Published: Sunday, July 7, 2013, 12:01 a.m.
There were victories in workforce training and education and certain tax exemptions that benefit maintenance, repair and overhaul companies like Everett's Aviation Technical Services. But transportation, a key priority for the industry as oft-mentioned by Gov. Jay Inslee, fell by the wayside on the final day of the session last weekend.
Linda Lanham, executive director of the Aerospace Futures Alliance, an industry lobbying group, overall was upbeat about the implications for the state's aerospace supply chain.
"I think we did really well," Lanham said, noting successes on workforce training and the aforementioned tax exemption. "We got several bills that helped a lot of the suppliers."
As for how the state's largest aerospace company, Boeing, might view the session, Lanham wasn't optimistic. The lobbyist expressed disappointment that a compromise couldn't be reached on pollution standards on water discharged by large facilities like Boeing's Renton and Everett factories. Boeing and other aerospace companies were pushing for a study on fish consumption to re-examine whether tougher standards are actually necessary.
"I'd be concerned about what kind of message that sends Chicago," home of Boeing's corporate headquarters, "about our competitiveness," Lanham said.
Here's a look at the Legislature's aerospace-related action, and inaction, this year in Olympia:
Passed: Workforce development, tax exemptions
In February, Inslee addressed the industry for the first time as governor, speaking to about 400 aerospace leaders at a conference in Lynnwood.
"The most important thing I can do is to provide skilled workers to you," he told them.
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