Home to employers like Amazon, Starbucks, Deloitte, Boeing and Microsoft, Seattle is no stranger to large employer campuses and their unique transportation needs. Keep reading to learn more about commuter benefits, bulk passes, and ORCA cards.
Home to employers like Amazon, Starbucks, Deloitte, Boeing and Microsoft, Seattle is no stranger to large employer campuses and their unique transportation needs. Keep reading to learn more about commuter benefits, bulk passes, and ORCA cards.
Does Seattle have a transit benefit mandate for employers?
Yes. Since January 1, 2020, when Seattle’s Commuter Benefit Law went into effect, most Seattle employers are now required to provide their employees with the opportunity to set aside a certain amount of their income pre-tax to cover commuting expenses.
Who is affected by Seattle’s Commuter Benefit Law?
Seattle’s Commuter Benefit Law applies to employers who:
Read the Seattle Labor Office’s summary here.
What transit benefits do employers have to provide to comply with Seattle’s Commuter Benefits Law?
Employers must offer one or more of the following benefits to comply with the Seattle Commuter Benefits Law.
Employers must also follow noticing requirements. To ensure that employees can reasonably find information about their program options, employers must:
Employers must also maintain records to show that they’re in compliance with the Seattle Commuter Benefits Law for a minimum of three years, and be responsible for providing that documentation to the Department of Labor Standards upon request. After January 1, 2021, individuals have three years from the date of the alleged violation to file a complaint with OLS.
What transit benefits do Seattle employees most want?
The following transit passes are all available through ORCA and can be loaded directly onto employees’ existing personal ORCA Cards.
What do Seattle employers need to know about the vanpool option?
Seattle is unique because vanpool benefits are accepted to satisfy its Commuter Benefit Law. Vanpools, also known as “commuter highway vehicles”, are highway-ready vehicles that seat at least 6 adults (not including the driver). To qualify as a vanpool, the vanpool organizer must reasonably expect that at least 80% of the vehicle mileage will be for transporting employees between their homes and workplace with employees occupying at least one-half the vehicle's seats (not including the driver's).
The monthly pre-tax deduction limit applies to vanpool and transit combined.
Read more about Seattle vanpools here.
Can employers purchase discounted transit passes for their employees?
While employers can’t purchase discounted passes, they can buy them in bulk to distribute to their employees. In fact, King County Metro in Seattle has administered its employer program since 1993, and now over 60 percent of transit trips in the Puget Sound Region are made with an employer-provided pass. You can read more here.
Why are commuter benefits good for employers?
Want to learn more?
Jawnt’s team of transit planners and benefit administrators are available to help you understand your options, requirements, and find a solution that will satisfy employers and employees alike. Drop us a line today to get started.