Legislation to increase hunting and fishing license fees in Washington has passed out of the House Ways and Means Committee.
The panel voted 17-10 to move the bill on Monday. State Rep. Ed Orcutt, R-Kalama, the only Southwest Washington lawmaker on the committee, voted against SHB 1387. The next step in the process would be consideration by the full House.
“A lot of folks are trying to help feed their families with hunting and fishing,” Orcutt said. “Any kind of fee increase could be damaging to family budgets.”
Orcutt added that Washington’s non-resident fees are too low, but an increase for residents “is problematic for me.”
The measure increases revenue from sport-fishing fees by 12.6 percent and from hunting licenses by 7.3 percent.
A resident freshwater fishing license would increase from $26 to $29.50. A resident elk tag would go from $45.20 to $50.40. A deer and elk tag would increase from $69.20 to $84.50 while an annual razor clam license would rise from $11 to $13.
A few fees actually would drop. The two-pole endorsement would fall from $24.50 to $14.80.
The committee on Monday adopted an amendment to SHB 1387 boosting the proposed increase for non-resident licenses.
Ann Larson, legislative liaison for the Department of Fish and Wildlife, said a non-resident freshwater fishing license now would increase from today’s $50 to $84.50. A non-resident combination fishing license would jump from $91.40 today to $123.55.
“There was interest from legislators to be competitive with our neighboring states,” Larson said. “We’d still be lower (priced) than their non-resident licenses, but closer in line.”
SHB 1387 creates either a $70 or $105 administrative fee for commercial licenses.
The administrative fee goes away if the commercial license becomes part of the automated system.
Only taxidermist and trapper licenses are anticipated to switch to the automated system, she said.
Commercial fishing licenses require too much paperwork to be part of the automated system, Larson added.
Joe Stohr, deputy director of the Department of Fish and Wildlife, said the governor’s proposed budget reduces the agency’s budget by $24 million for the 2011-13 biennium. The fee increase would replace $14 million of that shortfall, he said.
Two other high-profile bill affecting the Department of Fish and Wildlife remain in committee.
Substitute Senate Bill 5662 and SSB 5669 are in the Senate Ways and Means Committee. Both were passed out of the Senate Natural Resources and Marine Waters Committee last month.
o SSB 5662 creates the $30 annual Discover Pass, which would be needed to use lands managed by the Department of Fish and Wildlife, Department of Natural Resources or state parks.
The daily fee would be $10.
Hunters and fishermen could pay $7 to access Department of Fish and Wildlife lands.
Money from the Discover Pass would be split 8 percent for Fish and Wildlife, 8 percent for Natural Resources and 84 percent to state parks up to $71 million per two-year budget cycle. After $71 million, the revenue would be split equally.
Larson said SSB 5662 may get a hearing before the committee next week.
o SSB 5669 creates a new Department of Fish, Wildlife and Recreation, consolidating the state parks and fish and wildlife agencies along with the Recreation Conservation Office and law enforcement program of the Department of Natural Resources.
The state Fish and Wildlife and state Parks and Recreation commissions retain their respective policy and rule-making authority, but hiring and firing the agency director transfers to the governor.
The governor would appoint a DFWR secretary from a list of five candidates submitted jointly by the two commissions.
