Template revised April 12, 2018.

COMMISSION

AGENDA MEMORANDUM

Item No. 10b

ACTION ITEM Date of Meeting September 9, 2025

DATE: September 2, 2025

Request Commission introduction of Resolution 3838, a resolution of the Port of Seattle

Commission establishing a revised Welcoming Port Policy Directive and amending Resolution

No. 3747, in order to demonstrate the Port’s ongoing commitment to supporting immigrants,

refugees, and international visitors in line with the Port’s mission and values.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Port of Seattle Commission first adopted its Welcoming Port Policy Directive as Resolution

No. 3747 on May 8, 2018 as a way to affirm the Port of Seattle’s commitment to the safety,

inclusion, and engagement of immigrants, refugees, and international visitors who interact with

our facilities or services. For the Port, this is not only a deeply held value, but also an economic

the Washington State Legislature passed the Keep Washington Working Act, which made

numerous changes to state law for the stated purpose of “ensuring the state of Washington

remains a place where the rights and dignity of all residents are maintained and protected in

order to keep Washington working.” The Port has fully complied with these mandates.

Given recent changes in federal immigration policies, programs, and practices, the Port

Commission seeks to update and expand its strategies to respond to current events and new

challenges to the Port’s Welcoming Port vision. The Port of Seattle values the work of our federal

partners to keep our facilities safe, and nothing in this Policy Directive is intended to impede the

travel facilitation work of federal personnel like U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the U.S.

Template revised September 22, 2016; format updates October 19, 2016.

welcoming, accessible to all, and supportive of those immigrants, refugees, and foreign visitors

who use our facilities.

DETAILS

The updated 2025 Welcoming Port Policy Directive aims to advance the following five (5) goals

while remaining in accordance with local, state and federal law and within its authority and

resources:

1) The Port will do everything within its power and resources to make all visitors to its

facilities feel welcome, safe, and comfortable when accessing services, benefits, and

3) The Port will take advantage of the broad and diverse resources that already exist in the

Puget Sound region to create and enhance partnerships with local immigrant and refugee

community stakeholders, advocates, and community-based organizations to identify new

or expanded opportunities, where possible, to advance the Port’s goals of being a

welcoming gateway.

4) The Port will prohibit any Port employees, including Port law enforcement officers, from

asking about place of birth, citizenship, or immigration status or collecting information on

place of birth, citizenship, or immigration status, and information about family members,

except when required by a criminal investigation.

programs: All applications, questionnaires, and forms used in relation to the provision of

Port opportunities or services shall not include required disclosure of information related

to place of birth, citizenship or immigration status.

2) Related to travelers through air and cruise gateways: The Port is committed to non-

discrimination, data privacy, and the dignity of all travelers, regardless of immigration

status. Port employees are prohibited from collecting or sharing the immigration status

of travelers.

3) Related to Port law enforcement personnel: Consistent with the Keep Washington

Working Act, Port law enforcement is prohibited from collecting information about

immigration or citizenship data unless there is a demonstrated connection between such

Template revised September 22, 2016; format updates October 19, 2016.

enforcement is also prohibited from providing information pursuant to notification

requests from federal immigration authorities for the purposes of civil immigration

enforcement.

and translation services for the most prevalent languages spoken in our region. This effort

applies to Port employees, job seekers, participants in Port programs, and travelers

through our facilities. In addition, the Port will offer access to its translation and

interpretation services to federal agencies operating in our facilities, to ensure that their

interactions are fully understood by all travelers.

2) The Port employs a large number of bilingual and multilingual staff members who assist

travelers and members of the public with language interpretation needs on a regular

basis, particularly related to travel through our facilities. Bilingual and multilingual staff

members may assist travelers and members of the public with language interpretation

needs related to basic immigration resources, while ensuring professional interpreters

officers – are committed to welcoming and respectful treatment of immigrants, refugees,

and foreign visitors. Consistent with the Keep Washington Working Act, Port law

enforcement officers, including both Port of Seattle Police officers and any law

enforcement officers contracted by the Port, are prohibited from initiating police action

based solely on an individual’s place of birth, citizenship, or immigration status, or using

stops for minor offenses or requests for voluntary information as a pretext for discovering

a person’s immigration status.

2) Furthermore, no Port employee shall expend time, money, or other resources on

facilitating the civil enforcement of federal immigration law or participating in civil

immigration enforcement operations, except where required by state or federal law,

agreement, or arrangement that would grant federal civil immigration enforcement

authority or power over the Port or its law enforcement officers; nor will Port law

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enforcement carry out a civil arrest based on an administrative warrant separately or in

combination with an ICE or CBP detainer request.

2) The Port will continue to share its expectations that – when individuals are detained by

CBP in the International Arrivals Facility or are being transported through our facilities by

organizations, and community-based organizations to explore additional ways to use its

facilities to support immigrant and refugee communities, including: providing access to

information for travelers; potential partnerships on workforce development and

economic development; and facilitating refugee arrivals through SEA. In addition, the Port

will continue to partner with local organizations to support immigration and citizenship

application efforts, including by providing a list of existing resources for individuals who

need services that the Port cannot provide, such as access to legal resources.

F. Safe and Welcoming Workplace:

1) The Port remains steadfastly opposed to harassment and discrimination in our workplace.

G. Employee Responses to Federal Immigration Policy and Enforcement:

1) The Port prohibits employees from providing federal immigration officials with

information about individuals or any other non-public information, or assisting in

accessing an area restricted to Port employees or tenants. However, Port employees

should not interfere with immigration officials or immigration enforcement actions.

2) The Port has developed its Employee Guidance on Immigration training, which includes

proper protocols to respond to requests from federal immigration enforcement and to

travelers or other visitors to Port facilities seeking guidance related to immigration.

H. Program Implementation and Evaluation.

Directive. The Executive Director may disband the working group at their discretion when

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it is no longer needed. The Working Group shall include the Commission President, or

their delegate, as an ex officio member of the committee.

2) Within three (3) months of the passage of this policy, the Port will create a centralized

tracking system to record immigration-related interactions with individuals or federal

implementation and estimated cost of these policies, procedures, and programs.

4) Annually, the Executive Director shall empower key staff to conduct a review of Port

actions to ensure that staff continue to comply fully with this directive.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

To the extent the Welcoming Port Policy Directive has financial implications, these will be

identified and evaluated annually for inclusion in applicable Port of Seattle operating budget

proposals to the Port of Seattle Commission.

ATTACHMENTS