BILL REQ. #: S-1439.1
State of Washington | 62nd Legislature | 2011 Regular Session |
Read first time 02/15/11. Referred to Committee on Natural Resources & Marine Waters.
AN ACT Relating to natural resources enforcement on state lands; amending RCW 77.15.075, 77.08.010, 43.12.065, 10.93.020, and 79A.05.160; and reenacting and amending RCW 79A.05.030.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1 RCW 77.15.075 and 2009 c 204 s 1 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) Fish and wildlife officers and ex officio fish and wildlife
officers shall enforce this title, rules of the department, and other
statutes as prescribed by the legislature. Fish and wildlife officers
who are not ex officio officers shall have and exercise, throughout the
state, such police powers and duties as are vested in sheriffs and
peace officers generally. An applicant for a fish and wildlife officer
position must be a citizen of the United States of America who can read
and write the English language. All fish and wildlife officers
employed after June 13, 2002, must successfully complete the basic law
enforcement academy course, known as the basic course, sponsored by the
criminal justice training commission, or the basic law enforcement
equivalency certification, known as the equivalency course, provided by
the criminal justice training commission. All officers employed on
June 13, 2002, must have successfully completed the basic course, the
equivalency course, or the supplemental course in criminal law
enforcement, known as the supplemental course, offered under chapter
155, Laws of 1985. Any officer who has not successfully completed the
basic course, the equivalency course, or the supplemental course must
complete the basic course or the equivalency course within fifteen
months of June 13, 2002.
(2)(a) Fish and wildlife officers are peace officers.
(b) After January 1, 2012, fish and wildlife officers are as
defined in RCW 77.08.010.
(3) Any liability or claim of liability under chapter 4.92 RCW that
arises out of the exercise or alleged exercise of authority by a fish
and wildlife officer rests with the department unless the fish and
wildlife officer acts under the direction and control of another agency
or unless the liability is otherwise assumed under an agreement between
the department and another agency.
(4) Fish and wildlife officers may serve and execute warrants and
processes issued by the courts.
(5) The department may utilize the services of a volunteer chaplain
as provided under chapter 41.22 RCW.
(6) By January 1, 2012, the department shall enter into contracts
with local policing agencies to enforce this title on state-owned lands
and may no longer employ department staff for enforcement.
(7) If the department and a local policing agency cannot agree to
terms of a contract, then the enforcement responsibilities in this
title must be provided by the Washington state patrol.
(8) If, in the process of determining the capacity of a local
policing agency to enforce this title, the policing agency or the
Washington state patrol determine that they must hire additional
officers, then the policing agency and the Washington state patrol are
encouraged to hire staff who are currently or were previously employed
as enforcement officers with the department of fish and wildlife.
(9) For the purposes of subsections (6) through (8) of this
section, "local policing agency" means any municipal or county police
enforcement agency and includes sheriffs and police departments.
Sec. 2 RCW 77.08.010 and 2009 c 333 s 12 are each amended to read
as follows:
The definitions in this section apply throughout this title or
rules adopted under this title unless the context clearly requires
otherwise.
(1) "Angling gear" means a line attached to a rod and reel capable
of being held in hand while landing the fish or a hand-held line
operated without rod or reel.
(2) "Aquatic invasive species" means any invasive, prohibited,
regulated, unregulated, or unlisted aquatic animal or plant species as
defined under subsections (3), (28), (40), (44), (58), and (59) of this
section, aquatic noxious weeds as defined under RCW 17.26.020(5)(c),
and aquatic nuisance species as defined under RCW 77.60.130(1).
(3) "Aquatic plant species" means an emergent, submersed, partially
submersed, free-floating, or floating-leaving plant species that grows
in or near a body of water or wetland.
(4) "Bag limit" means the maximum number of game animals, game
birds, or game fish which may be taken, caught, killed, or possessed by
a person, as specified by rule of the commission for a particular
period of time, or as to size, sex, or species.
(5) "Closed area" means a place where the hunting of some or all
species of wild animals or wild birds is prohibited.
