Washington State Airport Plan Delayed

Site selection of a reliever field for Sea-Tac has been tabled through a governor veto.

Tuesday, May 16, 2023 at 06:11 PM ET

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Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (KSEA) is predicted to reach full capacity for travel by 2050. [Credit: Shutterstock]

Key Takeaways:

Washington Gov. Inslee signed House Bill 1791, creating a new work group to study commercial aviation services, but vetoed its funding for researching new airport locations, effectively delaying progress.
The governor's funding veto and scheduling difficulties for the existing Commercial Aviation Coordinating Commission (CACC) have stalled efforts to identify a new airport site, despite Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (KSEA) being predicted to reach full capacity by 2050.
Past attempts by the CACC to select "green field" sites in rural Pierce and Thurston counties for a reliever airport faced significant public opposition due to concerns about traffic, pollution, noise, and quality of life, as well as conflicts with military air traffic.

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Washington Gov. Jay Inslee’s signing of House Bill 1791, created to study the need for increased commercial aviation services, has not killed the drive to build an airport south of Seattle. But according to Warren Hendrickson, vice chair of the state’s Commercial Aviation Coordinating Commission, “it definitely delays the process, there is no question.”

According to Hendrickson, the bill creates a new commercial aviation work group that will consist of 19 appointed voting members. However, the governor vetoed the sections of the bill that provided funding for the group tasked with research and analysis for the section concerning a location for a new airport as Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (KSEA) is predicted to reach full capacity for travel by 2050.