EHB 1846 — Addressing vessel procurement at the Washington state ferries.

What this bill does

Requires the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to contract for up to five new hybrid diesel-electric vessels that can carry up to 144 vehicles, using a one or two contract procurement approach to potentially accelerate vessel delivery. Requires that the contract(s) must be for a minimum of two vessels, with options for up to five vessels. Exempts the procurement from the existing ferries-specific design-build statutes. Specifies the WSDOT must establish and apply evaluation criteria beyond low price to meet other best value and highest scored proposal objectives. Requires the WSDOT to apply best value evaluation criteria such as: (1) a credit of between five percent and 10 percent of the bid price for bid proposals for vessels constructed in the State of Washington; (2) recognition of the additional costs of transport and owner oversight incurred by shipyards located further from Seattle; and (3) meeting state apprenticeship and water pollution control requirements or state or federal equivalents.

From the Washington State Legislature's nonpartisan staff bill analysis. Read the full analysis ↗

Floor votes

• House — 3rd Reading & Final Passage · April 11, 2023
  93 yea · 4 nay · 1 not voting
• House — Final Passage as Amended by the Senate · April 18, 2023
  94 yea · 3 nay · 1 not voting
• Senate — 3rd Reading & Final Passage as Amended by the Senate · April 14, 2023
  47 yea · 0 nay · 2 not voting

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Other bills sponsored by Fey

• SHB 1084 — Concerning freight mobility prioritization.
• SHB 1103 — Avoiding interest arbitrage charges on bond proceeds in the capital vessel replacement account.
• ESHB 1125 — Making transportation appropriations for the 2021-2023 fiscal biennium and the 2023-2025 fiscal biennium. (REVISED FOR PASSED LEGISLATURE: Making transportation appropriations for the 2021-2023 and 2023-2025 fiscal biennia.)
• SHB 1163 — Exempting certain leasehold interests in arenas with a seating capacity of more than 2,000 from the leasehold excise tax.
• SHB 1620 — Concerning the number of inhabitants required for incorporation as a city or town.