WSR 24-15-128
EMERGENCY RULES
DEPARTMENT OF
FISH AND WILDLIFE
[Order 24-135—Filed July 23, 2024, 2:39 p.m., effective July 25, 2024]
Effective Date of Rule: July 25, 2024.
Purpose: The purpose of this emergency rule is to extend sockeye seasons in the Skagit River.
Citation of Rules Affected by this Order: Amending WAC 220-312-040.
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: This rule is necessary to extend sockeye seasons in Skagit River, from the Hwy. 536 bridge in Mt. Vernon to the Dalles Bridge at Concrete.
Current data indicates the river sport fishery has not reached the harvest guideline for sockeye, and incidental Chinook encounters remain within conservation goals.
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Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at the Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's own Initiative: New 1, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.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: July 23, 2024.
Kelly Susewind
Director
NEW SECTION
WAC 220-312-04000RFreshwater exceptions to statewide rules—Puget Sound.
Effective July 25 through July 31, 2024, the following provisions of WAC 220-312-040 regarding Skagit River salmon seasons, shall be modified described below. All other provisions of WAC 220-312-040 not addressed herein, or unless otherwise amended, remain in effect:
Skagit River (Skagit Co.): From the Hwy. 536 (Memorial Hwy. Bridge) in Mt. Vernon to the Dalles Bridge at Concrete:
Salmon:
(a) Daily limit 4. Release all salmon other than sockeye.
(b) Night Closure in effect.
(c) Selective gear rules are not in effect for salmon.
Reviser's note: The typographical error in the above section occurred in the copy filed by the agency and appears in the Register pursuant to the requirements of RCW 34.08.040.