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Leaders say package adds $1 billion for culverts, pushes ferry electrification and uses mixed funding including CCA money
Summary
Chair Fai said the proposal includes roughly $1 billion in additional culvert and fish‑passage spending on top of prior allocations and that ferry electrification conversions have been pushed toward the six‑year window; she said terminals are funded with Climate Commitment Act money while conversion funding will come from both CCA and a ferry capital vessel account.
Chair Fai said the budget proposal contains a substantial additional investment—about $1 billion—for culverts and fish‑passage work on top of prior allocations, and that this sum does not yet meet the total need identified in court‑ordered work and government‑tribal mediation.
She said some culvert funding already exists in the budget and the additional $1 billion is intended to address further needs but is contingent on ongoing mediation with tribes and signals from the governor’s office. "That that is on top of the $4,000,000,000," she said when asked to clarify the relationship to prior culvert figures.
On ferries, officials said terminal infrastructure is being paid with Climate Commitment Act (CCA) money; a portion of vessel conversion work is also CCA‑funded while the remainder would come from the ferry capital vessel account. Chair Fai said conversion timelines were pushed out toward the end of the six‑year window to reflect higher costs and reallocation decisions.
Why it matters: culvert and fish‑passage work has environmental and legal implications tied to court orders and tribal mediation. Officials cautioned the $1 billion addition is substantial but likely insufficient to meet the entire need and that final amounts may change as mediation and interbranch negotiations continue.
