This bill amends existing law (RCW 53.58.010). It authorizes moneys available to a port district or a port development authority to be used to purchase zero and near zero emissions cargo handling equipment and the infrastructure that supports that equipment for use by the port district, the port development authority, or their tenants or lessees. It also prohibits the use of those moneys to purchase fully automated marine container cargo handling equipment. The bill defines "fully automated marine container cargo handling equipment" as equipment that is remotely operated or remotely monitored, with or without the exercise of human intervention or control. It defines "port development authority" as a port public development authority created by one or two port districts under RCW 53.57.020. The text provided does not define "zero and near zero emissions" or "infrastructure supporting that equipment." The amendment appears to remove a prior subsection that would have caused the section to expire on December 31, 2031, but the surrounding history or explicit repeal language is not included in the provided text. Affected entities include port districts, port development authorities, and their tenants or lessees. The bill was prefiled January 6, 2026, read first time January 12, 2026, passed the Senate February 11, 2026 (31-18), and passed the House March 4, 2026 (77-17).

If enacted, ports and port development authorities would be able to spend their available moneys to buy zero and near‑zero emissions cargo handling equipment and the infrastructure needed to support that equipment for use by the port or by tenants and lessees, which will likely push port capital plans toward cleaner equipment and associated site upgrades. That change expands how ports can use existing funds and may lead to higher near‑term capital outlays for low‑emission gear and infrastructure but could lower fuel and maintenance costs over time and make low‑emission options more accessible to tenants. At the same time, those same port funds could not be used to purchase fully automated marine container cargo handling equipment (defined broadly to include remotely operated or monitored systems), so ports that want automation will need to find other funding sources or delay those investments; vendors of automated systems will lose a funding channel. The bill does not define what counts as “zero and near zero emissions” or specify the scope of “infrastructure supporting that equipment,” and it’s unclear from the provided text whether a prior sunset date has been removed, so there may be short-term uncertainty about which purchases qualify and how long the authority lasts.