Office of Governor Gary Locke
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - March 31, 2003
Contact:  Governor's Communications Office, 360-902-4136

Gov. Gary Locke Convenes Late Night Transportation Meeting

Gov. Gary Locke is convening the chairs of the House and Senate transportation committees in his office Tuesday evening in an attempt to reach an agreement on a statewide transportation-improvement package.

The meeting could run deep into the night, and there are no guarantees a solution will be reached Tuesday night. Still, the governor is optimistic he can work with the House and Senate transportation leaders to create a plan that will pass in Olympia.

“It is critical that we get moving now to improve our state’s transportation infrastructure. We can’t wait, and we need to pass a transportation-improvement plan this legislative session,” Locke said. “I’d like this meeting to help bridge the gap between the various transportation proposals. I’m prepared to stay up all night to make this happen.”

Two weeks ago, Locke submitted to the Legislature a roads and transit plan that calls for a gas-tax increase of four cents to address critical transportation projects and spur the state economy. Since then, the House and Senate have released their transportation plans.

The House proposal calls for a three-cent gas tax increase, while the Senate proposal asks for an increase of five cents. The plans differ in their mix of highway and non-highway dollars, which include such things as transit, passenger rail, freight mobility and ferries. The Senate plan favors more roads spending, while the House plan provides more for transit.

Meeting invitees include Rep. Ed Murray, D-Seattle, chair of the House Transportation Committee; Rep. Doug Ericksen, R-Bellingham, the ranking Republican on the House committee; Sen. Jim Horn, R-Mercer Island, chair of the Senate Highways & Transportation Committee; and Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen, D-Camano Island, ranking Democrat on the Senate committee.

“Our House and Senate transportation chairs have made good progress this session, and now it’s time to pass a package that will improve our transportation system and put people to work,” Locke said. “This is about creating jobs now when we desperately need them.”

A transportation-funding package would generate thousands of construction jobs statewide, Locke said. Fully bonding each one-cent increase in the gas tax could raise an additional $500 million over 10 years and generate up to 3,000 family-wage jobs for Washington citizens. Locke wants a transportation funding solution now so it doesn’t get lost during final negotiations on the state’s operating budget.

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