Washington State
House of Representatives
Office of Program Research
BILL
ANALYSIS
Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee
SB 5921
Brief Description: Concerning tribal representation on the state conservation commission.
Sponsors: Senators Stanford, Van De Wege, Conway, Hasegawa, Liias, Nguyen, Nobles, Trudeau and Valdez; by request of Conservation Commission.
Brief Summary of Bill
  • Specifies that one of the members of the State Conservation Commission appointed by the Governor shall be a member or representative from a federally recognized tribe.
Hearing Date: 2/14/24
Staff: Robert Hatfield (786-7117).
Background:

The State Conservation Commission (Commission) is a state agency created to assist and guide conservation districts in preparing and implementing resource conservation programs.  The Commission provides informational and technical assistance to conservation districts throughout Washington.  The Commission also recommends and administers funding, distributes funds to conservation districts, and reviews conservation district budgets and annual reports.   

The Commission is governed by a 10-member board consisting of Governor appointees, representatives of other state agencies, and members elected by conservation districts.  

The Governor appoints two members, one of whom must be a landowner or farm operator, who serve four-year terms.  

Three Commission board members are elected by the conservation district supervisors, and at least two must be land owners or farm operators.  The elected members serve three-year terms.
  
The other five members serve as ex-officio members of the Commission including the Director of the Department of Ecology, the Director of the Department of Agriculture, the Commissioner of Public Lands, the President of the Washington Association of Conservation Districts, and the Dean of the College of Agriculture at Washington State University.

Summary of Bill:

One of the members of the State Conservation Commission appointed by the Governor must be a member or representative from a federally recognized tribe.

Appropriation: None.
Fiscal Note: Not requested.
Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of the session in which the bill is passed.