By Senators Van De Wege, Liias, Rolfes, Chase, Pedersen, Nelson, McCoy, Ranker, Bailey, Angel, Sheldon, King, and Hobbs

WHEREAS, The Washington Legislature in 1868 established pilot and pilotage regulations for the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Puget Sound and related waters; and

WHEREAS, The legislature established that it shall be the duty of the governor to appoint two experienced and resident ship masters and one resident merchant to constitute a board of pilot commissioners for the different ports of Puget Sound, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and related waters; and

WHEREAS, The legislature established that the commissioners shall meet in Port Townsend at least once every three months and hold their first regular meeting on the first Monday of May, 1868; and

WHEREAS, The Pilotage Act was signed into law on January 30, 1868, by the seventh governor of Washington Territory, the honorable Marshall F. Moore, a union army veteran of the civil war who served as governor from 1867 to 1869; and

WHEREAS, The commission and pilots have been serving Washington State and waterborne commerce in the Puget Sound region for one hundred fifty years; and

WHEREAS, No persons, except those licensed by the commissioners, may pilot vessels in or out of the bays or harbors of Puget Sound, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, or their inlets or harbors, for hire; and

WHEREAS, It is the duty of every pilot in charge of a vessel arriving in any of the ports of Puget Sound or its branches to have the vessel safely moored or anchored in such position as the master may direct, and that pilots keep a pilot station and boats in good condition for cruising the Strait of Juan de Fuca and for safely boarding vessels upon arrival and disembark; and

WHEREAS, It is the mission of the state and Puget Sound pilots to ensure against the loss of lives, loss of or damage to property and vessel, and to protect the marine environment by maintaining efficient and competent pilotage service on our state's inland waters within the Puget Sound pilotage district; and

WHEREAS, The Pilotage Act, regulated and administered by the state's board of pilotage commissioners and serviced by state licensed pilots, has successfully handled nearly two hundred fifty thousand vessel assignments, spanning more than three decades, without a major incident in the Puget Sound; and

WHEREAS, This unparalleled safety record has earned Puget Sound recognition from the United States Coast Guard Captain of the Port as the safest major port in the nation; and

WHEREAS, Puget Sound pilots were available to board ships on arrival at the Port Angeles pilot station ninety-nine percent of the time providing nearly perfect service; and

WHEREAS, The state's compulsory pilotage program has successfully mitigated the risk of ships operating in Puget Sound waters while preserving Washington's position as an able competitor for waterborne commerce from other ports and nations of the world;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate honor this historic date of January 30, 2018, as the 150th Anniversary of Washington's Pilotage Act of 1868.