By STEVE BROWN
Capital Press
OLYMPIA — As of April 3, several wolf-related bills remain under consideration at the Washington State Legislature.
April 3 is the last day for committees to read in reports from the other house.
House Bill 1501, sponsored by Rep. Kristine Lytton, D-Anacortes, would establish an uncapped funding source for implementing the state’s wolf conservation and management plan.
The bill makes $50,000 available from the state Wildlife Account to the Department of Fish and Wildlife for claims and assessment costs from injury to or loss of livestock caused by wolves. The department may also tap funds from other sources. Additionally, the bill removes the statutory cap on compensation on livestock depredation, setting the value of those animals at market value.
HB1501 received supporting testimony from representatives of the Washington Cattlemen’s Association, the Department of Fish and Wildlife, Wolf Haven International and the Humane Society of the United States.
Other pending legislation includes Senate Bill 5187, which would authorize the owner of livestock to kill a gray wolf without a state permit or license if the predator is in the act of attacking or threatening livestock or another domestic animal.
Legislation not making the cut includes a bill “ensuring that all Washingtonians share in the benefits of an expanding wolf population,” a bill authorizing county governments to declare imminent threat to commercial livestock and to authorize the sheriff or other county agent to lethally remove wolves, and a bill requiring state listings of the gray wolf as endangered or threatened to be limited to areas of the state where it is also listed under the federal Endangered Species Act.
Other agriculture-related bills still in play:
* HB1113, requiring the Department of Ecology to identify beforehand any peer-reviewed science it relied on in preparing a significant agency action.
* HB1209, extending the program establishing Christmas tree grower licensure.
* HB1558, extending tax relief for income received for sale of honeybee supplies or for income received for pollination services.
* HB1770, allowing the appointment of nonvoting advisory members to commodity boards.
* SB5290, qualifying as an eligible renewable resource under the Energy Independence Act electricity from generation facilities in irrigation pipes, irrigation canals and water pipes used for domestic use.
* SB5766, improving the relationships between agricultural producers and state regulatory staff.
* SB5767, requiring the Department of Agriculture, upon request by a licensed milk producer, to issue an official individual identification tag (green tag) for bull calves and free-martins under 30 days of age. The bill also exempts inspection requirements for bull calves and free-martins that will not be transported out of the state.