S-1576.1  _______________________________________________

                         SENATE BILL 6030

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      57th Legislature     2001 Regular Session

By Senators Regala, Jacobsen, Spanel, Kohl‑Welles and Fairley

Read first time 02/14/2001.  Referred to Committee on Natural Resources, Parks & Shorelines.

Maximizing the use and benefits of state-owned natural resources facilities.

    AN ACT Relating to maximizing the use of state-owned natural resources facilities; and creating new sections.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  Currently, the department of fish and wildlife, the parks and recreation commission, and the department of natural resources own lands that have capital facilities located on them.  Many of these facilities are in poor physical condition.  Some of these facilities are abandoned.  Many of these facilities are located near populated areas, near tourist destinations, or are near state highways that travelers use to access tourist destinations.  Many of these properties are owned by the state for the purpose of protecting certain habitats, ecosystems, or wildlife, or have played a role in the environmental history of the state.  The state does not have sufficient resources to refurbish, maintain, and use many of these facilities.

    There are many nonprofit organizations in the state dedicated to the protection of various species and working to protect various habitats and ecosystems.  These groups provide a valuable educational opportunity for the public concerning these species and habitats.

    There is an opportunity for state recreation and natural resources agencies that have poorly maintained facilities to develop partnerships with nonprofit organizations.  These partnerships would include the state providing the capital financing for the renovation and repair of facilities, while nonprofit organizations would provide maintenance and staffing at the facilities, as well as providing educational opportunities for citizens of the state.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  The department of fish and wildlife, the parks and recreation commission, and the department of natural resources must jointly establish a committee to review the use of state-owned facilities located on lands dedicated to recreation and natural resource uses.  The committee must include two members from the senate, one from each major political party, appointed by the president of the senate, and two members from the house of representatives, one from each major political party, appointed by the co-speakers of the house of representatives.  The committee must also include members from interested stakeholder groups located throughout the state.

    The committee must:

    (1) Identify potential state-owned, natural resource or recreation-based facilities that would:

    (a) Promote a more effective use of the state-owned facility;

    (b) Increase the involvement of nonprofit organizations in the educational use of state-owned lands; and

    (c) Maximize the investment of state funds in state-owned lands by identifying potential partnerships with nonprofit organizations;

    (2) Identify potential nonprofit partners for various sites; and

    (3) Develop a standard memorandum of understanding between the state agencies and nonprofit organizations that would address various issues such as division of responsibilities, liabilities, obligations of each party, and other issues of concern.

    The committee must submit a report to the legislature by January 7, 2002.  The report must include a list of potential sites, possible sources of funding for improvements to these sites, and a list of possible stakeholder partners.  The list of stakeholder partners must  include details of the stakeholders' contributions to the sites or program.  The report may include recommended legislation or supplemental budget requests.

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