Cover Memo

MEMORANDUM                          Date_April 24, 2009_ 

TO:        Port of Seattle Port Commission 
Port of Tacoma Port Commission 
Tay Yoshitani, Chief Executive Officer, Port of Seattle 
Tim Farrell, Executive Director, Port of Tacoma 
SUBJECT:   April 30 Special Meeting  Port of Tacoma and Port of Seattle Commissions 
The third joint meeting of the Port Commissions of Seattle and Tacoma will be held on
Thursday, April 30th, 1 p.m., at the Port of Seattle Commission Chambers at Sea-Tac Airport. In
advance of the meeting, we would like to provide you background information related to the
work of the four joint staff work groups. 

BACKGROUND 
Just over a year ago, the commissions from the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma met jointly to
address issues that affect Washington's competitiveness in global trade. Over 300,000 jobs in
Washington depend on the two ports and millions in business and tax revenues are generated by
the cargo that crosses our docks. But the competition for cargo is getting tougher.
In British Columbia, billions in federal and provincial dollars are being invested in road and rail
infrastructure to pull cargo away from the Pacific Northwest, and the Panama and Suez Canals
will soon offer shippers the ability to ship goods to the US Midwest on all-water routes. As
these competitive pressures mount, it's imperative that Seattle and Tacoma work together to
protect and promote the jobs and economic growth generated by our ports.
At the initial joint meeting, the Commissioners identified four areas where ongoing staff work is
needed. These areas are: 
Transportation Infrastructure 
Air Quality 
Security 
Regional Promotion 
Since the initial meeting, the staff groups have been meeting regularly and have made significant
progress in developing and implementing strategies related to each area. The Commissioners
received an update on this work at its second joint special meeting in October of last year.

OVERVIEW 
The April 30th meeting will be a combination of staff updates and Commission discussion. Items
to be discussed include: 
I.       Report from Tay Yoshitani and Tim Farrell.  Their comments will include
observations about the impact of the economic downturn on the ports of Seattle
and Tacoma, highlights from their joint congressional visits in Washington, D.C.,
and brief updates on the joint Air Quality (memo enclosed) and Security (memo
enclosed) working group efforts. 
II.      Regional Promotion Presentation.  The enclosed memo from Phil Lutes, POS
and Tong Zhu, POT outlines the issues to be covered in their presentation. 
III.     Transportation Infrastructure Presentation.  The enclosed memo from several
Port of Tacoma and Port of Seattle staff members outlines the work underway in
prioritizing road/rail projects, shaping legislative policy and securing
transportation funding. 
IV.     Commission Discussion. Port Commission Presidents Bill Bryant, POS and
Clare Petrich, POT will lead a discussion with their colleagues regarding the
numerous competitive issues facing our ports. They have directed staff to provide
ample time on the agenda for the Commissioners to share ideas and perspectives. 
V.     Public Comment 
VI.     Next Steps and Closing Comments

-
-The Ports ofPort
-7
Seattle and Tacoma:
rA~-"A
of Seattle     Washington's Gateway to the World

The ports of Seattle and Tacoma together form the nation's
third largest gateway and have worked together for nearly
a century on promoting the deep harbors and natural
resources of the Pacific Northwest.
More than
The two ports have cooperated in four primary areas:
environmental efforts; regional freight mobility
300,000 jobs
investment; strengthening port security; and promoting
the Puget Sound as a business- and trade-friendly
across
region. Through initiatives such as the Northwest Ports
Clean Air Strategy-an  international partnership with Port
Washington state
Metro Vancouver in British ~olumbia-and joint promotion
and security programs, the citizens of Washington state
depend on
have benefited from having two thriving ports to drive jobs
and economic growth.
Pacific Northwest
But the competition for cargo is getting tougher. To the
port activities
north, Canada is investing significant federal and
provincial resources in the Port of Prince Rupert. and is
1-                                     actively seeking cargo bound for US inland harkets.  TO
the south, Mexico recently announced plans to build a
mega-port at Punta Colonet on the Mexican west coast
with an eye to markets in the Southwest. The improved
Suez Canal and an expanded Panama Canal (opening in
2012) will offer shippers an all-water route to US markets.
To keep the family-wage jobs and economic growth that
our ports deliver, the US must invest in the road and rail
infrastructurewe need to keep cargo moving.

