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Bill to modernize Adopt a Highway program conditions signs and reporting on transportation budget
Summary
Substitute Senate Bill 5556 would update Washington’s Adopt a Highway volunteer program, require annual reporting, and condition program authority and signage on amounts provided in the transportation budget, while agencies estimate existing administrative costs and litter‑removal expenses.
Substitute Senate Bill 5556, briefed March 13 before the House Transportation Committee, would modernize Washington’s Adopt a Highway program, affirm WSDOT’s authority to run the program, require annual reporting, and condition signage and program authority on amounts provided in the transportation budget.
Committee staff Chris Thomas summarized the program’s history — established in 1990 to allow volunteer groups and private sponsors to adopt state‑highway segments for litter control and related activities — and explained program mechanics. Under the bill, WSDOT’s authority to administer the program and to provide recognition signs to participants would be conditioned on the availability of amounts provided in the transportation budget. The bill also requires WSDOT to file an annual report by Dec. 1 with details on program participation and compliance.
Agency materials in the multi‑agency fiscal note show WSDOT currently provides signage and some administration; the department estimated roughly $300,000 per biennium for administrative costs and signs. WSDOT does not track all litter‑bag pickup costs, but last biennium total costs for Adopt a Highway, Ecology and corrections litter removal were about $1 million, Thomas told the committee. Senator Bill Ramos, the sponsor, described local volunteer enthusiasm and said modernization could improve administration, encourage reliable participants, and enable contracted professional crews to handle particularly hazardous stretches.
Why it matters: Adopt a Highway is a long‑running volunteer program that supplements state cleanup efforts. The bill aims to clarify administration, require performance reporting, and condition signs and program continuation on transportation budget appropriations.
The committee did not record a vote at the hearing; the bill’s fiscal context and the interaction with local and contracted crews were the primary areas of discussion.
