COMMISSION 
AGENDA MEMORANDUM                Item No.       4a 
ACTION ITEM                   Date of Meeting   November 28, 2017 
DATE:    November 9, 2017 
TO:     Dave Soike, Interim Executive Director 
FROM:   Paula Edelstein, Sr. Director Human Resources 
Tammy Woodard, Director Human Resources  Total Rewards 
SUBJECT:  Execute contract with King County Metro to purchase One Regional Card for All
(ORCA) cards for Port employees 
Amount of this request:           $375,000 
ACTION REQUESTED 
Request Commission authorization for the Executive Director to execute a contract with King
County Metro of up to $375,000 to purchase One Regional Card for All (ORCA) cards for Port
employees as noted in the Port's approved Commute Trip Reduction Program. 
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 
As part of the approved Commute Trip Reduction (CTR) Programs at Pier 69 and the Airport the
Port purchases ORCA cards for all employees located at CTR included locations. These cards are
available to employees at a nominal annual fee. Each year this contract with Metro is renewed
with the cost of the contract adjusted based on actual ORCA card use by Port employees. The
Port can charge employees for up to half of what we pay for the cards and we have charged
$25/year for several years. In 2017, approximately 750 employees including college interns
purchased ORCA cards. Additionally, ORCA cards were provided at no cost to 56 High School
interns. 
The ORCA contract also covers VanPool and VanShare reimbursements that the County
administers for us. This contract will cover the period of February 1, 2018  January 31, 2019. 
JUSTIFICATION 
The current ORCA card program is a key element of the Port's approved Commute Trip
Reduction Program that includes offering subsidized public transportation to employees. The
current program is a very efficient way to offer this benefit. Since the Port's cost for ORCA cards
is based on ridership of assigned/purchased cards rather than the retail value of the cards the
Port pays considerably less for the purchased cards than if the cards were individually
purchased directly from Metro. 

Template revised September 22, 2016.

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. _4a__                     Page 2 of 4 
Meeting Date: November 28, 2017 
Employees using their ORCA cards to commute reduces the number of single driver vehicles on
the road which in turn reduces the environmental impact of our employees commuting to
work. Providing the ORCA cards at a discounted rate also aligns with our Total Rewards
Philosophy and supports work-life balance by providing a cost effective alternative to driving to
work alone. 
DETAILS 
In 1991, Washington State's Commute Trip Reduction Law was passed with goals to improve air
quality, reduce traffic congestion, and reduce gasoline consumption. The law requires "major
employers" to develop and implement employee commute programs to reduce the length and
number of drive-alone trips to worksites. The Port is considered a major employer and has 
approved CTR programs for both the City of Seattle and City of SeaTac locations. One element
of both programs is providing a public transportation subsidy. 
ORCA cards can be used for employees to commute to/from Port work locations via many
public transportation methods including, but not limited to, Sound Transit, Metro, Pierce
Transit, and Community Transit busses as well as the Link Light Rail and Sounder Commuter
Train. VanPool and VanShare programs are also available to employees who purchase an ORCA
card through the Port and King County Metro administers these programs as part of the ORCA
contract.
The Port has provided subsidized public transportation to its employees for at the least the past
10 years. Subsidized cards are offered to all employees and currently about 37%, or 750
employees including college interns, take advantage of this benefit. 
ALTERNATIVES AND IMPLICATIONS CONSIDERED 
Alternative 1  Don't renew the contract with King County Metro and stop offering ORCA cards
to employees. This will likely save the Port approximately $375,000, the estimated value of the
ORCA contract. 
Cost Implications: $0 
Pros: 
(1)   This option has the lowest cost to the Port. 
(2)   Charging employees for parking is an option for the Port to maintain an approved CTR
program if we do not renew our ORCA contract. Charging employees would increase
Port revenues. 
Cons: 
(1)   The Port sponsored ORCA card is a valued benefit for quite a few employees. The Port
is able to provide this valued benefit at a lower cost to employees, and to the Port,
through the contract with King County Metro than is otherwise available. 
(2)   The Port would no longer comply with the approved CTR plan. This could lead to 
enforcement actions including financial penalties until a new, approved CTR plan could

Template revised September 22, 2016; format updates October 19, 2016.

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. _4a__                     Page 3 of 4 
Meeting Date: November 28, 2017 
be implemented. Charging employees for parking would likely lead to an approved
CTR plan, but the Port might still be out of compliance until the new plan was
documented and approved. 
This is not the recommended alternative. 
Alternative 2    Don't renew the ORCA contract but  administer a subsidized public
transportation program internally. This would require employees to purchase ORCA cards at an
approximate cost of $200/month and seek reimbursement of $175/month. Employees would
pay $25 per month rather than the $25 per year that the Port has been charging. The cost of
this alternative is estimated at $787,500 per year. This is more than double the cost of the
ORCA contract. This estimate is based on an assumption that 375 employees would continue to
participate in the program. This is about half of our current enrollment. It does not include the
cost of staff time to process the 375 reimbursements each month. 
Cost Implications: $787,500 
Pros: 
(1)   Only employees who really use the cards will participate in the program 
Cons: 
(1)   This option is considerably more expensive than renewing our ORCA contract with
King County Metro. 
(2)   Fewer employees would have ORCA cards for occasional, environmental friendly,
transportation. The current $25 annual cost encourages employees to purchase an
ORCA card even if they don't use it regularly for commute purposes. 
(3)   Considerable staff time would be needed to process reimbursements in both the
Human Resources and Accounting and Financial Reporting departments. 
This is not the recommended alternative. 
Alternative 3  Renew our contract with King County Metro. 
Cost Implications: $375,000 
Pros: 
(1)   This option ensures continued approval of the existing CTR programs. 
(2)   It is more cost effective to renew the ORCA contract than to administer a similar
benefit in house. 
(3)   This option maintains a benefit valued by many employees. 
(4)   Employees are encouraged to purchase ORCA cards due to the low employee cost and
this encourages at least occasional use of public transportation which reduces road
congestion and lessens the environmental impact of employee commuting. Also,
occasional public transportation users may become regular users. 
Cons: 
(1)   The Port must maintain an inventory of ORCA cards and the inventory must be tracked
and recorded. 

Template revised September 22, 2016; format updates October 19, 2016.

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. _4a__                     Page 4 of 4 
Meeting Date: November 28, 2017 
This is the recommended alternative. 
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS 
Cost Estimate/Authorization Summary          Capital      Expense        Total 
COST ESTIMATE 
Original estimate                            $0      $375,000      $375,000 
AUTHORIZATION 
Previous authorizations                        0           0           0 
Current request for authorization                  0     $375,000     $375,000 
Total authorizations, including this request            0      $375,000      $375,000 
Remaining amount to be authorized             $0     $375,000     $375,000 
Annual Budget Status and Source of Funds 
Funding for the ORCA contract comes from the Port's expense budget and from employees
when they purchase a card for the year. 
ATTACHMENTS TO THIS REQUEST 
None 
PREVIOUS COMMISSION ACTIONS OR BRIEFINGS 
None 








Template revised September 22, 2016; format updates October 19, 2016.