(6) "Closed season" means all times, manners of taking, and places
or waters other than those established by rule of the commission as an
open season. "Closed season" also means all hunting, fishing, taking,
or possession of game animals, game birds, game fish, food fish, or
shellfish that do not conform to the special restrictions or physical
descriptions established by rule of the commission as an open season or
that have not otherwise been deemed legal to hunt, fish, take, harvest,
or possess by rule of the commission as an open season.
(7) "Closed waters" means all or part of a lake, river, stream, or
other body of water, where fishing or harvesting is prohibited.
(8) "Commercial" means related to or connected with buying,
selling, or bartering.
(9) "Commission" means the state fish and wildlife commission.
(10) "Concurrent waters of the Columbia river" means those waters
of the Columbia river that coincide with the Washington-Oregon state
boundary.
(11) "Contraband" means any property that is unlawful to produce or
possess.
(12) "Deleterious exotic wildlife" means species of the animal
kingdom not native to Washington and designated as dangerous to the
environment or wildlife of the state.
(13) "Department" means the department of fish and wildlife.
(14) "Director" means the director of fish and wildlife.
(15) "Endangered species" means wildlife designated by the
commission as seriously threatened with extinction.
(16) "Ex officio fish and wildlife officer" means a commissioned
officer of a municipal, county, state, or federal agency having as its
primary function the enforcement of criminal laws in general, while the
officer is in the appropriate jurisdiction. The term "ex officio fish
and wildlife officer" includes special agents of the national marine
fisheries service, ((state parks commissioned officers,)) United States
fish and wildlife special agents, ((department of natural resources
enforcement officers,)) and United States forest service officers,
while the agents and officers are within their respective
jurisdictions.
(17) "Fish" includes all species classified as game fish or food
fish by statute or rule, as well as all fin fish not currently
classified as food fish or game fish if such species exist in state
waters. The term "fish" includes all stages of development and the
bodily parts of fish species.
(18) "Fish and wildlife officer" means ((a person appointed and
commissioned by the director, with authority to enforce this title and
rules adopted pursuant to this title, and other statutes as prescribed
by the legislature. Fish and wildlife officer includes a person
commissioned before June 11, 1998, as a wildlife agent or a fisheries
patrol officer)) any local policing agency officer as defined in RCW
77.15.075 or Washington state patrol officer authorized by contract to
enforce the provisions of chapter 77.15 RCW.
(19) "Fish broker" means a person whose business it is to bring a
seller of fish and shellfish and a purchaser of those fish and
shellfish together.
(20) "Fishery" means the taking of one or more particular species
of fish or shellfish with particular gear in a particular geographical
area.
(21) "Freshwater" means all waters not defined as saltwater
including, but not limited to, rivers upstream of the river mouth,
lakes, ponds, and reservoirs.
(22) "Fur-bearing animals" means game animals that shall not be
trapped except as authorized by the commission.
(23) "Game animals" means wild animals that shall not be hunted
except as authorized by the commission.
(24) "Game birds" means wild birds that shall not be hunted except
as authorized by the commission.
(25) "Game farm" means property on which wildlife is held or raised
for commercial purposes, trade, or gift. The term "game farm" does not
include publicly owned facilities.
(26) "Game reserve" means a closed area where hunting for all wild
animals and wild birds is prohibited.
(27) "Illegal items" means those items unlawful to be possessed.
(28) "Invasive species" means a plant species or a nonnative animal
species that either:
(a) Causes or may cause displacement of, or otherwise threatens,
native species in their natural communities;
(b) Threatens or may threaten natural resources or their use in the
state;
(c) Causes or may cause economic damage to commercial or
recreational activities that are dependent upon state waters; or
(d) Threatens or harms human health.
(29) "License year" means the period of time for which a
recreational license is valid. The license year begins April 1st, and
ends March 31st.
(30) "Limited-entry license" means a license subject to a license
limitation program established in chapter 77.70 RCW.
(31) "Money" means all currency, script, personal checks, money
orders, or other negotiable instruments.
(32) "Nonresident" means a person who has not fulfilled the
qualifications of a resident.
(33) "Offshore waters" means marine waters of the Pacific Ocean
outside the territorial boundaries of the state, including the marine
waters of other states and countries.
