H-1522.1
SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1686
State of Washington 68th Legislature 2023 Regular Session
By House Appropriations (originally sponsored by Representatives
Lekanoff, Kretz, Chapman, Dent, Doglio, Barkis, Springer, Hutchins,
Peterson, Reed, Stokesbary, Fey, Timmons, Robertson, Leavitt, Reeves,
Ortiz-Self, Ramel, and Pollet)
READ FIRST TIME 02/24/23.
1 AN ACT Relating to salmon recovery reform; reenacting and
2 amending RCW 44.04.260; adding new sections to chapter 44.04 RCW; and
3 creating new sections.
4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
5 NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The legislature finds that salmon and
6 other anadromous fish have a special historical, economic, and
7 cultural importance to Washington. As a consequence of their
8 centrality to treaty-protected rights reserved to federally
9 recognized tribes, and the efforts required in order to preserve
10 those rights and recover threatened species, salmon retain an
11 importance akin to being a fourth branch of government alongside the
12 legislature, the judiciary, and the executive.
13 (2) The legislature finds that it will take significant, if not
14 unprecedented, commitment by the state and its subdivisions if the
15 state is going to make significant progress towards its salmon
16 recovery goals. Recovery of the iconic Northwest salmonid species,
17 whose cultural and economic importance is so broadly understood that
18 a recitation of the facts and their plight are no longer necessary,
19 will take a shared commitment from all Washingtonians, industrial and
20 commercial sectors on the landscape, and in the policy-making realm.
21 This ultimately may include, but not be limited to, changes in land
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 1 use and planning, hatchery and harvest management, habitat
2 management, water quality and quantity, environmental permitting, and
3 could also extend into other decisions made in policy areas as
4 diverse as transportation, energy, school and infrastructure siting
5 and projects, and growth management act reform.
6 (3) The legislature further finds that the extent of the shared
7 commitment necessary to move the salmon recovery needle will require
8 significant investment by the state legislature through being
9 accountable to informed decision making for decisions on policy,
10 laws, and funding. The state, through its legislature, must elevate
11 salmon recovery on par with other issues facing the state and
12 demonstrate that it, as an institution, is willing to join others in
13 the shared commitment of salmon recovery.
14 (4) The legislature further finds that there are numerous
15 regulations, programs, and initiatives that currently exist and are,
16 on some level, woven into the existing salmon recovery tapestry.
17 These programs and initiatives, all well intended, are not generally
18 coordinated or maximizing their salmon recovery potential. The first
19 steps towards a serious and sustainable salmon recovery commitment
20 begins with maximizing the value of the existing infrastructure,
21 deciding which programs deliver the highest return on investment, and
22 increasing the scale of those programs that are best situated to move
23 the state towards its salmon recovery goals today.
24 (5) The legislature further finds that focusing on existing state
25 programs and policies can be uncomfortable to those that manage or
26 rely on those programs. It is also uncomfortable for the legislature
27 to challenge its own commitments and dedicate new funding to a long
28 underfunded policy area. However, until the state and the legislature
29 ask others to consider uncomfortable changes, it must first lead by
30 doing so itself.
31 (6) The legislature, therefore, intends to create the joint
32 salmon recovery and reform committee to look at salmon recovery
33 wholistically, taking all of these factors into consideration, as a
34 venue for discussion and course corrections that can support salmon
35 recovery.
36 NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 44.04
37 RCW to read as follows:
38 (1) The joint salmon recovery and reform committee is created.
39 The executive committee of the joint salmon recovery and reform
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 1 committee consists of the chairs and ranking members of the house of
2 representatives and senate committees whose jurisdiction includes
3 salmon recovery issues, or their designees. The chair of the house of
4 representatives and ranking member of the senate committees whose
5 jurisdiction includes salmon recovery issues, or their designees,
6 shall serve as cochairs of the joint salmon recovery and reform
7 committee. All members of the house of representatives and senate
8 standing committees whose jurisdiction includes salmon recovery
9 issues and funding, including local government operations, the growth
10 management act, fish passage barrier removal, the omnibus operating
11 appropriations act, the omnibus capital appropriations act, and the
12 omnibus transportation appropriations act, are eligible for
13 membership on the joint salmon recovery and reform committee and
14 shall serve when appointed by the executive committee of the joint
15 salmon recovery and reform committee.
16 (2) The joint salmon recovery and reform committee shall review
17 and research salmon recovery and reform programs, including programs
18 and initiatives that address hatchery, harvest, habitat, and water
19 quality and quantity issues, in order to educate and promote the
20 dissemination of salmon recovery and reform research to state and
21 local government policymakers, including legislators and associated
22 staff. All four members of the executive committee of the joint
23 salmon recovery and reform committee shall approve the annual work
24 plan. Membership of the joint salmon recovery and reform committee
25 may vary depending on the subject matter of oversight and research
26 projects. The joint salmon recovery and reform committee may also
27 make recommendations related to other issues regarding salmon
28 recovery and reform.
29 (3) The executive committee of the joint salmon recovery and
30 reform committee shall adopt rules and procedures for its operations.
31 NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 44.04
32 RCW to read as follows:
33 The members of the joint salmon recovery and reform committee
34 will receive allowances while attending meetings of the committee or
35 subcommittees and while engaged in other authorized business of the
36 committees as provided in RCW 44.04.120. Subject to RCW 44.04.260,
37 all expenses incurred by the committee must be paid upon voucher
38 forms as provided by the office of financial management and signed by
39 the cochairs of the joint salmon recovery and reform committee, or
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1 their authorized designees, and the authority of the chair or vice
2 chair to sign vouchers continues until their successors are selected.
3 Vouchers may be drawn upon funds appropriated for the expenses of the
4 joint salmon recovery and reform committee.
5 Sec. 4. RCW 44.04.260 and 2012 c 229 s 204 and 2012 c 113 s 6
6 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
7 The joint legislative audit and review committee, the joint
8 transportation committee, the select committee on pension policy, the
9 legislative evaluation and accountability program committee, the
10 office of legislative support services, the joint higher education
11 committee, and the joint ((legislative systems)) salmon recovery and
12 reform committee are subject to such operational policies,
13 procedures, and oversight as are deemed necessary by the facilities
14 and operations committee of the senate and the executive rules
15 committee of the house of representatives to ensure operational
16 adequacy of the agencies of the legislative branch. As used in this
17 section, "operational policies, procedures, and oversight" includes
18 the development process of biennial budgets, contracting procedures,
19 personnel policies, and compensation plans, selection of a chief
20 administrator, facilities, and expenditures. This section does not
21 grant oversight authority to the facilities and operations committee
22 of the senate over any standing committee of the house of
23 representatives or oversight authority to the executive rules
24 committee of the house of representatives over any standing committee
25 of the senate.
26 NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. If specific funding for the purposes of
27 this act, referencing this act by bill or chapter number, is not
28 provided by June 30, 2023, in the omnibus appropriations act, this
29 act is null and void.
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