recent months have fueled frustration with a complicated, but critical area of business costs over which employers in the private, public and non-for-profit sectors have little control. According to Association of Washington Business President, Don Brunell, “every dollar that employers have to pay into the (workers’ compensation) system unnecessarily is a dollar we don’t have, either to keep workers employed or to get employees back to work.” No publisher npsadmin 2007-01-04T20:27:24Z Publication http://www.researchcouncil.org/washace-publications/health_care_rev2.pdf Washington’s Employer-Provided Health Care: Historically High Quality at Relatively Low Costs No publisher npsadmin 2007-01-04T21:40:03Z Publication http://www.researchcouncil.org/washace-publications/mandates.pdf The preponderance of evidence indicates that the buildup of health care mandates has caused insurance premiums to rise. The state should require independent cost-benefit analysis before issuing any new mandates. Similar cost-benefit analysis should be required as part of a sunset review of existing mandated benefits. Finally, the state should permit insurers to issue a basic insurance plan that provides standard coverage, unburdened by costly and unconventional mandates. No publisher npsadmin 2007-01-04T21:46:06Z Publication http://www.researchcouncil.org/washace-publications/unemploymenti.pdf The 2003 unemployment insurance reform legislation improved the balance in a system that had imposed the nation’s highest employer UI taxes, combining extraordinary benefits with lax enforcement standards. Now, fewer than two years later and before the reforms have taken full effect, reform opponents want to revisit the legislation, contending it went too far. It did not. Now is not the time to retreat from the commitment made in 2003 to a stronger economy and a secure UI program. No publisher npsadmin 2007-01-04T21:51:19Z Publication