Outgoing state Sen. Andy Billig appointed to Spokane Airport Board

Retiring state Sen. Andy Billig, D-Spokane, was appointed to a seat on the Spokane Airport Board Monday by the Spokane City Council with a unanimous vote.

“I want to continue with my community service, and serving on the airport board is a great way to do that,” Billig said in a Monday interview. “It’s a really important organization for our community.”

The board, a partner agency between the city of Spokane and Spokane County, controls the Spokane International Airport, Felts Field Airport and the Airport Business Park, overseeing a budget of approximately $118 million. 

Billig has served in the state legislature since 2011, first as a state representative for two years and as a state senator since 2013. He was elected by his caucus as Senate Majority Leader, the highest position in the chamber, in 2018.

Billig was nominated to the position by Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown, who served in the same state Senate seat immediately preceding Billig’s 2012 election. 

He announced in March that he would not be seeking re-election. In November, state Rep. Marcus Riccelli, D-Spokane, was elected to fill his seat.

“While I may be leaving the legislature, I’ll never be done with my work in the community and look forward to continuing that in the private sector with Brett Sports and the public sector with the airport board and hopefully in other ways in the future.”

Billig is a co-owner of the Spokane Indians minor league baseball team and the CEO of Brett Sports, which owns the Spokane Indians and Spokane Chiefs hockey team.

He said he pursued a position on the Spokane Airport Board to build on his interest in the aeronautics sector, highlighting his work on sustainable aviation fuel in the legislature, including a bipartisan bill in 2023 that incentivized the purchase and manufacturing of jet biofuels. He was also the chair of the state alternative jet fuels work group for 12 years.

Billig added that he looked forward to other consultancy work with “sustainability in general and at least one project related to sustainable aviation fuel,” but said it would be premature to announce those projects now.