Knowledge Center

Staying Compliant: Recent Employment Law Changes Impacting Oregon and Washington Senior Living Communities

It has been a busy 2024 for federal agencies and the Oregon and Washington legislatures, which have ushered in new laws and regulations that affect employer-employee relationships in senior living communities.

What to Expect... From the New Pregnant Workers Fairness Act Regulations

The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) regulations issued by the EEOC become effective on June 18, 2024. Passed in 2023, the PWFA is a federal law that mandates employers provide reasonable accommodations for pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.

Oz Looks a Little Scary as State and Federal Law Look to Regulate the AI Wizard in Employment

A recent study by SHRM shows that approximately 26% of organizations use Artificial Intelligence to support Human Resource-related activities. As AI adoption quickens and its use expands, employers must be mindful of compliance obligations.

United States: Breaking Down the FTC Rule Banning Non-Competes: What Employers Need to Know

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has voted to publish its final rule banning most worker non-compete agreements. If and when the rule becomes effective, it will ban non-competes going forward.

United States: How to Protect Your Talent From the Competition: New Challenges Imposed by Washington’s Law Regulating Noncompete and Nonsolicitation Covenants

Businesses operating in Washington state that require their employees or contractors to comply with noncompete or customer nonsolicitation covenants should review their agreements to avoid claims and penalties when significant changes to state law become effective on June 6, 2024.

United States: WA DOR Updated Guidance on the Administration of the Tax: In the Shadow of the November Ballot Initiative to Repeal the Entire Tax

The Washington Department of Revenue continues to update its guidance on Washington’s excise tax on long-term capital gains, resulting in the most recent proposed rule, WAC 458-20-301. There are several important changes from the last iteration of the proposed rule.

United States: Beyond the Thanksgiving Dinner Table: Washington Legislature Bans Mandatory Captive Audience Meetings for Politics and Religion

Employers are banned from mandating, under threat of discipline, that employees attend meetings or speeches regarding religious or political matters under the “Employee Free Choice Act” passed by Washington’s Legislature and signed by Governor Inslee. The law becomes effective on June 5, 2024.

United States: The Corporate Transparency Act and Beneficial Ownership Reporting for Private Companies

As of January 1, 2024, reporting requirements under the federal Corporate Transparency Act and related regulations (collectively, the “CTA”) went into effect. The CTA creates a new reporting requirement for many small, private companies.

United States: 2024 and the New Corporate Transparency Act

The new Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) went into effect on January 1, 2024. This new act will require almost all entities, such as LLCs and corporations, with fewer than 20 employees and less than $5 million of revenue to file reports to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

United States: How Employers in Oregon and Washington Can Prepare for New Laws

Many of us have our traditions to ring in a new year: taking down holiday decorations, making New Year’s resolutions, and organizing our homes and offices. But employers, especially in the Pacific Northwest, now have another New Year’s tradition: bracing themselves for a host of new employment laws.

United States: Oregon Consumer Privacy Act: Time to Get Ready, But Does It Apply to My Organization?

Ready or not, the Oregon Consumer Privacy Act (OCPA) is coming your way. Oregon joins several other states in passing comprehensive data privacy legislation.

United States: Washington Property Owners May Still Contest 2022 Property Tax Assessments by Paying 2023 Property Taxes Under Protest

The October 31 deadline for payment of second half 2023 property taxes is fast approaching. We want to remind you that to preserve the right to challenge the validity of your 2022 tax assessment in court, you must pay the tax under written protest stating the grounds for protest.

United States: Snow, Rain, Heat, and Gloom of Night Can’t Stop the Postal Service — But Religious Accommodations Might

Upending decades of precedent, the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that employers considering employees’ requests for religious accommodation must grant these requests unless doing so would result in “substantial increased costs in relation to the conduct of its particular business.”

United States: How The Supreme Court’s Opinion on Affirmative Action in College Admissions May Impact Employers’ Recruiting, Hiring, and DEI Programs

Considering race in college admissions is legally impermissible, according to the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent affirmative action decision. But what does this mean for employers?

United States: Lane Powell Files Petition for Certiorari to SCOTUS Regarding Washington Capital Gains Tax

On Monday, August 21, Lane Powell filed a petition for certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) asking the Court to review the Washington State Supreme Court decision in Quinn v. Dep't of Revenue.

United States: Does Washington’s Capital Gains Excise Tax Reduce Taxable Gain?

The Washington Supreme Court validated the state’s new excise tax on the sale or exchange of long-term capital assets as a constitutional excise tax on the privilege of selling or exchanging certain capital assets—commonly, but perhaps incorrectly, referred to as the “Washington capital gains tax."

United States: Ready or Not, Here It Comes: Paid Leave Oregon!

Whether or not employers are ready for it, Oregon’s paid family and medical leave and wage replacement program is now accepting employee applications and will soon be paying benefits to eligible employees. Starting August 14, Oregon employees can apply for paid time off benefits provided by PLO.

United States: Permanent Virtual I-9 Verification for E-Verify Employers

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a final rule, effective August 1, that allows employers to have an alternative procedure for remote I-9 employment verification.

United States: As Lane Powell Vice President Sondag Enters Retirement, Powell Assumes Role

Lane Powell Shareholder Bryan Powell has been elected the next Vice President of Lane Powell. Tom Sondag, who has served in the Vice President role since 2014, will enter retirement on July 1.

United States: Moore or Less (Tax): Supreme Court Action Signals Need for Protective Refund Claims for IRC § 965 Inclusions

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to consider whether the mandatory repatriation tax (MRT) resulting from the deemed repatriation under IRC § 965 is constitutional. No decision is expected until 2024.

