Murray: “When federal law is putting Washington state at a disadvantage, I will push with everything I’ve got to change the law and deliver a solution that works for our communities and creates jobs.”
*** VIDEO OF PRESS CONFERENCE HERE, PHOTOS AND B-ROLL HERE***
Seattle, WA – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and ranking member of the Energy and Water Development Subcommittee, visited the Port of Seattle and delivered remarks on the importance of the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund supporting the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma, while affirming her continued efforts to end Trump’s tariffs. Senator Murray also highlighted securing $8 million for the Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA) to install shore power at the Port of Seattle, securing $2.33 million for the Army Corps of Engineers’ Seattle Harbor project to deepen navigation channels at the Port of Seattle, and increasing the funding level for the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund to a historic $3.47 billion, while ensuring donor ports like the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma get their fair share.
Murray was joined by Ryan Calkins, Port of Seattle Commission President, and Co-Chair of the NWSA; Dan McKisson, ILWU Washington Area District Council President; Nicholas Gauthier, President of the Container Division, SSA Marine; Bill Bloxom, Owner of F.C. Bloxom Company International; and Bryan Gonzalez, Export Sales, F.C. Bloxom Company International.
“Our ports are the engine of our economy in Washington state. So many farmers and manufacturers rely on you to get their goods out to customers across the world,” said Senator Murray. “For decades the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma have been some of the biggest contributors to the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund, but they’ve been essentially walled off from using the fund because of outdated and unfair restrictions that disadvantage Washington state ports in a major way. The status quo was patently unfair—and I’ve been working year after year for over a decade to fix it. In 2014, I was able to unlock a small amount of annual funding for the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma by expanding eligible uses for the trust fund, but even before then I was working toward the much more ambitious goal of creating an annual set-aside for donor ports like Seattle and Tacoma. In 2024 it finally happened. And this year, I secured a historic $3.47 billion for the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund—more than ever before, and I wrote in very specific language to make sure our ports get their fair share… When federal law is putting Washington state at a disadvantage, I will push with everything I’ve got to change the law and deliver a solution that works for our communities and creates jobs.”
In the FY26 appropriations bill, Senator Murray secured a historic $3.47 billion for the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund—a longtime priority for Senator Murray—to invest in our nation’s port and waterway infrastructure, including in Washington state. Senator Murray also ensured the appropriations bill included language explicitly directing the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) to fully implement language she championed in the 2020 Water Resources Development Act that requires the Corps to provide additional funding to Donor and Energy Transfer ports, which contribute more to the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund than they can access. The Ports of Seattle and Tacoma are both Donor ports, and this language will help them get their fair share from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund.
“Senator Murray is a tireless advocate for our region’s maritime industry. The NWSA is grateful to her for securing provisions in the Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations bill which will help us secure a cleaner environment for generations to come. Her efforts will result in over $50 million this year for Northwest Seaport Alliance projects that will enable the port to further our decarbonization efforts and move more cargo,” said Ryan Calkins, Port of Seattle Commission President and The Northwest Seaport Alliance Co-Chair.
“With Senator Murray’s support, we will secure our fair share of funding from the Harbor Maintenance Tax that has been collected at our ports. The Senator also has helped us receive essential funding for shore power infrastructure and harbor deepening work that will support cleaner air in our region and ensure our port remains competitive in the global marketplace,” said Dick Marzano, Port of Tacoma Commission President and The Northwest Seaport Alliance Co-Chair.
“Dock workers, ferry crews, and tugboat operators understand firsthand the importance of transitioning to clean energy. We work daily in industrial settings and projects like the installation of shore power at T18 will enhance our working conditions and reduce impacts on our communities. The West Waterway dredging initiative will enable us to accommodate vessels with drafts up to 55 feet, positioning us to handle the largest ships worldwide boosting, our competitive edge. Additional Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund allocations will promote greater fairness among donor ports and help cover costs for these vital improvements,” said Dan McKisson, ILWU Washington Area District Council President, representing 3,000 ILWU workers across 11 Washington state ports. “I would also like to express gratitude to Senator Murray for her many years of advocacy addressing the HMT land border loophole, which diverts cargo to foreign ports to avoid paying the Harbor Maintenance Tax. Through her unwavering leadership, we are closer than ever to leveling the playing field for US workers.”
