Ocean vessels/environment

AN ACT Relating to reducing environmental impacts associated with 1
the operation of certain ocean-going vessels; reenacting and amending 2
RCW 43.21B.110; adding a new chapter to Title 70A RCW; creating a new 3
section; and prescribing penalties. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The legislature finds that the 6
combustion of liquid fuels used by vessels transiting waters near 7
Washington releases particulate matter that is harmful to human 8
health on ship and on shore, and to the environment. Some 9
technologies designed to reduce air pollution generated by vessel 10
fuel combustion produce different harms to the environment. The 11
legislature further finds that lower-sulfur fuels have fewer harmful 12
emissions associated with their combustion, and do not require the 13
use of onboard technologies that have harmful environmental impacts.14
(2) Therefore, it is the intent of the legislature to protect the 15
public health and environment of Washington residents by requiring 16
ocean-going vessels to use low-sulfur fuels when approaching 17
Washington shores. 18
S-0846.1
SENATE BILL 5519
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Senators Lovelett, Dhingra, Frame, Lovick, Nobles, Saldaña,
Salomon, and Valdez
Read first time 01/27/25. Referred to Committee on Environment,
Energy & Technology.
p. 1 SB 5519
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. The definitions in this section apply 1
throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires 2
otherwise.3
(1) "Auxiliary boiler" means any fuel-fired combustion equipment 4
designed primarily to produce steam for uses other than propulsion 5
including, but not limited to, heating of residual fuel and liquid 6
cargo, heating of water for crew and passengers, powering steam 7
turbine discharge pumps, freshwater generation, and space heating of 8
cabins. Exhaust gas economizers that exclusively use diesel engine 9
exhaust as a heat source to produce steam are not auxiliary boilers.10
(2) "Auxiliary engine" means a diesel engine on an ocean-going 11
vessel designed primarily to provide power for uses other than 12
propulsion or emergencies, except that all diesel-electric engines 13
shall be considered "auxiliary diesel engines" for purposes of this 14
section. 15
(3) "Department" means the department of ecology.16
(4) "Main engine" means a diesel engine on an ocean-going vessel 17
designed primarily to provide propulsion, other than a diesel-18
electric engine. 19
(5) "Marine diesel oil" means any fuel that meets all the 20
specifications for DMB grades as defined in table 1 of ISO 8217, as 21
revised in 2005, which is incorporated herein by reference, or DMB 22
grades as defined in table 1 of ISO 8217, as revised on June 15, 23
2010, which is incorporated herein by reference. 24
(6) "Marine gas oil" means any fuel that meets all the 25
specifications for DMX or DMA grades as defined in table 1 of ISO 26
8217, as revised in 2005, which is incorporated herein by reference, 27
or DMX, DMA, or DMZ grades as defined in table 1 of ISO 8217, as 28
revised on June 15, 2010, which is incorporated herein by reference.29
(7)(a) "Ocean-going vessel" means a commercial, government, or 30
military vessel meeting any one of the following criteria:31
(i) A vessel other than a tank vessel greater than or equal to 32
400 feet in length overall (LOA) as defined in 50 C.F.R. Sec. 679.2 33
(1996); 34
(ii) A vessel other than a tank vessel greater than or equal to 35
10,000 gross tons (GT ITC) per the convention measurement 36
(international system) as defined in 46 C.F.R. Secs. 69.51-.61 37
(1989); 38
p. 2 SB 5519
(iii) A vessel other than a tank vessel propelled by a marine 1
compression ignition engine with a per-cylinder displacement of 2
greater than or equal to 30 liters; or 3
(iv) A tank vessel that meets any one of the criteria in (a)(i) 4
through (iii) of this subsection. 5
(b) "Ocean-going vessel" does not include a tugboat, towboat, or 6
pushboat. 7
(8) "Person" has the same meaning provided in RCW 70A.15.1030.8
(9) "Port visit" means any of the following: 9
(a) Each separate and distinct entry of a vessel into a port, 10
roadstead, or terminal facility in regulated waters that results in 11
the vessel stopping, docking, mooring, or otherwise dropping anchor 12
at the port. The port visit continues if the vessel moves to a 13
different berth within the same port, but the port visit ends when 14
the vessel leaves for or is otherwise moved to another port within 15
the same bay or any other port; 16
(b) Except as provided in (c) of this subsection, each separate 17
and distinct entry of a vessel into an offshore location in regulated 18
waters away from a port that results in the vessel stopping at the 19
offshore location. The port visit ends when the vessel leaves for or 20
is otherwise moved to a port or another offshore location; or21
(c) Each separate and distinct entry of a vessel into an offshore 22
location in regulated waters away from a port that results in the 23
