Toll Facilities.  The Legislature must authorize a facility as toll-eligible before it may be tolled.  The Transportation Commission is the state's tolling authority with responsibility for setting toll rates.  The Department of Transportation is the operator of the authorized toll facilities, which include the following:

Project Financing.  In the past 20 years, Washington State has used a range of methods to finance larger transportation projects.  The State Route (SR) 520 Bridge is the only facility for which toll-backed bonds have been issued in this time period.  The bridge was partially paid for with these toll-backed bonds, in addition to state funds, federal funds, federal loans or grants, and local funds.  The Tacoma Narrows Bridge and SR 99 Tunnel have used tolls to cover project costs, but instead of toll-backed bonds, used a repayment structure where tolls reimburse another state funding source used to issue bonds.
 
In 2019, ESSB 5825 passed, which authorized both tolling on the I-405/SR 167 Express Toll Lane (ETL) and Puget Sound Gateway facilities, and the issuance of up to $1.5 billion in bonds to fund various project priorities.

Bond authorizations totaling $1.5 billion for the I-405/SR 167 ETL and the Puget Sound Gateway facilities are repealed.  Accompanying references to project priorities the Legislature intended to fund using bond proceeds are removed.
 
The requirement that tolls be reduced on the two facilities once bonds are repaid is removed.  A requirement that 2+ carpools be allowed into the I-405 ETLs between Bellevue and Renton unless an analysis is completed showing this amount of revenue would not cover financial obligations is removed.
 
A provision is added that requires toll facility proposals to consider a policy guideline to pledge toll revenue for debt financing only when the revenue is generated from toll bridges.