(34) "Open season" means those times, manners of taking, and places
or waters established by rule of the commission for the lawful hunting,
fishing, taking, or possession of game animals, game birds, game fish,
food fish, or shellfish that conform to the special restrictions or
physical descriptions established by rule of the commission or that
have otherwise been deemed legal to hunt, fish, take, harvest, or
possess by rule of the commission. "Open season" includes the first
and last days of the established time.
(35) "Owner" means the person in whom is vested the ownership
dominion, or title of the property.
(36) "Person" means and includes an individual; a corporation; a
public or private entity or organization; a local, state, or federal
agency; all business organizations, including corporations and
partnerships; or a group of two or more individuals acting with a
common purpose whether acting in an individual, representative, or
official capacity.
(37) "Personal property" or "property" includes both corporeal and
incorporeal personal property and includes, among other property,
contraband and money.
(38) "Personal use" means for the private use of the individual
taking the fish or shellfish and not for sale or barter.
(39) "Predatory birds" means wild birds that may be hunted
throughout the year as authorized by the commission.
(40) "Prohibited aquatic animal species" means an invasive species
of the animal kingdom that has been classified as a prohibited aquatic
animal species by the commission.
(41) "Protected wildlife" means wildlife designated by the
commission that shall not be hunted or fished.
(42) "Raffle" means an activity in which tickets bearing an
individual number are sold for not more than twenty-five dollars each
and in which a permit or permits are awarded to hunt or for access to
hunt big game animals or wild turkeys on the basis of a drawing from
the tickets by the person or persons conducting the raffle.
(43) "Recreational and commercial watercraft" includes the boat, as
well as equipment used to transport the boat, and any auxiliary
equipment such as attached or detached outboard motors.
(44) "Regulated aquatic animal species" means a potentially
invasive species of the animal kingdom that has been classified as a
regulated aquatic animal species by the commission.
(45) "Resident" means:
(a) A person who has maintained a permanent place of abode within
the state for at least ninety days immediately preceding an application
for a license, has established by formal evidence an intent to continue
residing within the state, and who is not licensed to hunt or fish as
a resident in another state; and
(b) A person age eighteen or younger who does not qualify as a
resident under (a) of this subsection, but who has a parent that
qualifies as a resident under (a) of this subsection.
(46) "Retail-eligible species" means commercially harvested salmon,
crab, and sturgeon.
(47) "Saltwater" means those marine waters seaward of river mouths.
(48) "Seaweed" means marine aquatic plant species that are
dependent upon the marine aquatic or tidal environment, and exist in
either an attached or free floating form, and includes but is not
limited to marine aquatic plants in the classes Chlorophyta,
Phaeophyta, and Rhodophyta.
(49) "Senior" means a person seventy years old or older.
(50) "Shellfish" means those species of marine and freshwater
invertebrates that have been classified and that shall not be taken
except as authorized by rule of the commission. The term "shellfish"
includes all stages of development and the bodily parts of shellfish
species.
(51) "State waters" means all marine waters and fresh waters within
ordinary high water lines and within the territorial boundaries of the
state.
(52) "To fish," "to harvest," and "to take," and their derivatives
means an effort to kill, injure, harass, or catch a fish or shellfish.
(53) "To hunt" and its derivatives means an effort to kill, injure,
capture, or harass a wild animal or wild bird.
(54) "To process" and its derivatives mean preparing or preserving
fish, wildlife, or shellfish.
(55) "To trap" and its derivatives means a method of hunting using
devices to capture wild animals or wild birds.
(56) "Trafficking" means offering, attempting to engage, or
engaging in sale, barter, or purchase of fish, shellfish, wildlife, or
deleterious exotic wildlife.
(57) "Unclaimed" means that no owner of the property has been
identified or has requested, in writing, the release of the property to
themselves nor has the owner of the property designated an individual
to receive the property or paid the required postage to effect delivery
of the property.
(58) "Unlisted aquatic animal species" means a nonnative animal
species that has not been classified as a prohibited aquatic animal
species, a regulated aquatic animal species, or an unregulated aquatic
animal species by the commission.
