FINAL BILL REPORT

SHB 648

PARTIAL VETO

                                  C 438 L 87

BYHouse Committee on Agriculture & Rural Development (originally sponsored by Representatives Bristow, Doty, Baugher, Rayburn, Grant, Chandler, Lewis, Jesernig, C. Smith, Sutherland, Brough, Unsoeld, Fuhrman and Todd)

Changing provisions relating to noxious weed control.

House Committe on Agriculture & Rural Development

Senate Committee on Agriculture

SYNOPSIS AS ENACTED

BACKGROUND:

The State Noxious Weed Control Board must adopt at least annually a list of plants it finds to be injurious to crops, livestock or other property.  Each county noxious weed control board must select weeds from the list it finds necessary to be controlled in the county.  In certain instances, the state board may order a county board to include a weed from the state's list on the county's list.

If a county weed board finds that noxious weeds are present on a parcel of land and the owner is not taking sufficient action to control the weeds, the county board must notify the owner that a violation of the state's noxious weed control exists.  If the owner does not take action to control the weeds in accordance with the notice, the county board may control them at the expense of the owner.

County legislative authorities are expressly authorized to appropriate monies from their general funds for noxious weed control programs and to levy assessments against land for this purpose.  A county legislative authority may also create one or more weed districts within its boundaries.  Intercounty weed districts may include parts or all of two or more counties.

SUMMARY:

STATE BOARD.  The membership of the State Noxious Weed Control Board is expanded to nine voting members and three nonvoting members. The state board will adopt a state list of noxious weeds. Findings regarding the inclusion of a plant on the state list must be available upon request.  Weeds on the state list will be divided into three classes:  class A, class B, and class C.

DIRECTOR OF THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE.  The director of the Department of Agriculture must adopt rules regarding articles, products or feed stuff containing noxious weed seeds or toxic weeds, and limit the amount of the seeds or weeds that such items may contain.  Any person who knowingly or negligently sells such an item in violation of these limits is guilty of a misdemeanor.

Upon receipt of a complaint from an adjacent county noxious weed control board or weed district, the director may require the county legislative authority or county board or weed district which is the subject of the complaint to control the noxious weeds cited in the complaint.  In certain circumstances, the director may control the weed or cause it to be controlled and the county or district is liable for payment of the expense.  In a county without an activated county board, the director may act as the county board to control noxious weeds.  The director may require a county to activate a county board in certain circumstances.  The director may employ staff to administer the weed control program.

The authority of the director regarding activities of county boards is applied to weed districts as well.  Weed districts are granted the authority to establish weed quarantines with the approval of the director.

COUNTY NOXIOUS WEED CONTROL BOARDS.  The members of the county board are appointed by the county legislative authority, rather than being elected by landowners.

A county board's weed control list consists of all class A weeds, those class B weeds that have been designated for control in the county's region and the weeds the county board selects from the class C list.

Within 60 days from initial employment by a county board, a weed coordinator must obtain a pest control consultant license, a pesticide operator license and the applicable license endorsements.

TIMBERED LANDS.  A provision of law is repealed which prohibits land from being classified for weed control purposes as agricultural land solely because it is used for trees for timber. Such lands with dense forest canopies must always control weeds to the same extent as the owner of nonagricultural land.  This includes eradicating all class A weeds and controlling and preventing the spread of class B weeds designated for control in the region.  Forest lands are subject to all weed control requirements for a single period of five years following the harvesting of the trees for timber.

WEED ASSESSMENTS.  Assessment rates will either be uniform per acre in each land classification or a flat rate per parcel rate plus a uniform rate per acre.  Forest lands used solely for trees and with dense canopies (except following clear-cut logging) may be subject to an annual assessment that will not exceed one-tenth of a specified weighted average of the per acre assessment levied on certain other lands.  For counties levying a per parcel assessment, the per parcel assessment on such forest lands will not exceed one-tenth of the assessment on nonforest lands.

CIVIL INFRACTIONS.  A civil infraction for certain violations of the weed control statutes is created.  Any landowner knowing of the existence of any noxious weeds on the owner's land who fails to control the weeds as required by law or rules or any person who enters upon any land in violation of a weed quarantine has committed a civil infraction.  Procedures are established for filing a notice of infraction, responding to notices, conducting hearings on such infractions and mitigating an infraction.  A person found to have committed a civil infraction will be assessed a monetary penalty not exceeding $1,000.  The state board must adopt a schedule of penalties and submit the schedule to the appropriate court.  Civil fines received by the courts will be paid to the county board less any mandatory court costs and assessments.

OTHER.  A weed control assessment constitutes a lien against the property and the county legislative authority may require that it be collected in the manner provided for delinquent property taxes if not paid or appealed.

The obligations or liabilities incurred by any county or regional board for any claims against either are specified. The authority currently granted by the weed control laws for entering property and performing work without the consent of the landowner is repealed.  A warrant from superior or district court may be sought for such actions where securing such a warrant is otherwise required by law.  A person who improperly prevents or threatens to prevent such an entry or interferes with the administration of the weed control laws is guilty of a misdemeanor.

The uses of monies appropriated to the department for weed control are specified and a report regarding monies disbursed to weed boards and districts is required every two years.  Compensation for expenses is authorized for regional (multi-county) weed board members. Procedures are established for deactivating a county noxious weed control board.  Provisions of law are repealed which authorize the creation of weed extermination areas.

VOTES ON FINAL PASSAGE:

      House 97   0

      Senate    49     0

EFFECTIVE:July 26, 1987

Partial Veto Summary:  A provision is vetoed which would have required that fines recovered for civil infractions be paid, less court costs and assessments, to the local county weed boards.  (See VETO MESSAGE)