The Everett Connector may be restored this month with a swish of the governor’s pen.

Gov. Jay Inslee could sign into law this month a bill that would restore the Everett Connector.

The state House of Representatives and Senate approved $1 million in the 2015-17 biennium budget to reinstate the public transportation route.

The governor has 20 days to act on the bill once his office receives it, likely this week.

State Rep. Dave Hayes, R-Camano, succeeded in attaching an amendment for the Everett Connector to the House’s multimodal transportation bill in April. The Everett Connector was cut late last year.

“It’s a great service that has always proven to be a very popular commuter service. It takes cars off the road,” Hayes said last week. “It’s a very good thing.”

The money would be split between Island Transit and Everett Transit, though the percentage is yet to be determined.

The $1 million allotted for the Everett Connector comes with a concrete requirement — Island Transit must implement a fare system to be eligible for the funding.

Island County is only one of a handful of transit systems statewide that remain free, according to Ken Graska, the interim executive director. He added that Island Transit is also the largest free system.

Hayes said he suggested the fare box — an ongoing discussion topic — as a way to show fellow legislators the good faith of Island Transit, a system that has been embroiled in financial problems in recent years.

The transit board announced in recent weeks that they will be initiating a fare feasibility study with a June 16 deadline and a $30,000 cap.

While the Everett Connector appears to be on the road to recovery, Island County will still have to brace for the loss of off-island routes 411W and 411C in a long line of cuts over the past year.

The severe route cuts, which included laying off more than 20 people last year, were necessary to help stabilize the transit system’s finances, according to IT board members.