United States: Washington Legislature to Employers: Don’t Fear the Reefer

It will soon be illegal for Washington employers to reject most job applicants based on their off-duty cannabis use. Beginning January 1, 2024, most Washington employers may not reject a job applicant simply because they use marijuana outside of work and away from the workplace.

United States: Demystifying Washington State’s New Capital Gains Tax

Earlier this year, it was ruled that Washington state’s capital gains tax is a constitutional excise tax, not an income tax. Some argued that the tax was easy to apply because the starting point was long-term capital gains reported on a taxpayer’s federal income tax return.

United States: DHS Partially Ends Form I-9 Remote Work Flexibility

The Department of Homeland Security announced an end to its COVID-19 temporary flexibility for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. The temporary policies were designed to allow U.S. employers flexibility for onboarding new employees while following health guidelines for social distancing.

United States: Trucking To and From Seaports In the Current Environment

Demurrage and detention charges are usually stated in terms of dollars for a container used the day after the expiration of any free days, levied by ocean carriers against the “Merchant.” Specifically, demurrage is charged for failure to collect cargo at a port after delivery.

United States: Capital Gains Tax Ruled to be an Excise Tax on the Privilege of Selling Assets — But There is a Silver Lining

In a 7-2 decision, the Washington Supreme Court has ruled that Washington’s capital gains tax is an excise tax and therefore not subject to the Uniformity Clause of the Washington state constitution.

United States: International Maritime Organization Implements Future Fuels and Technology Project

On March 3, 2023, the International Maritime Organization (IMO), a specialized agency of the United Nations that regulates international shipping, announced its research project into the availability of low and zero-carbon marine fuels and technology.

United States: H-1B Cap Lottery Registration Deadline Is Approaching

This legal update is about the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (USCIS) H-1B Cap for Fiscal Year 2024 (registration is in the first half of March 2023 for a potential start date of October 1, 2023).

United States: Department of Labor Publishes Wait Times for PERM and Prevailing Wage Requests

The Department of Labor (DOL) published new processing times for PERM, Labor Certification applications, and their audit reviews. DOL also published new processing times for Prevailing Wage Determinations.

United States: Fuel Card Issuers and Station Operators Beware!

A Washington court recently ruled that fuel card issuers owe retailing business and occupation tax on fuel that their cardholders purchase in Washington state. The court also ruled that station operators owe wholesaling B&O tax when purchasers present a fuel card for payment.

United States: Third-Party Administrators May Be on the Hook for Affordable Care Act’s Anti-Discrimination Rules

In a significant decision under the Affordable Care Act, a federal district court in Western Washington recently ruled that a third-party plan administrator violated the ACA’s anti-discrimination rule when administering a self-insured health plan that excluded gender-affirming care.

United States: Washington Legal Decision Creates an Opportunity to Evaluate Your R&D Expenses

The Washington Department of Revenue issued a Special Notice regarding the case Terrapower LLC v. Dep't of Revenue (2022). In this case, the issue was whether machinery and equipment ("M&E") used in a research and development operation qualified for Washington's M&E sales tax exemption.

United States: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Issues Revised Long Term Care Surveyor Guidance on Arbitration Agreement Requirements

In October 2022, surveyors began using updated Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services guidance to identify noncompliance in skilled nursing facilities' use of arbitration agreements.

United States: Washington Supreme Court Allows the State to Enforce Capital Gains Tax Pending Review on the Merits

Eight months ago, the Superior Court struck down Washington's capital gains tax as unconstitutional. As predicted, the State appealed directly to the Washington Supreme Court, which accepted the case. An oral argument on the merits is scheduled for January 26, 2023.

United States: Washington Supreme Court Finds One-Year Limitation Period in Construction Contract Unconscionable

The Washington Supreme Court issued a decision finding that a contractual one-year limitation period buried in a residential construction contract was unconscionable and void. The case provides important lessons for residential contractors and developers.

United States: Navigating Workplace Conversations After Dobbs

The U.S. Supreme Court's decision overturning Roe v. Wade's constitutional right to an abortion has become a hot-button subject that may evoke political, religious, and deeply-held personal beliefs. What's an employer to do when employees' beliefs clash at the water cooler?

United States: Abortion Coverage as an Employee Benefit - The Supreme Court Forces Employers Into the Fray

Employers are considering a host of responses to the Dobbs decision, ranging from doing nothing to incorporating medical & travel benefits into existing plans to offering abortion services outside the confines of the group health plan. Most of these options present complex legal considerations.

United States: IRC § 1202 and Build Back Better — The Halloween Edition

The Democratic effort to enact President Biden’s agenda has taken a rather convoluted path in terms of initiatives, price tag, and revenue-raising provisions. One proposal that has seen much political ping pong in recent months creates new limitations on Internal Revenue Code Section 1202.

United States: Washington State Designates PFAS 'Forever Chemicals' as Hazardous Substances

The Washington Department of Ecology has taken the formal step of designating the family of manufactured chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl compounds as hazardous substances — these compounds have been the subject of increasing regulatory scrutiny.

United States: Congressional Response to Ransomware and its Impact on the Transportation Sector and Other Industries

Ransomware is a national security issue that affects all sixteen critical infrastructure sectors, including the transportation and healthcare sectors.

United States: Can Employers Mandate Vaccination Programs and Require Masks?

As COVID-19 cases, related hospitalizations, and the Delta variant continue to surge nationwide, some West Coast states have instituted mandatory vaccinations for certain employees. Washington, Oregon, and California now mandate employee vaccination for certain government and health care employees.

United States: Good News for Alaska Employers Faced With Employee Overtime Claims

Alaska employers received some welcome news from the Alaska Supreme Court that should help level the playing field when they must defend claims from employees under the Alaska Wage and Hour Act.