Murray has championed provisions to more equitably provide funding from the HMTF and tirelessly worked for more than a decade to change the law so that the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma get their fair share of funding after decades of contributing far more than they are eligible to use from the HMTF on traditional operation and maintenance activities. Murray’s efforts included introducing multiple pieces of legislation to reform the HMTF and securing a new provision, Section 2106, in the 2014 Water Resources Reform and Development Act and every reauthorization since to allow donor ports, like Seattle and Tacoma, to access federal funding for additional uses that were previously ineligible for support—including port infrastructure improvements and rebates to importers to help address competition from ports in Canada and Mexico that are not subject to the same fees. Senator Murray successfully secured changes to the HMTF in the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2020, to more equitably distribute money from the HMTF for projects at America’s ports.
Below is an abbreviated timeline of Senator Murray’s work to address inequities in the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund and secure fair funding for Washington state’s ports:
- August 2013: Murray announces new legislation, the Maritime Goods Movement Act for the 21st Century, to completely overhaul the Harbor Maintenance Tax (HMT) and Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF) to get rid of the inequities and make the system work better for the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma. Murray formally introduces the legislation in September.
- June 2014: Murray secures in the Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA) of 2014 a provision called Section 2106 that—for the first time in history—begins to address the HMTF system’s inequities toward donor ports and cargo diversion by authorizing $25 million in discretionary funding for donor and energy transfer ports to use for port infrastructure improvements and rebates to importers in order to help even the playing field for the Ports of Seattle, Tacoma, and others. The legislation is signed into law by President Obama on June 10.
- The Section 2106 change unlocks a combined $44,660,180 for the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma for the next nine fiscal years, FY16-FY24. See the chart further down for a full breakdown showing how much funding the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma have received each year thanks to Section 2106 since the change was first funded in Fiscal Year 2016.
- While this was a meaningful step forward, major inequities in the disbursement of HMTF dollars persisted.
- March 2016: Murray introduces the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund Reform Act of 2016, new legislation to reform the HMTF by, among other things, making sure all of the money collected through the Harbor Maintenance Tax each year is returned directly to ports and establishing a set-aside for donor ports so that collected funds are allocated more equitably.
- July 2017: Murray reintroduces her Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund Reform Act legislation to reform the HMTF.
- March 2020: The CARES Act of 2020 is passed into law; the legislation includes a provision that, for the first time, allows all of the money collected through the HMTF each year to be returned directly to ports to improve infrastructure and keep ports competitive. However, there was no set distribution of the funds, which threatened to continue to disadvantage Washington state ports from getting funding—something Senator Murray worked immediately with former Appropriations Chair Richard Shelby (R-AL), port officials, the Army Corps, and other stakeholders to address in the WRDA reauthorization later that year.
- June 2020: Murray pushes to include an amendment to WRDA 2020 that would modify the HMTF to more equitably fund operation and maintenance projects at America’s ports. The amendment does not receive a vote but lays the groundwork for the final language enacted in WRDA 2020.
- KEY INFLECTION POINT – December 2020: Murray secures in the final WRDA 2020 long sought-after changes for HMTF distributions and secures 12 percent for donor and energy transfer ports, which contribute more to the HMTF than they can access—ensuring a more equitable distribution and an influx in annual funding for the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma. This funding is separate from the authorization and funding Murray has secured for the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma through Section 2106 since 2014. The formula changes for donor and energy transfer ports for funding from the HMTF are set to take effect in Fiscal Year 2023.
- February 2023: Army Corps releases their Work Plan for Fiscal Year 2023; the plan fails to follow the enacted formula for HMTF distributions for donor and energy transfer ports.
- March 2023: Senator Murray, now Chair of the full Appropriations Committee, has a call with ASA Connor to make clear the Corps’ failure to implement that donor and energy transfer port set-aside was unacceptable and press on HMTF implementation in the next fiscal year.
- April 2023: Chair Murray presses ASA Connor at an Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on the Army Corps’ Fiscal Year 2024 budget about the steps being taken to ensure the Army Corps meets all targets for the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund.
- July 2023: Senator Murray secures language in the draft Senate Energy and Water Appropriations bill explicitly directing the Army Corps to fully implement the donor and energy transfer set-aside in Fiscal Year 2024.
- July 2023-March 2024: Extensive engagement between Senator Murray’s office and the Army Corps on final appropriations language that would ensure the Corps fully implemented the donor and energy ports set-aside as Congress intended.