vessel stopping, followed by entry into that port, shall constitute 24
one port visit, provided that the offshore stop was conducted solely 25
because the port could not accept the vessel as scheduled due to 26
reasons beyond the reasonable control of the vessel operator or 27
master. 28
(10) "Regulated waters" means all waters within three nautical 29
miles of a shoreline of the state, as defined in RCW 90.58.030, and 30
including all waters of the state as defined in RCW 90.56.010.31
(11) "Roadstead" means any facility that is used for the loading, 32
unloading, and anchoring of vessels. 33
(12) "Tank vessel" has the same meaning as in RCW 90.56.010.34
(13) "Vessel" means any boat, ship, barge, tugboat, tank vessel, 35
watercraft, or other floating craft of any kind except:36
(a) A seaplane on the water; and 37
(b) A watercraft specifically designed to operate on a 38
permanently fixed course, the movement of which is restricted to a 39
p. 3 SB 5519
fixed track or arm to which the watercraft is attached or by which 1
the watercraft is controlled. 2
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. (1) Except as provided in section 4 of 3
this act, beginning January 1, 2028, a person may not use marine gas 4
oil or marine diesel oil in an auxiliary engine, main engine, or 5
auxiliary boiler on a vessel that exceeds a maximum sulfur content of 6
0.1 percent sulfur by weight while operating in regulated waters.7
(2) Persons subject to the requirements of this section must 8
retain and maintain records in English that contain the following 9
information, unless otherwise provided in rules adopted by the 10
department: 11
(a) The date, local time, and position (longitude and latitude) 12
of the vessel for each entry into regulated waters from waters 13
outside of regulated waters, and each departure from regulated waters 14
to waters outside of regulated waters; 15
(b) The date, local time, and position (longitude and latitude) 16
of the vessel at the initiation and completion of any fuel switching 17
procedures used to comply with the requirements of subsection (1) of 18
this section prior to entry into regulated waters from waters outside 19
of regulated waters; 20
(c) The date, local time, and position (longitude and latitude) 21
of the vessel at the initiation and completion of any fuel switching 22
procedures within regulated waters. For purposes of this subsection, 23
the completion of fuel switching procedures occurs the moment all 24
engines subject to this section have completely transitioned from 25
operation on one fuel to another fuel; 26
(d) The type of fuel used in each auxiliary engine, main engine, 27
and auxiliary boiler operated in regulated waters;28
(e) The types, amounts, and actual percent by weight sulfur 29
content of all fuels purchased for use on the vessel, as reported by 30
the fuel supplier or fuel testing firm; and 31
(f) Other records identified by the department by rule.32
(3) A person subject to the requirements of this section that 33
complies with subsection (1) of this section by switching fuels must 34
retain and maintain records in English onboard the ship that contain 35
the following information for auxiliary engines, main engines, and 36
auxiliary boilers, unless otherwise provided in rules adopted by the 37
department: 38
p. 4 SB 5519
(a) A fuel system diagram that shows all storage, service, and 1
mixing tanks, fuel handling, pumping, and processing equipment, 2
valves, and associated piping. The diagram or other documentation 3
must list the fuel tank capacities and locations, and the nominal 4
fuel consumption rate of the machinery at rated power;5
(b) A description of the fuel switch over procedure with detailed 6
instructions and clear identification of responsibilities;7
(c) The make, model, rated power, and serial numbers of all main 8
engines and auxiliary engines and make, model, rated output, and 9
serial numbers of all auxiliary boilers subject to subsection (1) of 10
this section; and 11
(d) Other records identified by the department by rule.12
(4)(a) A person subject to the requirements of this section must 13
provide in writing information specified in subsection (3) or (4) of 14
this section upon request by the department. To the extent the person 15
already collects the required information in English to comply with 16
other regulatory requirements or standard practices, the person may 17
provide the requested information in a format consistent with those 18
other regulatory requirements or standard practices.19
(b) A person subject to the requirement of this section must 20
provide, upon request of the department, other information necessary 21
for the department to determine compliance with this chapter.22
(c) Any person subject to this section must provide access to the 23
department to the vessel for the purpose of determining compliance 24
with this section, including the review of records and information 25
and for the purpose of collecting fuel samples for testing and 26
analysis. 27
NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. (1) The department may permit a person to 28
