FWWS Legislative Proposals 2010

Dear FWWS member,

We have recently received copies of our legislative proposals from the State Code Reviser's office. These are the actual bills the Legislature will be considering in the coming legislative session. We have prepared concise one page fact sheets to go with each bill providing you with information on what the bill does, why it is needed, and the benefits of its passage.

The first bill is our "Tax Reporting Relief Act".

Bill
Fact Sheet

This bill, which we have run previously, would provide that wineries selling less than 6,000 gallons of wine annually in Washington would be allowed, to report production and pay State taxes not more than once a year, at their option.

The second bill is our "Craft Wineries Act".

Bill
Fact Sheet

This bill is a follow-on to a bill we ran last year. The concept is to create a new optional class of small winery that would be exempt from most of the purely economic restrictions on trade in Washington wine. The difference this year is that the bill would only apply to smaller wineries, and would require an opt in.

The third and final bill is our "Payment Parity Act".

Bill
Fact Sheet

This bill would extend exactly the same terms created last year for completing Electronic Funds Transfers (EFT's) to all other forms of payment, including ordinary business checks. As with the other bills it is optional as wine would continue to be due on receipt without voluntary agreements between wineries and their wholesale customers.

We encourage you to read the fact sheets and, if time permits, the actual bills as well. The Payment Parity Act for example changes only a few words of the RCW and should take less time to read than its accompanying fact sheet.

We are available to answer any questions you have about the details of these bills. We encourage you to discuss and promote these proposals with your winemaking colleagues and to explain the importance of the bills to them. As always, we value your comments and input.

Sincerely,

The FWWS Board