House Bill Allowing Island Communities to Run Passenger-Only Ferries Heads to Senate

The Washington House approved House Bill 1923, nicknamed the Mosquito Fleet Act, by an 84-11 vote on Feb. 16, and sponsor Rep. Greg Nance (D-23rd, Bainbridge Island) sent the bill to the Senate transportation committee as lawmakers face a March 12 session deadline. WorkBoat reported the Feb. 16 passage and multiple outlets noted the bill cleared the House this session after a prior version stalled in the Senate last year.

HB 1923 would allow counties, cities, municipal and regional transit agencies, port districts, tribes, private operators and even Sound Transit to establish passenger-only ferry districts serving Puget Sound, Grays Harbor and the Washington coast, and to use local revenue tools to fund service. GeekWire details that those tools could include a dedicated sales tax - up to 0.3% - commercial parking taxes, passenger tolls and advertising fees, while WorkBoat adds that the bill authorizes operation of SOLAS-certified passenger vessels.

Supporters point to long-running Washington State Ferries reliability problems as the rationale for local options. WorkBoat and GeekWire cite aging vessels, maintenance shortfalls and crew shortages that have left vehicle ferry service increasingly unreliable, and both outlets report that new hybrid-electric WSF vessels are not expected until 2030 at the earliest. Rep. Greg Nance framed the bill as an industrial and connectivity initiative: "It's time to allow passenger ferries to connect communities once again," and "Passenger ferries are a proven tool that should be available to communities across Puget Sound," while telling GeekWire, "For 15 years, policymakers across the country, we’ve been asleep at the wheel," and "We need to get our edge back."

Local examples cited by backers include Kitsap Transit’s fast ferries and island lifeline services. Nance said, "Kitsap Transit Fast Ferries have made all the difference for folks on the peninsula," and the House Bill Report for related county ferry legislation, HB 2588, noted Pierce County ferry service provides "lifeline service to over 1,200 people that live on islands full-time" and that island populations often surge during holidays. HB 2588, a separate bill sponsored by Representatives Timmons, Ramel and Lekanoff, passed committee steps in January and February and includes committee reports showing a minority "do not pass" signed by Representative Griffey.

Legislative history complicates HB 1923’s path. The Urbanist and GeekWire report the Mosquito Fleet Act stalled last year in the Senate transportation committee, where Chair Marko Liias (D-21st, Mukilteo) was identified as a hurdle; Citizenportal recorded the House vote as 84-11 with three excused in one readout. Opponents and skeptics have raised procedural and oversight questions during floor debate and committee reviews.

With the revised HB 1923 now in the Senate transportation committee and the Legislature due to adjourn March 12, proponents and municipal officials from the San Juans to Vashon Island are watching for a committee action that could let island communities form local passenger-only ferry districts and tap new revenue tools to restore short-haul service. If the Senate advances the measure, counties and ports could move to create districts and pursue passenger-only routes as a faster, locally governed option to address service gaps.