State routes bill headed to Governor's desk

HB 2948, Rep. Paul Graves (R-Fall City), passed the Legislature and is on its way to the Governor’s desk for signature. The bill would raise the population threshold for cities required to take on enhanced maintenance responsibilities for state routes. Currently, cities with a population of more than 25,000 carry greater responsibilities than smaller cities for the maintenance of state routes that run through their communities. These responsibilities include slope stability, snow plowing, as well as road surface and traffic signal maintenance.

The bill was amended on the floor of the House to raise the population threshold from 25,000 to 35,000, in five-year increments of 2,500, through 2033.