(59) "Unregulated aquatic animal species" means a nonnative animal
species that has been classified as an unregulated aquatic animal
species by the commission.
(60) "Wholesale fish dealer" means a person who, acting for
commercial purposes, takes possession or ownership of fish or shellfish
and sells, barters, or exchanges or attempts to sell, barter, or
exchange fish or shellfish that have been landed into the state of
Washington or entered the state of Washington in interstate or foreign
commerce.
(61) "Wild animals" means those species of the class Mammalia whose
members exist in Washington in a wild state and the species Rana
catesbeiana (bullfrog). The term "wild animal" does not include feral
domestic mammals or old world rats and mice of the family Muridae of
the order Rodentia.
(62) "Wild birds" means those species of the class Aves whose
members exist in Washington in a wild state.
(63) "Wildlife" means all species of the animal kingdom whose
members exist in Washington in a wild state. This includes but is not
limited to mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and
invertebrates. The term "wildlife" does not include feral domestic
mammals, old world rats and mice of the family Muridae of the order
Rodentia, or those fish, shellfish, and marine invertebrates classified
as food fish or shellfish by the director. The term "wildlife"
includes all stages of development and the bodily parts of wildlife
members.
(64) "Youth" means a person fifteen years old for fishing and under
sixteen years old for hunting.
Sec. 3 RCW 43.12.065 and 2003 c 53 s 229 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) For the promotion of the public safety and the protection of
public property, the department of natural resources may, in accordance
with chapter 34.05 RCW, issue, promulgate, adopt, and enforce rules
pertaining to use by the public of state-owned lands and property which
are administered by the department.
(2)(a) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, a violation
of any rule adopted under this section is a misdemeanor.
(b) Except as provided in (c) of this subsection, the department
may specify by rule, when not inconsistent with applicable statutes,
that violation of such a rule is an infraction under chapter 7.84 RCW:
PROVIDED, That violation of a rule relating to traffic including
parking, standing, stopping, and pedestrian offenses is a traffic
infraction.
(c) Violation of such a rule equivalent to those provisions of
Title 46 RCW set forth in RCW 46.63.020 remains a misdemeanor.
(3) The commissioner of public lands ((and such of his or her
employees as he or she may designate shall be vested with police powers
when enforcing)) shall enter into contracts subject to the provisions
of subsection (4) of this section to provide enforcement of:
(a) The rules of the department adopted under this section; ((or))
and
(b) The general criminal statutes or ordinances of the state or its
political subdivisions where enforcement is necessary for the
protection of state-owned lands and property.
(4) By January 1, 2012, the department shall enter into contracts
with local policing agencies to provide enforcement on state-owned
lands and may no longer employ department staff for enforcement.
(5) If the department and a local policing agency are not able to
enter into a contract, then the enforcement responsibilities of this
chapter must be met by the Washington state patrol.
(6) If, in the process of determining the capacity of a local
policing agency to enforce the provisions of this chapter, the policing
agency or the Washington state patrol determine that they must hire
additional officers, then the local policing agency and Washington
state patrol are encouraged to hire staff who are currently or were
previously employed as enforcement officers with the department of
natural resources.
(7) For the purposes of subsections (4) through (6) of this
section, "local policing agency" means any municipal or county police
enforcement agency and includes sheriffs and police departments.
Sec. 4 RCW 79A.05.030 and 2005 c 373 s 1 and 2005 c 360 s 5 are
each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
The commission shall:
(1) Have the care, charge, control, and supervision of all parks
and parkways acquired or set aside by the state for park or parkway
purposes.
(2) Adopt policies, and adopt((,)) and issue((, and enforce)) rules
pertaining to the use, care, and administration of state parks and
parkways. The commission shall cause a copy of the rules to be kept
posted in a conspicuous place in every state park to which they are
applicable, but failure to post or keep any rule posted shall be no
defense to any prosecution for the violation thereof.
(3) Permit the use of state parks and parkways by the public under
such rules as shall be adopted.
(4) Clear, drain, grade, seed, and otherwise improve or beautify
parks and parkways, and erect structures, buildings, fireplaces, and
comfort stations and build and maintain paths, trails, and roadways
through or on parks and parkways.
