READ FIRST TIME 02/17/09.   

     AN ACT Relating to the establishment of a license limitation program for the harvest and delivery of Pacific sardines into the state; amending RCW 77.65.200; and adding new sections to chapter 77.70 RCW.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 77.70 RCW to read as follows:
     The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter and related rules adopted by the department unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
     (1) "Deliver" or "delivery" means arrival at a place or port, and includes arrivals from offshore waters to waters within the state and arrivals ashore from offshore waters.
     (2) "Pacific sardine" and "pilchard" means the species Sardinops sagax.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 77.70 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) A Washington sardine purse seine fishery license or temporary annual fishery permit is required to use purse seine gear to fish for or possess Pacific sardines in offshore waters. This requirement does not affect persons authorized to fish for or possess sardines in offshore waters under a valid Oregon or California license or permit.
     (2) A Washington sardine purse seine fishery license or temporary annual fishery permit is required to deliver Pacific sardines into the state.
     (3) Washington sardine purse seine fishery licenses and temporary annual fishery permits require vessel designation under RCW 77.65.100.
     (4) Pacific sardines may not be taken or retained in state waters except for incidental harvest authorized by rule of the department.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   A new section is added to chapter 77.70 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) A Washington Pacific sardine purse seine fishery license:
     (a) May only be issued to a person that held a coastal pilchard experimental fishery permit in 2008, except as otherwise provided in this section;
     (b) Must be renewed annually to remain active; and
     (c) Subject to the restrictions of subsections (6) and (7) of this section and RCW 77.65.040, is transferable.
     (2) A Washington Pacific sardine purse seine fishery license may be issued to any person that held a coastal pilchard experimental fishery permit in 2005, 2006, or 2007 and is precluded from qualifying under subsection (1) of this section because the vessel designated on the permit sank prior to 2008.
     (3) Beginning in 2010, after taking into consideration the status of the Pacific sardine population, the impact of removal of sardines and other forage fish to the marine ecosystem, including the effect on endangered marine species, and the market for Pacific sardines in the state, the director may issue:
     (a) A Washington Pacific sardine purse seine fishery license to any person provided that the issuance would not raise the number of licenses beyond the number initially issued in 2009;
     (b) A Washington Pacific sardine purse seine temporary annual fishery permit to any person if the combined number of active Washington Pacific sardine purse seine fishery licenses and annual temporary permits already issued during the year is less than twenty-five.
     (4) The annual fee for a Washington Pacific sardine purse seine fishery license is one hundred eighty-five dollars for residents and two hundred ninety-five dollars for nonresidents.
     (5) The fee for a Washington Pacific sardine purse seine temporary annual fishery permit is one hundred eighty-five dollars for residents and two hundred ninety-five dollars for nonresidents. A temporary annual fishery permit expires at the end of the calendar year in which the permit is issued.
     (6) Only a person who owns or operates the vessel designated on the license or permit may hold a Washington Pacific sardine purse seine fishery license or temporary annual fishery permit.
     (7) A person may not own or hold an ownership interest in more than two Washington Pacific sardine purse seine fishery licenses.
     (8) The director shall adopt rules that require a person fishing under a Washington Pacific sardine purse seine fishery license or a temporary annual permit to minimize by-catch, and to the extent by-catch cannot be avoided, to minimize the mortality of such by-catch.

Sec. 4   RCW 77.65.200 and 2000 c 107 s 41 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) This section establishes commercial fishery licenses required for food fish fisheries and the annual fees for those licenses. As used in this section, "food fish" does not include salmon. The director may issue a limited-entry commercial fishery license only to a person who meets the qualifications established in applicable governing sections of this title.