(1) There is established in the state treasury the limited fish and wildlife account which consists of moneys received from:
(a) Fees for personalized vehicle, Wild on Washington, and Endangered Wildlife license plates, Washington's Wildlife license plate collection, and Washington's fish license plate collection as provided in chapter
46.17 RCW;
(b) The department's share of revenues from auctions and raffles authorized by the commission;
(c) The sale of watchable wildlife decals under RCW
77.32.560;
(d) Moneys received from the recreation access pass account created in RCW
79A.80.090 must be dedicated to stewardship, operations, and maintenance of department lands used for public recreation purposes;
(e) Fees for informational materials published by the department;
(f) Those portions of the sale of licenses, permits, tags, stamps, endorsements, and application fees that are specified for a limited purpose within chapters
77.32, 77.65, and
77.70 RCW; and
(g) Income directed to the limited fish and wildlife account by any other statute not listed in this subsection.
(2) State and county officers receiving any moneys listed in subsection (1) of this section shall deposit them in the state treasury to be credited to the limited fish and wildlife account.
(3) There is established in the state treasury the fish, wildlife, and conservation account that consists of moneys received from:
(a) Rentals or concessions of the department;
(b) The sale of real or personal property held for department purposes, unless the property is seized or recovered through a fish, shellfish, or wildlife enforcement action;
(c) The assessment of administrative penalties;
(d) Those portions of the sale of licenses, permits, tags, stamps, endorsements, and application fees that are not specified for a limited purpose within chapters
77.32, 77.65, and
77.70 RCW;
(e) Articles or wildlife sold by the director under RCW
77.12.140;
(f) Excise tax on anadromous game fish collected under chapter
82.27 RCW;
(g) Donations received by the director under RCW
77.12.039;
(h) Income directed to the fish, wildlife, and conservation account by any other statute not listed in this subsection.
(4) State and county officers receiving any moneys listed in subsection (3) of this section shall deposit them in the state treasury to be credited to the fish, wildlife, and conservation account.
(5) Compensation for damage to department property or wildlife losses or contributions, gifts, or grants received under RCW
77.12.320 must be deposited into the special wildlife account created in RCW
77.12.323. However, this excludes fish and shellfish overages and court-ordered restitution or donations associated with any fish, shellfish, or wildlife enforcement action, as such moneys must be deposited in the enforcement reward account pursuant to RCW
77.15.425.
Intent—2020 c 148: "In 2017, the legislature directed the department of fish and wildlife to conduct a budget and performance assessment.
That assessment identified a structural deficit in the current state wildlife account, which does not differentiate between restricted use revenues and nonrestricted revenues.
The legislature intends to increase transparency and accountability to the public by clearly dividing restricted and nonrestricted revenues into two separate accounts.
This act does not alter any current legal restrictions on revenue uses or alter the amounts of revenue collected." [
2020 c 148 s 1.]
Effective dates—1981 c 310: "(1) Sections 9 and 10 of this act are necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, and safety, the support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and shall take effect on July 1, 1981.
(2) Section 13 of this act shall take effect on May 1, 1982.
(3) Sections 8, 11, 12, and 14 of this act shall take effect on July 1, 1982.
(4) All other sections of this act shall take effect on January 1, 1982." [
1981 c 310 s 32.]
Personalized license plates—Legislative declaration: "It is declared to be the public policy of the state of Washington to direct financial resources of this state toward the support and aid of the wildlife resources existing within the state of Washington in order that the general welfare of these inhabitants of the state be served. For the purposes of *this chapter, wildlife resources are understood to be those species of wildlife other than that managed by the department of fisheries under their existing jurisdiction as well as all unclassified marine fish, shellfish, and marine invertebrates which shall remain under the jurisdiction of the director of fisheries. The legislature further finds that the preservation, protection, perpetuation, and enhancement of such wildlife resources of the state is of major concern to it, and that aid for a satisfactory environment and ecological balance in this state for such wildlife resources serves a public interest, purpose, and desire.
It is further declared that such preservation, protection, perpetuation, and enhancement can be fostered through financial support derived on a voluntary basis from those citizens of the state of Washington who wish to assist in such objectives; that a desirable manner of accomplishing this is through offering personalized license plates for certain vehicles and campers the fees for which are to be directed to the state treasury to the credit of the **state game fund for the furtherance of the programs, policies, and activities of the state **game department in preservation, protection, perpetuation, and enhancement of the wildlife resources that abound within the geographical limits of the state of Washington.
In particular, the legislature recognizes the benefit of this program to be specifically directed toward those species of wildlife including but not limited to song birds, protected wildlife, rare and endangered wildlife, aquatic life, and specialized-habitat types, both terrestrial and aquatic, as well as all unclassified marine fish, shellfish, and marine invertebrates which shall remain under the jurisdiction of the director of fisheries that exist within the limits of the state of Washington." [
1975 c 59 s 7;
1973 1st ex.s. c 200 s 1. Formerly RCW
77.12.175.]