For Immediate Release
Contact: Cynthia Santana/Communications Manager
206-256-5219
cynthia.santana@seattle.gov
Administrative Rules proposed for Seattle’s Commuter Benefits Ordinance – Chapter 180
Office of Labor Standards invites public comments until December 5, 2019
Seattle – (November 19, 2019) The Seattle Office of Labor Standards (OLS) has issued proposed administrative rules for the Commuter Benefits (CB) Ordinance (SMC 14.30). The CB Ordinance requires employers with 20 or more employees to offer employees, who work an average of ten hours or more per week, the ability to deduct transit or vanpool expenses from an employee’s taxable wages up to the maximum level allowed by federal tax law. To meet this requirement, employers may instead provide a transit pass that is fully or partially subsidized.
The full text of the proposed rules will be contained in a new Chapter 180. It is available by clicking here or on the OLS website at: http://www.seattle.gov/laborstandards/ordinances/commuter-benefits
The proposed rules will provide more information on the implementation of the CB Ordinance, and will clarify, among other issues, the following:
- How to determine whether employers are covered;
- How to calculate the employer subsidy of a transit pass as an alternative method to satisfying the Ordinance’s requirements; and
- How the Ordinance will be enforced.
Comments will be accepted until December 5, 2019 at 5:00pm PST, and may be submitted by regular mail to:
Seattle Office of Labor Standards
810 Third Ave., Suite 375
Seattle, WA 98104-1627
Attn: Jasmine Marwaha, OLS Policy Analyst
The comments may also be submitted by telephone (206-256-5297) or by email (jasmine.marwaha@seattle.gov).
After the comment period ends, OLS will consider all feedback and expects to issue final rules by December 2019. For more information, visit https://www.seattle.gov/laborstandards or call 206-256-5297.
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