Recently, the Brookings Institution released a report
demonstrating the importance of US metropolitan areas to our
nation's economic success.  Interlinked metropolitan economies,
like that of the Puget Sound, are integral to the success of the
many cities they include.
To that end, the ports developed a suite of marketing materials
to promote the Puget Sound region to shippers in other parts of
the world, which commissioners from Tacoma and Seattle used
during a trade mission to China in fall 2008 and to the UnitedArab
Emirates in early 2009.
The ports also are conducting joint surveys of customers and
potential customers to understand the region's competitive
advantages and disadvantages to identify other areas to work
together.


Staff members from both ports have developed a priority list of regional freight
mobility transportation projects that benefit local cities, counties, commuters
and visitors as well as cargo moving through both ports. Many of these projects
take a statewide approach and include the Washington cities of Vancouver and
Ellensburg. The ports also are working together to identify funding for the
projects.
1            But we need a dedicated federal funding source for freight
I   projects.  When matched with local resources, federal funds can be
leveraged so that more projects are built faster and more
efficiently.  The Puget Sound region's FAST Corridor coalition has
completed seven projects so far, leveraging $568 million in
public and private funds to build key freight mobility projects
throughout the region. Only $190 million of those funds were
federal; the rest came from state,  port, local and private funds.
I
Freight interests remain willing to invest in infrastructure
improvements when they receive a direct benefit from that investment.
Together with the Washington State Departmentof Transportation, the
Washington Public Ports Association recently conducted a marine cargo forecast.
The study predicts that waterborne trade through Washington's ports will
increase 37 percent by 2030. Inorder to realize that growth, and create the
jobs that cargo brings, Washington must invest in the rail and roadway
infrastructure necessaty to move goods and people efficiently.

Seattle and Tacoma began working cooperatively on security issues
in the days following 9/11.  In2002, the two ports participating in
Operation Safe Commerce, a global supply chain security initiative.
Inaddition, the ports have applied jointly for port security grants,
combining efforts for greater efficiency and effectiveness.
Currently, security staff members are working together on the
implementationof the Transportation Worker Identification
Credential (TWIC) in the two harbors. Together with the
US Coast Guard, the ports of Seattle and Tacoma continually
train in emergency operations, crafting response and recovery
protocols and procedures for the Joint Harbor Operations Center.



Air quality, by its very nature, is a regional issue. Itmakes sense to take a team approach
to enhancing air quality by sharing and adopting best management practices.
The ports of Tacoma and Seattle partnered in 2007 with
Port Metro Vancouver in British Columbia to reduce
seaport-related air emissions in the region. The Northwest
Ports Clean Air Strategy marks the first such international
ucooperative effort in the port community.  The strategy is a regional plan to reduce diesel and greenhouse
aas emissions in the Georaia Basin-Puaet Sound air
shed b iestablishing 2010 and 2615 air emision goals for
trucks, trains, ships, cargo-handling equipment and harbor
service vessels. To meet these goals, the ports work with
customers and tenants to use cleaner-burning fuels,
filters, engines and other alternatives.
The ports worked together to qualify for an $850,000 grant from the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency in January 2009 to retrofit cargo-handling
equipment at both facilities. The grant, along with matching funds from the ports
and Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, will retrofit more than ten percent
of the ports' fleets.

---
Port
of Seattle
The Port of Seattle plays a key role in bringing internationaltrade and transportationto
the region.  Port transportation facilities are responsible for over 200,000 jobs in Washington
stat-jobs    responsible for nearly $9.5 billion in wages.  Inaddition, Port
activities generate $867 million annually in state and local tax revenues.  Home to a
thriving cruise business, the Port of Seattle will welcome 211 cruise ships this year, with
each ship call generating $1.7 million for the local economy.  For more information
about how the Port leads in economic development and environmentally sustainable
business, visit www.portseattle.org.

Contact:
Kurt Beckett
Director, External Affairs
206.728.3421



The Port of Tacoma is an economic engine for South Puget Sound, with more than 43,000
family-wage jobs in Pierce County and 113,000 jobs across Washington state
connected to Port activities. A major gateway to Asia and Alaska, the Port of Tacoma is
among the largest container ports in North America, handling more than $33 billion in
annual trade and almost 2 millionTEUs (20-foot equivalent container units). The Port is
also a major center for bulk, breakbulk and project/heavy-lift cargoes, as well as automobiles
and trucks. To learn more about the Port of Tacoma, visit www.portoftacorna.com

Contact:
Stephanie Bowman
Federal Government Affairs
253.592.6709
sbowmanQportoftacoma.com

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