Unless it's part of your profession, you may not typically follow the multi-year process that sees policy become legislation, then a funding opportunity and then, maybe someday, a completed project. I hadn't followed along myself until I observed the unprecedented investment, both planned and now underway, being made in maritime infrastructure.

As an observer, this made sense. I'd stepped onto enough rickety docks and passed by many empty facilities and decaying pilings from declining or obsolete industries. As a journalist, I got curious: Where do things go from here? How do the proposed solutions get put into place?

Over the past several years, a steady stream of government funding announcements illustrate which projects will take the next step in this policy-driven process.

But the future of more maritime infrastructure projects, or at least their funding sources, is uncertain.

November’s election results confirmed funding for a number of key maritime projects in Washington state through the Climate Commitment Act. At the same time, the Republicans' government trifecta creates uncertainty around federal infrastructure programs.

Here are some of the policies and projects in play:

The Climate Commitment Act stands

Initiative 2117, which would have repealed Washington state’s Climate Commitment Act, failed to pass. Sixty-two percent of voters opted to uphold the ambitious climate act.

Signed into law in 2021, the CCA established a “cap-and-invest” program for Washington state. It limits or “caps” carbon emissions and then the state auctions off “emission allowances,” charging the businesses for their greenhouse gas emissions. 

That revenue is then invested in “critical climate and air quality projects” throughout the state — which brings us back to the water.

In the lead up to the election, the Clean & Prosperous Institute, part of a coalition opposed to I-2117, released a “Risk of Repeal” map to illustrate the projects that would be impacted.  

The map shows over $130 million in funding authorized for ferries.

Among the ferry projects partially or fully funded by the CCA are:

• The conversion and construction of hybrid-electric vessels for Washington State Ferries
• Electrification of ferry terminals along Puget Sound
• An all-electric passenger ferry and prototype hydrofoil ferry for Kitsap Transit
• An all-electric ferry for Guemes Island

Other maritime-related projects include:

• Shore power infrastructure and electric equipment at the ports of Edmonds, Seattle, Port Angeles, Bellingham, Anacortes, Friday Harbor and Tacoma
• Fish habitat restoration and barrier removal/modification

With the Climate Commitment Act upheld, these and many other projects will proceed, with more investment expected. The most recent CCA auction raised close to $272 million for the state.

However, there is still uncertainty around funding for other state programs as Washington is facing a multibillion-dollar budget gap over the next several years.

Uncertainty around future federal investment

If Gov. Jay Inslee gets to “retire” with his landmark climate legislation intact, the future of President Joe Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act are much more uncertain with the incoming Trump-Vance administration.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), which focuses on physical infrastructure, turned three years old in November. The law has resulted in almost $10 billion invested in Washington state’s transportation infrastructure, including ports and ferries ($227 million), according to tracking from Sen. Maria Cantwell’s office.

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is focused on a transition to renewable energy. Passed in 2022, and taking effect in 2023, it includes funding for reducing emissions, addressing the impacts of climate change, and energy-related infrastructure.

The funding from these two pieces of legislation is spread across many sectors, but several programs focus on, or intersect with, the maritime industry.

Beyond these cumulative numbers and numerous acronyms are real-life projects, many taking place at one of Washington's 75 ports.

To understand where some of this funding will land, I took a closer look at three programs:

• The Federal Transit Administration's Ferry Grants (including two new funding programs established by the BIL)
• The Maritime Administration's Port Infrastructure Development Program (launched in 2020 and greatly expanded due to the BIL )
• The EPA's Clean Ports Program (a new funding program established by the IRA)

Ferry Grants

Major operators Washington State Ferries and Kitsap Transit have received these grants. Some funding is for more visible projects, such as a new Southworth Ferry Terminal, as well as for electronic payment systems and electric charging infrastructure (a major theme!).

These grants were in high demand. For example, in 2024, $300 million was awarded through the FTA's three ferry grant programs. The agency also reported it'd received eligible project proposals totaling more than twice that amount.

Port Infrastructure Development Program

The PIDP (another acronym, eh?) has invested $188 million in Washington's ports since 2021. Ten ports have received funding from Ilwaco to Bellingham, and places in between. Many of the projects are to replace piers or docks, as well as upgrade everything that is alongside a dock, such as lifts, trucking gates or container storage.

Age is unavoidable. Washington's oldest public ports were founded over a century ago. In Anacortes, a 47-year-old commercial dock at the end of its lifespan will be replaced with PIDP funding. At the Port of Port Angeles, one project centers around a 112-year-old dock.

Clean Ports Grants

Announced in late October, the EPA granted Washington state ports $104 million, or less than 4% of the total funding. The largest recipient is the Port of Anacortes, which will receive more than $65 million for two projects.

The Northwest Seaport Alliance, which includes the ports of Seattle and Tacoma, had hoped to receive up to $500 million. So, in this case, not as much funding is flowing to Washington's ports as some would've hoped.

See all the Washington state projects awarded funding through these programs.

To date, over 230 projects in Washington state have received IRA funding and over 1,300 have received BIL funding, according to White House data. Certain funding opportunities, which are administered through programs across federal agencies, are still open.

Why it's on my radar: This is a lot of money flowing to our ports and ferries. Will it continue? And what will be the impact of these investments to date?