Effective Date of Rule: One hour after official sunset December 1, 2012.

     Purpose: Amend recreational fishing rules.

     Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Repealing WAC 232-28-61900S; and amending WAC 232-28-619.

     Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 77.15.045, 77.12.047 and 77.04.020.

     Under RCW 34.05.350 the agency for good cause finds that immediate adoption, amendment, or repeal of a rule is necessary for the preservation of the public health, safety, or general welfare, and that observing the time requirements of notice and opportunity to comment upon adoption of a permanent rule would be contrary to the public interest.

     Reasons for this Finding: The allowable mortality of natural origin steelhead due to angling effects is approaching the maximum limits in the closed areas. The Endangered Species Act Section 10 permit sets the incidental take of listed species separately for each fishery to accommodate variation in the run strength and angling effort within the fisheries and year to year. The 2012-2013 steelhead run is less than recent years and has a relatively high proportion of natural origin steelhead. There is insufficient time to adopt permanent rules.

     Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 1, Amended 0, Repealed 1.

     Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0;      Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Date Adopted: November 29, 2012.

Philip Anderson

Director

     (1) Mandatory retention of adipose fin clipped steelhead, daily limit two (2) hatchery steelhead, 20 inch minimum size. Hatchery steelhead are identified by a missing adipose fin with a healed scar in its location.

     (2) Adipose present steelhead must be released unharmed and cannot be removed from the water prior to release.

     (3) Night closure and selective gear rules remain in effect, except bait allowed on mainstem Columbia River.

     (a) A person may fish for steelhead in the Columbia River from Rock Island Dam to the boundary markers below Wells Dam and from the Highway 173 Bridge in Brewster to 400 feet below Chief Joseph Dam.

     (b) A person may fish for steelhead in the Okanogan River from the mouth upstream to the Highway 97 Bridge in Oroville.

     (c) A person may fish for steelhead in the Similkameen River from the mouth upstream to 400 feet below Enloe Dam.

     (4) Effective one hour after official sunset on December 1, 2012, until further notice, it is unlawful to fish for whitefish in the following waters:

     (a) Wenatchee River: From the mouth to the Hwy 2 Bridge at Leavenworth.

     (b) Entiat River: Upstream from the Alternate Highway 97 Bridge, near the mouth of the Entiat River to Entiat Falls.

     (c) Methow River: From Gold Creek to the confluence with the Chewuch River in Winthrop.

[]

     The following section of the Washington Administrative Code is repealed effective one hour after official sunset December 1, 2012:

WAC 232-28-61900S

Exceptions to statewide rules -- Columbia, Entiat, Icicle, Methow, Okanogan, Similkameen, and Wenatchee rivers. (12-236)