pay noncompliance fees in lieu of meeting the requirements of section 29
3 of this act. A person intending to pay fees under this section must 30
notify the department prior to entry into regulated waters from 31
waters outside of regulated waters. In order to be eligible to pay 32
noncompliance fees under this section in lieu of complying with the 33
requirements of section 3 of this act, the person must demonstrate to 34
the department's satisfaction that:35
(a) Noncompliance with section 3 of this act is beyond a person's 36
control due to unplanned redirection, inadequate fuel supply, or the 37
inadvertent purchase of defective fuel; 38
p. 5 SB 5519
(b) Compliance cannot be achieved without vessel modifications 1
that cannot be completed by the effective date of the requirements in 2
section 3 of this act; or 3
(c) For vessels that make port visits in Washington no more than 4
two times per calendar year, vessel modifications would be necessary 5
to comply with the requirements of section 3 of this act.6
(2) The department must establish, by rule, amounts and processes 7
for the noncompliance fees that are similar to the requirements for 8
ocean-going vessels visiting other west coast ports with similar low-9
sulfur fuel requirements. 10
(3)(a) Except as provided in (b) of this subsection, 11
noncompliance fees paid by a person under this section must be paid 12
to the port or ports at which the vessel is conducting a port visit. 13
Funds received by ports under this section may only be used for port 14
electrification or other criteria pollutant emission reduction 15
activities associated with port operations, under an enforceable 16
agreement between the port and the department. A port may not use 17
fees received under this section to fund projects on vessels from 18
which noncompliance fees were paid. 19
(b) If a port elects not to receive noncompliance fees under this 20
section from a vessel that owes fees, the fees must instead be 21
deposited in the air quality and health disparities improvement 22
account created in RCW 70A.65.280. 23
NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. (1) The department may adopt rules to 24
implement this chapter, including to exclude categories of vessels 25
from the requirements of this chapter.26
(2) The department must collect a fee from persons that operate 27
ocean-going vessels subject to the requirements of this chapter that 28
make a port visit in this state after January 1, 2028. By rule, the 29
department must establish the amount of the fee charged, which must 30
be set so as to equal but not exceed the projected costs to the 31
department to implement, administer, and enforce the requirements of 32
this chapter. 33
(3) A person violating a requirement of this chapter, a rule 34
adopted under this chapter, or an order issued under this chapter, is 35
subject to a civil penalty in an amount of $10,000 per day for each 36
violation. Each violation is a separate and distinct offense. The 37
penalty amount must be set in consideration of the previous history 38
of the violator and the severity of the violation's impact on public 39
p. 6 SB 5519
health, the environment, or both, in addition to other factors deemed 1
relevant by the department. Penalties are appealable to the pollution 2
control hearings board, and collected penalties must be deposited in 3
the natural climate solutions account created in RCW 70A.65.270.4
NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. The vessel sulfur pollution account is 5
created in the state treasury. All fees received under section 4 of 6
this act must be deposited into the account. Moneys in the account 7
may be spent only after appropriation. The department may only use 8
expenditures from the account for implementing, administering, and 9
enforcing the requirements of this chapter.10
Sec. 7. RCW 43.21B.110 and 2024 c 347 s 5, 2024 c 340 s 4, and 11
2024 c 339 s 16 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:12
(1) The hearings board shall only have jurisdiction to hear and 13
decide appeals from the following decisions of the department, the 14
director, local conservation districts, the air pollution control 15
boards or authorities as established pursuant to chapter 70A.15 RCW, 16
local health departments, the department of natural resources, the 17
department of fish and wildlife, the parks and recreation commission, 18
and authorized public entities described in chapter 79.100 RCW:19
(a) Civil penalties imposed pursuant to chapter 70A.230 RCW and 20
RCW 18.104.155, 70A.15.3160, 70A.300.090, 70A.20.050, 70A.230.020, 21
70A.205.280, 70A.355.070, 70A.430.070, 70A.500.260, 70A.505.100, 22
70A.505.110, 70A.530.040, 70A.350.070, 70A.515.060, 70A.245.040, 23
70A.245.050, 70A.245.070, 70A.245.080, 70A.245.130, 70A.245.140, 24
70A.65.200, 70A.455.090, 70A.550.030, 70A.555.110, 70A.560.020, 25
70A.565.030, section 5 of this act, 76.09.170, 77.55.440, 78.44.250, 26
88.46.090, 90.03.600, 90.46.270, 90.48.144, 90.56.310, 90.56.330, and 27
