Governor signs Rep. Tom Dent’s municipal airport commission legislation

Legislation that provides communities another tool to manage their municipal airports was signed into law by Gov. Inslee last Thursday.

13th District Rep. Tom Dent, the sponsor of the legislation, says House Bill 1243 benefits communities with municipal airports.

“I have been working on this issue for a number of years. I am pleased we were able to find a solution to help our airports and get this through the Legislature,” said Dent, R-Moses Lake. “This new law expands where the applicants live in order to serve on a citizen board of volunteers. It also expands the powers and duties that may be vested in a municipal airport commission.

“This came about when it was discovered that the current commissioners on the Moses Lake commission did not live within the taxing district. After doing some research and checking with other airports around the state, it became apparent we needed to provide some options for municipal airport commissions. Volunteers are very hard to find in today’s world so expanding where these folks reside can increase the pool of applicants,” said Dent.

The bill passed the House unanimously and the Senate by a vote of 46-3.

The measure takes effect July 22, 2023.

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Washington State House Republican Communications
houserepublicans.wa.gov