(5) Grant concessions or leases in state parks and parkways, upon
such rentals, fees, or percentage of income or profits and for such
terms, in no event longer than fifty years, and upon such conditions as
shall be approved by the commission: PROVIDED, That leases exceeding
a twenty-year term shall require a unanimous vote of the commission:
PROVIDED FURTHER, That if, during the term of any concession or lease,
it is the opinion of the commission that it would be in the best
interest of the state, the commission may, with the consent of the
concessionaire or lessee, alter and amend the terms and conditions of
such concession or lease: PROVIDED FURTHER, That television station
leases shall be subject to the provisions of RCW 79A.05.085, only:
PROVIDED FURTHER, That the rates of such concessions or leases shall be
renegotiated at five-year intervals. No concession shall be granted
which will prevent the public from having free access to the scenic
attractions of any park or parkway.
(6) Employ such assistance as it deems necessary. Commission
expenses relating to its use of volunteer assistance shall be limited
to premiums or assessments for the insurance of volunteers by the
department of labor and industries, compensation of staff who assist
volunteers, materials and equipment used in authorized volunteer
projects, training, reimbursement of volunteer travel as provided in
RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060, and other reasonable expenses relating to
volunteer recognition. The commission, at its discretion, may waive
commission fees otherwise applicable to volunteers. The commission
shall not use volunteers to replace or supplant classified positions.
The use of volunteers may not lead to the elimination of any employees
or permanent positions in the bargaining unit.
(7) By majority vote of its authorized membership select and
purchase or obtain options upon, lease, or otherwise acquire for and in
the name of the state such tracts of land, including shore and tide
lands, for park and parkway purposes as it deems proper. If the
commission cannot acquire any tract at a price it deems reasonable, it
may, by majority vote of its authorized membership, obtain title
thereto, or any part thereof, by condemnation proceedings conducted by
the attorney general as provided for the condemnation of rights-of-way
for state highways. Option agreements executed under authority of this
subsection shall be valid only if:
(a) The cost of the option agreement does not exceed one dollar;
and
(b) Moneys used for the purchase of the option agreement are from
(i) funds appropriated therefor, or (ii) funds appropriated for
undesignated land acquisitions, or (iii) funds deemed by the commission
to be in excess of the amount necessary for the purposes for which they
were appropriated; and
(c) The maximum amount payable for the property upon exercise of
the option does not exceed the appraised value of the property.
(8) Cooperate with the United States, or any county or city of this
state, in any matter pertaining to the acquisition, development,
redevelopment, renovation, care, control, or supervision of any park or
parkway, and enter into contracts in writing to that end. All parks or
parkways, to which the state contributed or in whose care, control, or
supervision the state participated pursuant to the provisions of this
section, shall be governed by the provisions hereof.
(9) Within allowable resources, maintain policies that increase the
number of people who have access to free or low-cost recreational
opportunities for physical activity, including noncompetitive physical
activity.
(10) Adopt rules establishing the requirements for a criminal
history record information search for the following: Job applicants,
volunteers, and independent contractors who have unsupervised access to
children or vulnerable adults, or who will be responsible for
collecting or disbursing cash or processing credit/debit card
transactions. These background checks will be done through the
Washington state patrol criminal identification section and may include
a national check from the federal bureau of investigation, which shall
be through the submission of fingerprints. A permanent employee of the
commission, employed as of July 24, 2005, is exempt from the provisions
of this subsection.
Sec. 5 RCW 10.93.020 and 2006 c 284 s 16 are each amended to read
as follows:
As used in this chapter, the following terms have the meanings
indicated unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
(1) "General authority Washington law enforcement agency" means any
agency, department, or division of a municipal corporation, political
subdivision, or other unit of local government of this state, and any
agency, department, or division of state government, having as its
primary function the detection and apprehension of persons committing
infractions or violating the traffic or criminal laws in general, as
distinguished from a limited authority Washington law enforcement
agency, and any other unit of government expressly designated by
statute as a general authority Washington law enforcement agency. The
Washington state patrol and the department of fish and wildlife are
general authority Washington law enforcement agencies.
