Conference committee approves Senate Bill 2012 with highway-construction amendments

A legislative conference committee voted to adopt the conference report on Senate Bill 2012 on transportation, approving amendments that give the state Department of Transportation (DOT) discretion to reallocate underrun construction funds and that direct DOT to “construct and complete the remaining portions” of a specified highway between Highway 200 and Longacre.

The vote was taken by roll call after discussion of amendment language and funding mechanics; committee members recorded unanimous affirmative votes. Representative Bosch made the final motion to adopt the bill as amended; Senator Urban seconded.

The committee’s discussion stressed the complexity of the bill’s funding sources and the desire to give DOT flexibility if construction bids come in under estimates. As Senator Dwyer, a conferee, moved adoption of the agreed amendments, he described the package as “a great compromise” that will get money out to needed projects and provide adequate funding for the department. Representative Wise asked for confirmation of the amendment’s effect, saying, “Are you sure that’s what this does?”

Members clarified that one amendment changes the directive language so DOT may transfer remaining funds from a project that comes in under budget to other projects. Committee members also discussed language identifying the highway segment covered by the amendment. At one point a conferee noted the draft contained the wrong highway number and said, “Oh. It should say Highway 201,” and the group agreed the intent was to direct construction from Highway 200 to Longacre.

Committee members referenced a stretch described in the discussion as about 19 miles composed of “13 and the 6,” and noted that a roughly 6-mile portion had limits on federal funding. A separate amendment referenced an environmental impact statement for Highway 200 South; conferees said that language had been adopted in a different amendment and that the current amendment was focused on construction direction and funding flexibility.

After the roll call, members cautioned against releasing draft amendments to the public before final review. One conferee recommended holding off on distribution until staff could confirm the final bill language to avoid having to publicly correct mistakes.

The committee said it will distribute final amendment text once staff complete a final review and corrected the draft language. No effective dates or implementation details beyond the DOT direction were specified in the committee discussion recorded in the transcript.