- March 2024: In the final Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2024, Chair Murray secures language explicitly directing the Army Corps to fully and correctly implement the provisions Murray secured in WRDA 2020 that required the Corps to provide additional HMTF funding to donor and energy transfer ports, including Seattle and Tacoma. Additionally, Chair Murray secures a historic $2.77 billion for the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund overall and $58 million in Section 2106 funding for Donor and Energy Transfer ports—a $2 million increase over the Fiscal Year 2023 level.
- April 2024: Extensive engagement between Senator Murray’s office and the Army Corps to ensure the Corps’ work plan for Fiscal Year 2024 was done right.
- May 2024: The Army Corps Work Plan for Fiscal Year 2024 is released and includes, for the first time ever, the HMTF donor and energy transfer port set-aside Murray secured in WRDA 2020—providing a total of $368 million to all eligible donor and energy transfer ports. From this set-aside, the Port of Seattle received $22.15 million and the Port of Tacoma will receive $25.555 million—and the WRDA 2020 change in funding distribution of the HMTF applies every year moving forward.
- January 2026: Senator Murray secured a historic $3.47 billion for the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund in the FY26 appropriations bill and ensured the bill included language explicitly directing the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) to fully implement the language Senator Murray championed in the 2020 Water Resources Development Act that requires the Corps to provide additional funding to Donor and Energy Transfer ports, which contribute more to the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund than they can access. The Ports of Seattle and Tacoma are both Donor ports, and this language will help them get their fair share from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund.
Senator Murray’s remarks, as delivered, are below:
“Thank you for joining me to discuss the work at our ports and the challenges we face.
“Our ports are the engine of our economy in Washington state. Our farmers, our manufacturers rely on all of you to get their goods out to customers across the world.
“And so many businesses—small and large—rely on all of you to help them bring in the resources they need for manufacturing, and goods they sell to Washington state families. Our salmon travel far on their own—but you all are the reason they are famous worldwide!
“I’m proud to be your partner. And as a leader on the Appropriations Committee, I managed to secure some really crucial wins for our Ports and our economy.
“For decades the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma have been some of the biggest contributors to the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund, but they’ve essentially been walled off from using the fund because of outdated and very unfair restrictions that disadvantage Washington state ports in a major way. The status quo was patently unfair—and I’ve been working year after year for over a decade to fix this.
“In 2014, I was able to unlock a small amount of annual funding for the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma by expanding eligible uses for the trust fund. Even before then I was working toward the much more ambitious goal of creating an annual set-aside for donor ports like Seattle and Tacoma.
“Well in 2024 it finally happened. And this year, I secured an historic $3.47 billion—‘b’ billion—for the Harbor Maintenance Trust fund—that’s more than ever before, and I wrote in very specific language to make sure our ports get their fair share.
“This has been a long-fought battle, but it is nothing short of a sea change when it comes to annual funding for the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma. The [HMTF change] is permanent—meaning that every year it is in effect, Washington state ports will take home many times more funding they previously received each year from the Corps.
“When federal law is putting Washington state at a disadvantage, I will push with everything I can to change the law and deliver a solution that works for our communities and for jobs.
“And I have more good news today: I also secured $8 million in Congressionally Directed Spending for the Northwest Seaport Alliance to help them install shore power here at the Port of Seattle. That will mean the enormous shipping container boats won’t have to run their engine to keep the lights on when they dock—that is a huge benefit for everyone.
“And I secured $2.33 million for the Army Corps of Engineers’ Seattle Harbor project to deepen navigation channels here at the Port of Seattle.
“Now I want to be clear, while everyone here understands the importance of our ports, and the value that all of you bring to our economy, and our families—we have a President who just does not get it. Our ports have been especially hit hard by Trump’s absurd trade war. These tariffs are not good for trade, they are not good for families, and they are not good for our ports.
“And his war in Iran is already making shipping and trade even more expensive. To say nothing of the global energy crisis which threatens to get worse with every passing day.
“Rest assured, I am going to be using my voice and my vote in the United States Senate to stop the tariffs and end the war.
“I’m really grateful to be here today at the Port to announce this funding—it’s good news. But I’m also here to affirm my commitment to our ports. You are bringing in—and shipping out—the goods here in Washington state.
“Well, I will keep fighting to deliver ‘the goods’ in the other Washington.”
###
