VETO MESSAGE ON HB 1892-S

                   May 14, 2001

To the Honorable Speakers and Members,

  The House of Representatives of the State of Washington

Ladies and Gentlemen:

     I am returning herewith, without my approval as to section 9 and 10, Substitute House Bill No. 1892 entitled:

"AN ACT Relating to agricultural commodity board and commissions;"

          Substitute House Bill No. 1892 expands the powers of certain commodity boards and commissions so that they may be more effective in promoting Washington's products.

     Sections 9 and 10 of the bill would have allowed members and staff of commodity boards and commissions to be reimbursed for the full amount of their actual travel expenses, rather than being limited by the Office of Financial Management regulations on reimbursement rates.  Because international travel can be quite expensive and these boards and commissions are self-supporting, I support this goal.  Unfortunately, sections 9 and 10 were mechanically flawed.  They would have exempted individuals from compliance with RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060, which create the statewide system for travel reimbursement.  However, this bill does not also amend RCW 15.65.270 or 15.66.130, both of which deal with travel reimbursement for commodity board or commission members.  By changing only part of the applicable statutes, sections 9 and 10 would have created an internal inconsistency in the law.

     Several bills were passed this year dealing with travel reimbursement for commodity boards and commissions.  I encourage the interested parties to combine their efforts next year to put forward a single effort that consistently amends the expense reimbursement statutes for all of our state's self-supporting commodity boards and commissions.

     For these reasons, I have vetoed sections 9 and 10 of Substitute House Bill No. 1892.

     With the exception of sections 9 and 10, Substitute House Bill No. 1892 is approved.

                   Respectfully submitted,

                   Gary Locke

                   Governor