Title: An act relating to the department of fish and wildlife's authority to allocate certain moneys.

Brief Description: Allowing the department of fish and wildlife to allocate certain forfeited moneys for coastal groundfish management and research.

Sponsors: Representatives Hatfield, Pearson, Blake and Sump; by request of Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Brief Summary of Bill

• Authorizes the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to allocate monies received from coastal groundfish forfeitures to support coastal groundfish management and research.

Majority Report: Do pass. Signed by 9 members: Representatives Cooper, Chair; Upthegrove, Vice Chair; Sump, Ranking Minority Member; Hinkle, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Buck, Hatfield, O'Brien, Pearson and Simpson, D.

Exempted Fishing Permits (EFPs) allow experimental fisheries that are exempt from standard fishing regulations and are designed to test the ability of innovative fishing gears targeted at healthy stocks. Exempted Fishing Permits may be granted by the National Marine Fisheries Service, and Washington has conducted EFP fisheries for arrowtooth flounder, pollock, and dogfish.

Catch limits are established for each fishery and catch over the limit, or "legal overages", are forfeited to the state. The state sells the legal overages at fair market value and proceeds are deposited in the state general fund.

An appropriation is legislation that authorizes a state agency to incur a maximum expenditure. Article VIII, section 4 of the state constitution prohibits moneys in the state treasury from being spent without an appropriation. The "unanticipated receipts" process permits state agencies to spend, without an appropriation, moneys received from the federal government or from other sources. If an agency receives moneys from such sources, and the moneys were not anticipated in the budget and are designated to be spent for a specific purpose, then the agency may submit an allotment amendment request to the Governor. Before the Office of Financial Management (OFM) approves the expenditure, it must notify the legislative fiscal committees and the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee. The typical unanticipated receipt is a one-time occurrence that does not permanently increase agency staffing, activity, or funding levels.

Proceeds from the forfeiture of coastal groundfish overages that exceed amounts in the budget may be allocated as unanticipated receipts. Unanticipated receipts from exempted fishing permits from coastal groundfish may only be spent on coastal groundfish management and research.

Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For: Federal disaster relief funds have been used in the past to support exempted fishing permits and provide additional fishing opportunities. These funds have been spent, and to continue the fishery the Department would like to capture the revenues from the forfeited overages, and combine them with fishing industry and additional state funds to keep the fishing opportunities open. The fishing industry supports these changes.

Persons Testifying: Phil Anderson, Department of Fish and Wildlife; Ed Owens, Coalition of Coastal Fisheries; and Michael Marsh, Heron Habitat Helpers and Washington Native Plant Society.