"NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 46.68 RCW to read as follows:
     The legislature finds that the freight sector provides thousands of high-quality, well-paid jobs in Washington state and contributes significantly to the economy of the state. The legislature further finds that these benefits result despite the fact that freight makes up a fraction of vehicle traffic on our roads and that the commercial benefits of freight movement are compromised by the same congestion that plagues general traffic.
     The legislature also finds that as domestic and international freight volumes grow, and our state's economy becomes increasingly dependent on the one out of every three jobs supported by international trade, there is growing need for system-wide funding solutions to enhance a world class goods movement system that does not divert cargo and jobs to Canada, Mexico, Panama, Oregon, California, and the east coast of the United States. Accordingly, it is the intent of the legislature to study a broad array of mechanisms to fund freight congestion relief investments.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   (1) Subject to availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, the joint transportation committee shall:
     (a) Administer a consultant study of alternative funding mechanisms to fund freight congestion relief investments. At a minimum, the study must: (i) Evaluate potential funding sources for off-marine terminal infrastructure projects, including federal, state, incentives, and other project specific fees; (ii) analyze current taxes and fees paid by the freight industry and the projects the taxes and fees fund; (iii) assess other nonfreight related fees and taxes that could be used to pay for freight congestion relief investments; (iv) assess how other states and countries pay for freight congestion relief investments; and (v) discuss the various approaches and their impacts on Washington competitiveness in freight movement. The scope of the work for the study may be expanded to include analysis of other issues relevant to freight congestion relief funding; and
     (b) Convene a stakeholder group composed of representatives to work on the consultant study that includes: Two representatives of container ports, one representative of trucking, one representative from railroads, one representative from international shipping, one representative from national shipping, two representatives of organized labor, two representatives of the import/export community, one representative from the department of transportation, one representative from the freight mobility strategic investment board, and other representatives as deemed necessary by the joint transportation committee. The stakeholder group shall work with the selected consultant in: (i) Identifying critical freight congestion relief investments; (ii) identifying alternatives for a dedicated funding source for freight congestion relief investments or user fees to fund specific freight congestion relief investments; and (iii) developing and reviewing a final consultant study.
     (2) The consultant's draft report must be submitted to the transportation committees of the legislature by December 15, 2007, with the final findings and recommendations of the report being due prior to the beginning of the 2008 legislative session.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   This act expires January 31, 2008."