Wednesday, December 16, 2015

BLS Systems Replacement Update #1

Partners,

Our aim is to provide you with regular, relevant updates about the Business Licensing Service’s systems replacement. Completion of Rollout 1 is set for this summer. It comes with great news for you. There will be:
  • no more dark screens with blocky text,
  • no hard to remember 4-letter commands, and
  • no more of this guy!
BLS screen is locked.
You shall not pass.



ATLAS gets a workout

The name of the new system is ATLAS, short for Automated Tax and License Administration System. The transition to ATLAS affects all BLS partner agencies and cities, as well as all BLS operations staff.

Our team is working with its system developers and analysts to transfer the existing features into ATLAS, and adding elements to help you do your work more efficiently. The system configuration for city and agency partners is ongoing through spring. ATLAS will add power and flexibility to your daily operations, so expect enhancements to:
  • Business research
  • Approval processes
  • Reporting

Changes for the better

The enhancements will come with some changes. One of the biggest shifts will be how you access the BLS system. Look for more information about the new Secure Access Washington portal in future updates on the BLS Partner Post.

Data will be reviewed and cleansed prior to being added to ATLAS. Next year, business license data will be easier to search and provide more complete customer information for partners than ever before.

Regular updates on BLSPartnerPost.com

Our team is committed to providing you timely updates about the coming changes and preparing you for the transition to ATLAS this summer. We will post regular updates at BLS Partner Post and respond quickly to your questions sent to dorblspartner@dor.wa.gov.

We look forward to taking the next step with you. Thank you for your continued support.

~BLS Partnership Services

Monday, December 14, 2015

BLS staff unavailable Thursday the 17th

BLS staff are unavailable Thursday, December 17. The division is in all-day training.

Other agency staff will cover our front counter for customers.

We will return messages and be available on Friday, December 18.

~BLS Partnership Services

Friday, December 4, 2015

BLS services off line Saturday morning

The BLS system will be down for routine maintenance Saturday morning.

Business license registration and renewals will be unavailable from 8 a.m. to noon, Saturday, Dec. 5.

Also, down for maintenance is the BusinessRenewal.wa.gov service, the CorpRenewal.wa.gov service, and the Business Registrations Database.

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

2016 local government fund distribution dates


The Office of State Treasurer list of 2016 local government fund distribution dates is available now.

Funds collected by BLS are sent to Treasurer for deposit into your city or town account. In most cases, the deposits go to the same account as retail sales tax revenue.

Revenues collected are usually deposited in about a week. This spreadsheet provide more detail. 

Contact us if you have questions. Thank you for your partnership.





BLS system replacement work impacts planning


BLS system replacement work impacts planning
Next summer, ATLAS will be your new BLS system. ATLAS stands for Automated Tax and Licensing Administration System. Much of your daily licensing and regulatory work will rely on ATLAS.

BLS code freeze till 2017
ATLAS configuration work is ongoing and BLS remains in a code freeze. The system is scheduled to be online by summer. BLS will maintain a six-month stabilization period in the new environment. No changes or programming enhancements will be made until January 2017 or later.

2016 legislation impacts
We ask that our partners do not make any 2016 legislation requests that may impact BLS operations. Our management, staff and vendor partners have made transitioning to ATLAS the top agency priority. Any shift in resources would have negative impacts on the overall systems replacement plan.

Questions?
Please direct any questions or change requests for future consideration to the BLS Partnership Services Team.