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Senate hears bill to create supply‑chain competitiveness grant and loan program for ports
Summary
Senate Bill 5649 would create a Supply Chain Competitiveness Infrastructure Program administered by WSDOT to provide grants and loans to public ports and federally recognized tribes with port operations. Port representatives and economic development groups testified in favor, citing resilience, clean fuels infrastructure and economic benefits.
Senate Bill 5649 — a proposed Supply Chain Competitiveness Infrastructure Program — received a public hearing before the Senate Transportation Committee on Feb. 25. Committee staff summarized the bill as a WSDOT‑administered grant-and-loan program for public ports and federally recognized tribes with established port operations.
Jenna, committee staff, told senators the bill would task WSDOT to collaborate with the Department of Commerce, the Washington Public Ports Association, the Freight Mobility Strategic Investment Board (FMSIB), federally recognized tribes with port operations and other stakeholders to set program priorities, performance metrics and eligible project types. The bill would create a program account paid from existing transportation accounts; the FMSIB faces a biannual cost of about $52,000 under the fiscal note and DOT estimated approximately $566,000 in startup costs and $538,000 ongoing, with potential changes depending on program scale.
Representatives of ports and regional economic groups urged passage. Chris Sherman of the Washington Public Ports Association said ports need flexible tools to fund “port‑adjacent infrastructure” when local jurisdictions’ priorities do not match ports’ freight and economic development needs. Brooke Davies of the Port of Seattle said the state’s trade dependence means ports are “a vital component of our statewide economy” and highlighted that the program could support infrastructure for sustainable aviation and maritime fuels.
Sean Egan of the Northwest Seaport Alliance described projects ranging from inland rail hubs to pile‑cap upgrades at military cargo facilities and stressed the need to maintain freight fluidity. Paul Jarquist of the Port of Port Angeles and Cassie Hammond of the Port of Benton explained local projects that would benefit from flexible state loan and grant options. Adam Lemieux of the Port of Everett cited examples such as seawall replacement, utility relocations and over‑dimensional cargo corridors. Bruce Agnew of the Pacific Northwest Economic Region said a statewide project list would improve Washington’s position for federal funding opportunities.
Testimony emphasized resilience, clean fuels infrastructure and job creation; no organized opposition was presented to the committee. Committee members asked clarifying questions about eligible recipients; staff confirmed the bill limits eligibility to public ports and federally recognized tribes with established port operations.
No committee vote was taken during the hearing; the bill will proceed through committee consideration.