90.64.102. 28
(b) Orders issued pursuant to RCW 18.104.043, 18.104.060, 29
18.104.130, 43.27A.190, 70A.15.2520, 70A.15.3010, 70A.15.4530, 30
70A.15.6010, 70A.205.280, 70A.214.140, 70A.300.120, 70A.350.070, 31
70A.245.020, 70A.65.200, 70A.505.100, 70A.555.110, 70A.560.020, 32
70A.565.030, section 5 of this act, 86.16.020, 88.46.070, 90.03.665, 33
90.14.130, 90.46.250, 90.48.120, 90.48.240, 90.56.330, and 90.64.040.34
(c) Except as provided in RCW 90.03.210(2), the issuance, 35
modification, or termination of any permit, certificate, or license 36
by the department or any air authority in the exercise of its 37
jurisdiction, including the issuance or termination of a waste 38
p. 7 SB 5519
disposal permit, the denial of an application for a waste disposal 1
permit, the modification of the conditions or the terms of a waste 2
disposal permit, a decision to approve or deny a solid waste 3
management plan under RCW 70A.205.055, approval or denial of an 4
application for a beneficial use determination under RCW 70A.205.260, 5
an application for a change under RCW 90.03.383, or a permit to 6
distribute reclaimed water under RCW 90.46.220. 7
(d) Decisions of local health departments regarding the granting 8
or denial of solid waste permits pursuant to chapter 70A.205 RCW, 9
including appeals by the department as provided in RCW 70A.205.130.10
(e) Decisions of local health departments regarding the issuance 11
and enforcement of permits to use or dispose of biosolids under RCW 12
70A.226.090. 13
(f) Decisions of the department regarding waste-derived 14
fertilizer or micronutrient fertilizer under RCW 15.54.820.15
(g) Decisions of local conservation districts related to the 16
denial of approval or denial of certification of a dairy nutrient 17
management plan; conditions contained in a plan; application of any 18
dairy nutrient management practices, standards, methods, and 19
technologies to a particular dairy farm; and failure to adhere to the 20
plan review and approval timelines in RCW 90.64.026 as provided in 21
RCW 90.64.028. 22
(h) Any other decision by the department or an air authority 23
which pursuant to law must be decided as an adjudicative proceeding 24
under chapter 34.05 RCW. 25
(i) Decisions of the department of natural resources, the 26
department of fish and wildlife, and the department that are 27
reviewable under chapter 76.09 RCW, and the department of natural 28
resources' appeals of county, city, or town objections under RCW 29
76.09.050(7). 30
(j) Forest health hazard orders issued by the commissioner of 31
public lands under RCW 76.06.180. 32
(k) Decisions of the department of fish and wildlife to issue, 33
deny, condition, or modify a hydraulic project approval permit under 34
chapter 77.55 RCW, to issue a stop work order, to issue a notice to 35
comply, to issue a civil penalty, or to issue a notice of intent to 36
disapprove applications. 37
(l) Decisions of the department of natural resources that are 38
reviewable under RCW 78.44.270. 39
p. 8 SB 5519
(m) Decisions of an authorized public entity under RCW 79.100.010 1
to take temporary possession or custody of a vessel or to contest the 2
amount of reimbursement owed that are reviewable by the hearings 3
board under RCW 79.100.120. 4
(n) Decisions of the department of ecology that are appealable 5
under RCW 70A.245.020 to set recycled minimum postconsumer content 6
for covered products or to temporarily exclude types of covered 7
products in plastic containers from minimum postconsumer recycled 8
content requirements. 9
(o) Orders by the department of ecology under RCW 70A.455.080.10
(2) The following hearings shall not be conducted by the hearings 11
board: 12
(a) Hearings required by law to be conducted by the shorelines 13
hearings board pursuant to chapter 90.58 RCW, except where appeals to 14
the pollution control hearings board and appeals to the shorelines 15
hearings board have been consolidated pursuant to RCW 43.21B.340.16
(b) Hearings conducted by the department pursuant to RCW 17
70A.15.3010, 70A.15.3070, 70A.15.3080, 70A.15.3090, 70A.15.3100, 18
70A.15.3110, and 90.44.180. 19
(c) Appeals of decisions by the department under RCW 90.03.110 20
and 90.44.220. 21
(d) Hearings conducted by the department to adopt, modify, or 22
repeal rules. 23
(3) Review of rules and regulations adopted by the hearings board 24
shall be subject to review in accordance with the provisions of the 25
administrative procedure act, chapter 34.05 RCW. 26
NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. Sections 1 through 6 of this act 27
constitute a new chapter in Title 70A RCW.28
NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. This act may be known and cited as the 29
Salish Sea protection and marine clean fuels act.30
NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. If any provision of this act or its 31
application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the 32
remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other 33
persons or circumstances is not affected.34
--- END ---
p. 9 SB 5519