Transportation & Infrastructure

Infrastructure/Economic Development

AWC staff has continued to meet with legislators and Governor’s staff on pursuing economic development strategies. As noted previously, the Governor’s staff is in the middle of their "POG" or Priorities of Government process and we have yet to hear what they will put forward.

General updates:

• Local Infrastructure Finance Tool legislation - We are working with legislators to expand the authority and provide technical corrections.
• CERB/Job Development Fund-Seek permanent funding - There is currently Agency Request Legislation to seek permanent funding for these two programs (no revenue source identified). We are supporting this request.

Transportation

Now that the elections are over, we are all eagerly awaiting the announcement of a new House Transportation Committee (HTC) Chair. We will also see the appointment of a new ranking minority member on the HTC due to the defeat of Representative Beverly Woods (R-23). Representative Woods was instrumental in the Transportation Partnership Package of 2005 and will be sorely missed.

Transportation issues are beginning to coalesce around the following topics that will also be in play during the 2007 legislative session. What we can expect to see:

Regional Transportation in Puget Sound

The Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) draft recommendations were released on November 15, with comments due November 30. To see a copy of these recommendations, please go to www.awcnet.org/documents/rtcdraftreport111506.pdf. The RTC is charged with "being bold" and evaluating transportation agencies within Central Puget Sound and making recommendations on transportation governance that will likely result in proposed legislation. In addition to several findings, The RTC concluded that:

• The Washington State Legislature should create a regional transportation governance entity which is empowered to, at a minimum, prioritize, plan and finance regional projects.
• In order to effectively prioritize and plan, regional transportation decision-making should be shifted to the region.
• Regional governance should be based on regional goals and objectives and should stitch together existing agencies rather than create a new layer of bureaucracy.
• The body should have the authority to address the critical needs in planning and finance, including responsibility for certain elements of growth management and land use.
• A regional governance structure should be able to address all tax and usage based revenue sources as a part of a systemic financing strategy.

Balancing the Budget

As noted previously, many project costs have escalated over 30%. Because most of the high profile WSDOT projects are line itemed in the "Nickel Package" and the "Partnership Act of 2005," the projects cannot change without the legislature reopening and changing these lists. Changing the lists can be in the form of delaying projects, phasing projects, re-scoping the projects, or project cancellation. In initial discussions with members of the Legislature, AWC has requested delaying or rephrasing projects as a preferred option. Because there will be limited or no new state funding, we can expect tough choices from the Legislature in 2007.

Washington State Ferries (WSF)

In the wake of increased fuel prices, the WSF is experiencing operating cost shortfalls, and shortfalls for capital improvements. Their status was unresolved in the last legislative session and will be a priority in 2007.

Public Works Legislation

The Capital Projects Advisory Review Board (CPARB) has begun reviewing industry wide public works issues. One issue of note is the proposal to put "responsible bidder" criteria in statue. Many states require a baseline of criteria before a contractor can submit a bid on public works projects. Examples include: a registered contractor, registered with all appropriate agencies (i.e., Labor &Industries, Department of Revenue), are not disbarred, have financial ability to perform the work, and are capable of performing the work within the advertised timeframe.

CCPARB is on the cusp of having a bill draft for review that will modify the existing General Contractor-Construction Manager (GC-CM), Design-Build, and Job Order Contracting legislation. The current authority expires in June, 2007, and has population eligibility thresholds for cities (70,000 plus two other cities) and a $10 million or greater project threshold for almost all public owners. The working proposal has changed as of last week. The following table reflects those changes.

Proposed Eligibility Criteria for Alternative Public Works Contracting (as of November 9, 2007)

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