(2) "Limited authority Washington law enforcement agency" means any
agency, political subdivision, or unit of local government of this
state, and any agency, department, or division of state government,
having as one of its functions the apprehension or detection of persons
committing infractions or violating the traffic or criminal laws
relating to limited subject areas, including but not limited to, the
state department((s)) of ((natural resources and)) social and health
services, the state gambling commission, the state lottery commission,
((the state parks and recreation commission,)) the state utilities and
transportation commission, the state liquor control board, the office
of the insurance commissioner, and the state department of corrections.
(3) "General authority Washington peace officer" means any full-time, fully compensated and elected, appointed, or employed officer of
a general authority Washington law enforcement agency who is
commissioned to enforce the criminal laws of the state of Washington
generally.
(4) "Limited authority Washington peace officer" means any full-time, fully compensated officer of a limited authority Washington law
enforcement agency empowered by that agency to detect or apprehend
violators of the laws in some or all of the limited subject areas for
which that agency is responsible. A limited authority Washington peace
officer may be a specially commissioned Washington peace officer if
otherwise qualified for such status under this chapter.
(5) "Specially commissioned Washington peace officer", for the
purposes of this chapter, means any officer, whether part-time or full-time, compensated or not, commissioned by a general authority
Washington law enforcement agency to enforce some or all of the
criminal laws of the state of Washington, who does not qualify under
this chapter as a general authority Washington peace officer for that
commissioning agency, specifically including reserve peace officers,
and specially commissioned full-time, fully compensated peace officers
duly commissioned by the states of Oregon or Idaho or any such peace
officer commissioned by a unit of local government of Oregon or Idaho.
A reserve peace officer is an individual who is an officer of a
Washington law enforcement agency who does not serve such agency on a
full-time basis but who, when called by the agency into active service,
is fully commissioned on the same basis as full-time peace officers to
enforce the criminal laws of the state.
(6) "Federal peace officer" means any employee or agent of the
United States government who has the authority to carry firearms and
make warrantless arrests and whose duties involve the enforcement of
criminal laws of the United States.
(7) "Agency with primary territorial jurisdiction" means a city or
town police agency which has responsibility for police activity within
its boundaries; or a county police or sheriff's department which has
responsibility with regard to police activity in the unincorporated
areas within the county boundaries; or a statutorily authorized port
district police agency or four-year state college or university police
agency which has responsibility for police activity within the
statutorily authorized enforcement boundaries of the port district,
state college, or university.
(8) "Primary commissioning agency" means (a) the employing agency
in the case of a general authority Washington peace officer, a limited
authority Washington peace officer, an Indian tribal peace officer, or
a federal peace officer, and (b) the commissioning agency in the case
of a specially commissioned Washington peace officer (i) who is
performing functions within the course and scope of the special
commission and (ii) who is not also a general authority Washington
peace officer, a limited authority Washington peace officer, an Indian
tribal peace officer, or a federal peace officer.
(9) "Primary function of an agency" means that function to which
greater than fifty percent of the agency's resources are allocated.
(10) "Mutual law enforcement assistance" includes, but is not
limited to, one or more law enforcement agencies aiding or assisting
one or more other such agencies through loans or exchanges of personnel
or of material resources, for law enforcement purposes.
Sec. 6 RCW 79A.05.160 and 1965 c 8 s 43.51.170 are each amended
to read as follows:
((The members of)) (1) By January 1, 2012, the state parks and
recreation commission ((and such of its employees as the commission may
designate shall be vested with police powers to enforce the laws of
this state)) shall enter into contracts with local policing agencies to
provide enforcement on state-owned lands and may no longer employ
commission staff for enforcement.
(2) If the commission and a local policing agency are not able to
enter into a contract, then the enforcement responsibilities in this
title must be met by the Washington state patrol.
(3) If, in the process of determining the capacity of a local
policing agency to enforce the provisions of this title, the policing
agency or the Washington state patrol determine that they must hire
additional officers, then the local policing agency or Washington state
patrol are encouraged to hire staff who are currently or were
previously employed as enforcement officers with the commission.
(4) For the purposes of this section, "local policing agency" means
any municipal or county police enforcement agency and includes sheriffs
and police departments.