Alaska Airlines Files Motion in SeaTac Proposition 1 Legal Challenge

Alaska Airlines, Filo Foods, BF Foods and the Washington Restaurant Association today filed a motion in King County Superior Court asking the trial court to hear evidence on whether the City of SeaTac’s Proposition 1 ordinance interferes with the Port of Seattle’s authority to run the airport.

In August, the Washington state Supreme Court issued its opinion on Proposition 1 and, as part of the usual legal process, sent the case back to King County Superior Court for further proceedings in accordance with the Supreme Court’s decision.

When the Supreme Court issued its opinion over the summer, it created a new standard for evaluating the ordinance. However, when the Proposition 1 case was first brought before the Superior Court in 2013, the lower court ruled on summary judgment and did not use the Supreme Court’s new standard. The Superior Court instead heard legal arguments on whether the airport could, as a matter of state law, be regulated by the city in which it’s located, not on the ordinance’s impact to airport operations.

“We believe that the trial court judge should hold a fact finding process so she can ultimately decide whether the ordinance interferes with or relates to airport operations,” said Herman Wacker, vice president legal and general counsel for Alaska Airlines. Wacker noted that the Supreme Court’s opinion is not the last step in the legal process in this case.

Following any Superior Court determination on whether Proposition 1 relates to airport operations, either party then would have the right to reengage the appeal process.

“Today’s challenge is focused on the legality of the City of SeaTac’s ordinances over the airport,” said Joe Sprague, Alaska Airlines’ senior vice president, communications and external relations. “We support higher minimum wages that are reasonable and equitable across the state.”