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ENGROSSED HOUSE BILL 1128

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State of Washington 55th Legislature 1997 Regular Session

By Representatives Thompson, Sump, McMorris, Mielke, Mulliken, Buck, Sheldon and Schoesler

Read first time 01/15/97. Referred to Committee on Natural Resources.

AN ACT Relating to necessary emergency measures for the Loomis state forest; adding new sections to chapter 76.06 RCW; creating a new section; and making an appropriation.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds an extemely serious forest health situation exists in the Loomis state forest. Thousands of acres of school trust lands are infested or are at risk of infestation by mountain pine beetle. This major infestation, combined with the presence of other insect and disease problems, clearly indicates the need for implementation of a decisive plan to address current forest health, and to enhance habitat and long-term productivity of the Loomis state forest. Further, the final landscape plan for the Loomis state forest approved by the board of natural resources in June 1996 does not adequately address the emergency situation in the Loomis forest. The legislature finds a long-range management plan specifically for the Loomis state forest must also address current forest health conditions.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. (1) The legislature directs the department of natural resources to adopt and to immediately begin to implement a long-range management plan for the Loomis state forest that will result in a much healthier and more productive forest. The legislature further directs the department to act in the immediate future to recover as much value as operationally and economically feasible from timber at risk or killed by mountain pine beetle. In designing and implementing this long-range management plan and when recovering the value from this dead and at-risk timber, the department shall comply with all applicable state and federal laws and regulations and conduct itself in a manner consistent with its obligations only to the trust beneficiaries.

(2) The legislature declares its intent to remain actively involved in the oversight of the department's efforts to address the forest health problems in the Loomis state forest. The department shall carefully monitor the impacts to the forest of implementation of the long-range management plan and shall report on the condition of the forest at least annually for the next five years to the house of representatives and senate committees on natural resources.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. (1) In an action seeking review under chapter 76.09 RCW from the appeals board of a forest practice that implements the purposes of section 2 of this act, and as part of that review the appeals board grants a stay of the implementation action, the appeals board shall require the person requesting the stay to provide security to cover the amount of damages potentially resulting from the stay, but in no case will the security be less than one hundred thousand dollars.

(2) In any judicial review of a decision under chapter 76.09 RCW of the appeals board involving a forest practice that implements the purposes of section 2 of this act, and as part of that review the court grants a stay of the implementation action, the court shall require the person requesting the stay to provide security to cover the amount of damages potentially resulting from the stay, but in no case will the security be less than one hundred thousand dollars.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. The sum of nine hundred thirty-one thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 1999, from the resource management cost account to the department of natural resources for the purposes of implementing this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. Sections 2 and 3 of this act are each added to chapter 76.06 RCW.