The project to replace the aging Interstate 5 bridge over the Columbia River hit a milestone late last month as the Oregon state Legislature voted to commit $1 billion in its share of funding for the likely $6 billion project.
On the final day of the state Legislature’s 2023 session, and after a weekslong walkout by Oregon Republican lawmakers, the legislators voted to approve the commitment on June 25.
The $1 billion will be paid out through the state’s general fund using general obligation bonds. The Legislature committed $250 million to bond out for each of the next four biennia, The Oregonian reported.
Oregon’s commitment follows the Washington state Legislature’s own agreement for $1 billion of funding last year. The money is part of a three-pronged plan to fund the replacement, which in the latest estimate, will cost between $5 billion and $7.5 billion. Officials with the Interstate Bridge Replacement Program (IBRP) believe the most likely scenario will include a price tag of $6 billion.
The legislation that approved the funding still needs Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek’s signature before it becomes law. Kotek was initially skeptical of using bonds to fund the project, though her press secretary said she was pleased to see the funding “across the finish line in time for critical federal grant opportunities” last week, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported.
Greg Johnson, the IBRP administrator, agreed the commitment will make the project more viable for those grants.
“Having the non-federal matching funds committed in both Oregon and Washington demonstrates the strong bi-state support to complete these critical multimodal investments as the Interstate Bridge Replacement program seeks to maximize competitive federal grant funding,” Johnson said in a statement.
He said the commitment “is an important step that creates momentum for other critical conversations moving forward.”
The program has already tried to obtain a federal funding opportunity. Last year, the program applied for the U.S. Federal Highway Administration’s Fiscal Year 2022 Large Bridge Project grants. In January, the IBRP learned it did not receive the $750 million it had asked for.
Johnson previously said he was not shocked the program did not receive the grant this time around. The other projects that managed to get portions of the $2.1 billion available were further along in the process than the IBRP was.
“We wanted to make sure that our foot was in the door and they knew the size of the funding grant that we would be looking for as we move forward,” Johnson said back in January.
Alongside the state and federal funding, the project will also feature tolling to finance construction. In May, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee signed legislation to authorize the tolling, which is expected to make up $1.24 billion, according to a financial plan for the project released this year.
The IBRP is currently undergoing a federal environmental review for the replacement. The program recently released visualizations of a number of potential configurations for the replacement. They featured different support structures, single and double-decker setups, and a moveable span, which are all under consideration.
The project is currently anticipated to start construction in late 2025.
