Tacoma committee hears sharply divided public comment on community workforce agreements

The Tacoma Economic Development Committee on Feb. 24 heard competing public comment about whether community workforce agreements and related project labor approaches help local workers or create barriers for certified small businesses.

Supporters including Kevin Thomas, a business representative with SMART Regional Council Local 66, urged the city to use CWAs to guarantee local access to skilled jobs. "A community workforce agreement is not about exclusion. It's about accountability, opportunity, and making sure public investment create the level of benefit," Thomas said, adding that many of his members live and spend in the Tacoma area.

Tribal representatives and apprenticeship advocates emphasized local hiring and training. Chris Winters, who said he is an enrolled citizen of the Muscogee Creek Nation and works with the Puyallup Tribe, said tribal labor agreements have helped apprentices and local workers gain steady work and keep dollars in Tacoma.

Small certified business owners and advocacy groups urged caution. "If certified small businesses are already operating at a structural disadvantage, why are we layering additional requirements that larger firms can absorb, but we cannot?" asked Angelica Duncan, co‑owner of Bridal, LLC and a certified women‑ and minority‑owned firm. Shannon Boldajar, representing the All of Us Alliance, said the coalition supports high labor standards but opposes unnecessarily complex CWAs that can exclude minority‑ and women‑owned firms.

Business representatives noted prior city review. Tim Atterberry of the Associated General Contractors of Washington told the committee that a city advisory group in 2019 spent extensive time on the issue and voted 9–4 not to move forward with CWAs, and he urged the current panel to consider that history.

City staff responding to questions said the city has implemented many recommendations from the 2018–19 advisory committee and continues to refine how programs interact with existing development agreements and procurement code. Deborah Gervaro of Community and Economic Development said "progress has been made on 96%" of the committee's recommendations and described steps such as matching the city's certified‑firm lists to the state OMWBE roster, expanding EIC staff, publishing a two‑year project forecast, and tracking prompt payment under RCW 39.76.

Committee members pressed staff on enforcement and waivers: staff said EIC/LEAP requirements are enforced on city projects but are not automatically enforced in private development agreements unless those obligations are included in a developer's agreement. Staff described ongoing efforts to require LEAP workforce plans at time of bid and to add monitoring touchpoints at 20%, 50% and 70% project completion. On prompt payment, staff said many apparent late‑payment complaints trace to missing paperwork, and the city is adding capacity‑building training to reduce those documentation gaps.

What happens next: staff said they are working with finance and legal to update code language and monitoring practices and will return updates in future committee packets. The committee did not take a formal vote on CWAs during the meeting; the session concluded with a voice vote to adjourn.

Sources: public comments and staff presentations at the Tacoma Economic Development Committee meeting, Feb. 24, 2026.