SB 5981 - DIGEST

Declares that the purposes of this act are to: (1) Affirm the power and duties of drainage district commissioners as stated in RCW 85.06.080;

(2) Clarify the purpose of the fishway and hydraulic project approval requirements of chapter 77.55 RCW as applied to works and projects related to drainage infrastructure including tide gates, flood gates, and pump stations;

(3) Prioritize the use of public land for fish habitat restoration projects;

(4) Create demonstration projects to assess the effectiveness of certain fish passage devices and to test their impact on public land; and

(5) Establish a task force to review issues regarding the implementation of fishway and hydraulic project approval requirements as they relate to designated agricultural lands, analyze the effectiveness of the demonstration projects for fish habitat restoration, and report any legislative recommendations to the legislature.