SB 5996-S.E2 - DIGEST |
(DIGEST AS ENACTED) |
Requires the department of transportation to: (1) Work cooperatively and proactively with state regulatory and natural resource agencies, public and private sector interests, and Indian tribes to avoid project delays; |
(2) Expedite project delivery and routine maintenance activities through the use of programmatic agreements and permits where possible and seek new opportunities to eliminate duplicative processes; and |
(3) Submit a report to the transportation committees of the legislature detailing engineering errors on highway construction projects resulting in project cost increases in excess of five hundred thousand dollars. |
Requires the department of transportation, the department of ecology, and the department of fish and wildlife to: (1) Use their existing authorities and guidance to provide a preference for the removal of existing fish passage barriers owned by cities and counties as compensatory mitigation for environmental impacts of transportation projects where appropriate; and |
(2) Consult with other relevant entities to develop a framework for encouraging off-site and out-of-kind local fish passage barrier mitigation that provides results that are consistent with habitat protection priorities and are ecologically preferable to on-site mitigation. |
VETO MESSAGE ON 2ESSB 5996 |
July 6, 2015 |
To the Honorable President and Members, |
The Senate of the State of Washington |
Ladies and Gentlemen: |
I am returning herewith, without my approval as to Section 9, Second Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill No. 5996 entitled: |
"AN ACT Relating to Washington state department of transportation projects." |
This bill is one of several substantive transportation reform bills I am signing into law today. The goal of this particular bill is to streamline the environmental decision making process for transportation projects without sacrificing environmental protections. Section 9 contains additional reporting requirements for the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) on lean efforts and to complete a Baldridge assessment. I wholeheartedly support adequately measuring and reporting on performance metrics and lean management efforts. The transportation investment package, however, already includes a number of studies and reports WSDOT must complete and prioritize within available funding. The unfunded requirements in Section 9 of this bill unnecessarily hinder efforts to implement this and other reform bills. |
For these reasons I have vetoed Section 9 of Second Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill No. 5996. |
With the exception of Section 9, Second Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill No. 5996 is approved. |
Respectfully submitted, |
Jay Inslee |
Governor |