wa-law.org > bill > 2025-26 > HB 2669 > Original Bill

HB 2669 - I-5 bridge performance audit

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Section 1

  1. By December 1, 2027, the joint legislative audit and review committee must conduct a performance audit of the interstate bridge replacement project replacing the Interstate 5 bridge over the Columbia river. The audit must include the following components:

    1. Financial transparency and reporting by:

      1. Assessing whether project financial reporting complies with state and federal reporting requirements;

      2. Comparing the project's financial disclosures against benchmarks from similar megaprojects to determine best practices in cost reporting and public accessibility;

    2. Expenditure review and accountability, which includes, but is not limited to:

      1. Analyzing how funding has been allocated and spent since the project restart in 2019, comparing actual expenditures against initial funding plans and subsequent legislative approvals;

      2. Analyzing the contract with the general engineering consultant, including all supplements, and assessing the general engineering consultant's overhead and any other source of profit compared to other large transportation projects including, but not limited to, the Brent Spence bridge between Kentucky and Ohio; the Key bridge in Baltimore, Maryland; the I-10 Calcasieu river bridge in Louisiana; the Alligator river bridge in North Carolina; and other large transportation projects in the Pacific Northwest;

      3. Reviewing all supplements to the contract with the general engineering consultant, where compensation increased by a factor of six, yet the deliverables under the contract remained the same, including obtaining a record of decision from the federal government, which has yet to occur;

      4. Identifying major cost overruns and reviewing supporting explanations;

    3. Reviewing the sample of payments to non-Washington agencies;

    1. Reviewing processes to address potential conflicts of interest;

    2. Forecasting, data use, and decision making by:

      1. Assessing the reliability of traffic, ridership, and potential toll revenue projections;

      2. Reviewing forecasting process against industry best practices and similar projects;

      3. Evaluating the efficacy of the proposed design in meeting the top goal of reducing traffic congestion and saving people time;

      4. Evaluating the cost effectiveness of each component of the project in terms of delivering a return on investment for established transportation goals;

    3. Evaluating the consideration of alternative transportation options, such as bus rapid transit, in the forecasting process;

    4. Oversight and internal controls, including:

      1. Reviewing the Washington state department of transportation's financial oversight and auditing mechanisms for the project, comparing them to best practices in financial accountability and risk management;

      2. Examining prior audit findings related to the project and determining whether corrective actions were implemented.

  2. The joint legislative audit and review committee may contract for expertise in transportation infrastructure, financial management, or project auditing and shall submit a final report on its audit findings to the appropriate committees of the legislature by December 1, 2027.

  3. This section expires December 31, 2027.

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