Commissioners report mixed signals on state matching for $108M federal Highway 12 Phase 8 appropriation

Walla Walla County Commissioners said April 28 they will press state and federal officials for clarity about the states match for a $108 million federal appropriation toward U.S. 12 Phase 8.

Commissioner Kimball, preparing to travel to Washington, D.C., said the $108 million federal award assumes the state will provide matching funds. Pat Ray, a county staff member monitoring the capital budget, told the board he found state transportation-line items that appear to include allocations for U.S. 12 Phase 8 but he was verifying whether the amounts are new appropriations or reauthorizations of existing funds.

Pat Ray read figures from the draft state transportation budget on the record: $143 million in the Move Ahead Washington account (state appropriation), $10 million in Move Ahead Washington private/local appropriation, and about $6.387 million in the Connecting Washington account. Ray said he was verifying whether those are newly allocated funds or carry-forwards.

Commissioner Kimball said the latest county cost estimate for Phase 8 is about $351 million and that the $108 million federal piece leaves a substantial funding gap if state matches are smaller than expected. "There's a timeframe associated with that grant," Kimball said, adding the county does not want to start construction and run out of funds. He said securing all funding before major work begins is a priority.

Why it matters: U.S. 12 is a key regional corridor. County officials said they will seek confirmation in Washington, D.C., about the status of both federal obligations and the state budget provisions affecting Phase 8.

Next steps: Commissioners said they will raise the issue during Kimballs federal meetings and continue to monitor state budget documents; county staff will report back when verification is complete.