2024 Regular Session

ByRepresentatives Lekanoff and Pollet

Read first time 01/23/24.Referred to Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources.

AN ACT Relating to conducting a review of salmon planning and recovery efforts; creating a new section; and providing an expiration date.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) By December 31, 2026, the joint legislative audit and review committee shall conduct a performance audit of salmon planning and recovery efforts in Washington.

(2) Within two watersheds west of the Cascade mountains, and two watersheds east of the Cascade mountains, the audit must identify: (a) The local, state, federal, and comanagers involved in recovery efforts and other relevant entities whose work may impact upon recovery efforts; (b) the extent to which recovery efforts include measurable goals for recovery that are shared by these groups and include actions that are aligned to attain these goals, and the extent to which work is coordinated; (c) the extent to which scientific and management data is defined consistently, shared, and used to inform decision making; (d) plans for assessing progress made in implementing recovery efforts; and (e) funding for recovery efforts and any constraints imposed by funding sources.

(3) The joint legislative audit and review committee must incorporate the performance audit in this section into its work plan and prioritize its work based on available resources and staff capacity.

(4) This section expires July 1, 2027.