FINAL BILL REPORT

SSB 6240

                                  C 230 L 88

BYSenate Committee on Environment & Natural Resources (originally sponsored by Senators Warnke and Metcalf)

Establishing a wild mushroom harvesting program.

Senate Committee on Environment & Natural Resources

House Committe on Natural Resources

SYNOPSIS AS ENACTED

BACKGROUND:

The harvest of wild mushrooms by recreational and commercial harvesters is unregulated.  Because of concerns raised that the increased commercial harvests may deplete the resource, the Department of Natural Resources in 1985 organized an advisory group to study wild mushroom harvest on state-owned land.  That advisory group recommended the implementation of a statewide mushroom harvesting policy to include licensing for commercial harvesting, data collection, and research.

At the September 1987 Board of Natural Resources meeting, the DNR proposed adopting emergency regulations to address the commercial harvesting of mushrooms from trust lands.  The board rejected the regulations in favor of an effort to gather reliable data on mushrooms and mushroom harvesting.

SUMMARY:

A program is established within the Department of Agriculture for gathering information about wild mushroom harvesting.  Mushroom buyers and processors shall possess an annual license ($75 and $375 respectively).  A mushroom buyer shall document information for the department about each purchase such as site harvested, weight, location of harvest, and price.  Processors shall supply information to the department regarding quantities of wild mushrooms sold.

The department shall encourage voluntary reporting by recreational harvesters.

Violations of this act shall constitute a class I civil infraction.

The effective date of the act is delayed until January 1, 1989, in order to be consistent with the effective date of the law regarding civil infractions.  The department may, however, take action prior to the effective date in order to implement the act beginning on January 1, 1989.

VOTES ON FINAL PASSAGE:

      Senate    49     0

      House 98   0 (House amended)

      Senate    47     0 (Senate concurred)

EFFECTIVE:January 1, 1989