This act creates a new chapter in Title 70A RCW called the "Salish Sea protection and marine clean fuels act," and reenacts and amends RCW 43.21B.110 to address enforcement appeals. It prohibits, beginning January 1, 2028, the use of marine gas oil or marine diesel oil that exceeds 0.1 percent sulfur by weight in auxiliary engines, main engines, or auxiliary boilers of ocean-going vessels while operating in "regulated waters" (waters within three nautical miles of the state shoreline and waters of the state). The bill incorporates ISO 8217 fuel grade references for marine diesel and gas oils and defines covered vessel types, sets recordkeeping and onboard fuel-switching documentation requirements, and gives the Department of Ecology authority to adopt implementing rules, exclude vessel categories, inspect vessels, sample fuel, and allow payment of noncompliance fees in lieu of fuel compliance under specified conditions. The bill creates a vessel sulfur pollution account in the state treasury to receive fees under the act and requires that moneys in that account be spent only after appropriation and only to implement, administer, and enforce the chapter. It directs that noncompliance fees generally be paid to the port where the vessel made a port visit for use on port electrification or other criteria-pollutant emission reduction activities under enforceable agreements; if a port declines fees, those fees are deposited in the air quality and health disparities improvement account (RCW 70A.65.280). The Department must also collect a fee from persons operating ocean-going vessels that make port visits in the state after January 1, 2028, with fee amounts and processes to be established by department rule. The act establishes civil penalties of $10,000 per day for each violation of the chapter, any rule adopted under it, or any order issued under it, with each day constituting a separate offense; penalties must take into account prior violations and the severity of public health and environmental impacts and are appealable to the pollution control hearings board. Collected penalties are deposited in the natural climate solutions account (RCW 70A.65.270). The text includes a severability clause. Important details are missing from the extracted material, including the specific rule language and amounts for fees, the full text of the reenacted/amended RCW 43.21B.110, some cut-off sections (including parts of section 5), and precise lists of "other records" and rule provisions left to the department.

If enacted, starting January 1, 2028 most ocean-going vessels entering Washington waters will have to use fuels with no more than 0.1% sulfur in their main and auxiliary engines and auxiliary boilers, keep detailed voyage and fuel records in English, and carry additional onboard documentation when they switch fuels. Vessel operators will therefore face new operational responsibilities and compliance choices: they must either use low-sulfur fuel, document fuel switching, modify vessels if needed, or in limited, predefined circumstances apply to pay noncompliance fees; failing to follow the law or rules can trigger a civil penalty of $10,000 per day per violation and inspections or fuel sampling by the Department of Ecology. Ports may receive noncompliance fee revenue but can only spend it on port electrification or other criteria-pollutant emission reduction projects under enforceable agreements, and if a port declines the fees they go to an air quality and health disparities account. The Department of Ecology must write implementing rules, collect fees (placed in a new vessel sulfur pollution account and usable only after appropriation for administering the law), and may exempt some vessel categories; important details are still missing from the text provided, including the specific fee amounts, the full rule provisions, and any other penalty language the bill might include.