Category : Correspondence(195)

The FAA sent a letter to Washington State's Aviation Director in October 2025 reviewing how the state collects and spends aviation fuel taxes, noting that despite having an approved compliance plan, the state has still not provided actual tax collection figures after 11 years. The FAA flagged concerns about three types of taxes — aircraft fuel tax, sales and use taxes, and environmental taxes (HST and PPT) — questioning whether the environmental tax revenues are being properly directed toward aviation purposes. The agency also reviewed over $97 million in state appropriations claimed as offsets, finding more than $82 million ineligible and nearly $15 million requiring further justification before a final compliance determination can be made.

The City of Burien sent this October 2025 letter to Port of Seattle Commissioners demanding a new, Port-funded program to repair or replace failed noise insulation packages installed in roughly 9,400 homes near Sea-Tac Airport since the mid-1980s. The city criticizes the Port's existing pilot program (SIRRPP) as inadequate, noting that none of the 30 homes evaluated qualified for repair or replacement and that many affected homes fall outside the boundary eligible for federal funding. Burien urges the Port to stop relying on federal or state dollars and instead model a solution after San Francisco International Airport's locally funded approach.

The City of Burien is calling on Port of Seattle Commissioners to overhaul their decades-old noise insulation program after hundreds of Port-installed soundproofing packages in homes near Sea-Tac Airport have degraded or failed with no repairs made. A 2024 pilot program contacted 3,000 homeowners but evaluated only 30, and none qualified for repair under the Port's narrow federal-funding criteria. Burien is urging the Port to fund a broader replacement program using its own resources, pointing to San Francisco International Airport's locally funded model as a potential template.

The City of SeaTac, Washington has engaged the law firm Leech Tishman Nelson Hardiman to provide legal counsel regarding the Port of Seattle's Sustainable Airport Master Plan (SAMP), specifically in connection with the forthcoming Final Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI). The firm will advise the City, prepare legal memoranda, and file a Petition for Review with a federal appeals court challenging the FAA's Record of Decision once it is published in late 2025. The engagement is capped at $300,000, with an initial retainer of $10,000, and hourly rates ranging from $300–$540 per hour.

In May 2025, the City of SeaTac formally offered to purchase approximately 214 acres of North SeaTac Park and Pat Ryan Field from the Port of Seattle, proposing $20 million in park improvements and the creation of a nonprofit foundation to manage the funds. The letter argues the park is surplus to the Port's aviation needs yet essential to community health, serving roughly 650,000 visitors annually as a buffer against airport noise and air pollution. The offer, submitted by City Manager Jonathan Young, is intended to fulfill Port Order No. 2024-12, which directed the Port to develop options for permanently preserving the land as public parkland.