HB 2117/SB 5838 Adding a tribal member to the board of natural resources. This is a DNR request. This proposal would add a seventh member to the Board of Natural Resources who is a currently enrolled member of a Federally Recognized Washington State Tribe. The governor appoints the Tribal member to serve a four-year term, and shall solicit, collaborate, and consider nominees from each federally recognized tribe.  This will ensure Tribal perspectives are included in trust management decision-making. Tribal communities are an invaluable part of our state, and the agency finds that inclusion of a tribal member on the Board will provide crucial perspective and expertise that will be invaluable as the Board makes decisions that serve the broad public interest.

HB 2170/SB 5999 Expanding revenue generation and economic opportunities from natural climate solutions and ecosystem services. DNR lacks the authority to directly sell carbon and ecosystem service credits to generate revenue for beneficiaries. As a result, the agency is limited in its options to implementing projects. Providing DNR the authority to directly sell ecosystem services creates new revenue streams that will boost local communities and increase the pace and scale of reforestation, forest health, avoided conversion, conservation, and habitat restoration on public lands, all of which are critical to keeping working forests working, supporting rural jobs and local economies, and meeting the state’s climate goals. This bill would enable DNR to continue to manage trust assets for the greatest benefit to beneficiaries and engage in the same activities that other large landowners in the private sector already are implementing. DNR should have similar authority as private industry to enter carbon markets to generate revenue for beneficiaries and the state.

HB 2275 Concerning wildfire prevention and creating the Washington wildfire prevention and protection council. Governor Ferguson released his supplemental budget and proposes $30 million to restore the wildfire resilience funding commitment (HB 1168) in the governor’s ‘26 supplemental operating budget. This would be funded with Climate Commitment Act dollars from the Natural Climate Solutions Account. These funds will help us continue to build community resilience, reduce hazardous fuels, and ensure our firefighting teams can act quickly to keep small fires from becoming catastrophic.  

HB 1254 Implementing the International Wildland Urban Interface Code.
The WUI code is an international legislative model aimed at reducing the risk of wildfire damage in the interface areas where wildlands and urban development meet.

HB 1593 Creating the children's social equity land trust.
Washington has an important role in promoting child development, enabling parents to work, and supporting the economic vitality of our state and businesses. Putting more private forestlands into public trust is laudable, but creating more timber-dependent trusts is not going in the right direction. The trust would not have a significant economic impact on the funding of early care and education. The land purchased would likely have already been clearcut requiring 30 to 40 years for trees to be marketable.

HB 2251 Concerning climate commitment act accounts.
The bill defines how money will be distributed from the Natural Climate Commitment funds.

HB 2267 Concerning urban forest management ordinances.
It is the intent of the legislature to provide a framework for local governments to regulate and protect local tree canopy while, at the same time, allowing for sufficient development opportunities to satisfy housing needs.

How To Be Involved

• If you are interested in a particular bill, use the links above to go to the webpage for that bill. These pages include staff summaries and reports including who testified PRO versus CON on the bill. There is also information about how to access videos of hearings that have been held.
  
  
• If your available time permits you to do nothing else, please scan the LWVWA Legislative Action Newsletter each week (it's distributed each Sunday during the legislative session) and respond to the Action Alerts.
  
  
• If you have more time and are interested in a particular topic, we always appreciate and can use your assessments of bills, law implementation, and future concerns. For Forests topics send assessments of a few paragraphs to a few pages and include the sources of the facts you rely on. Send them to Kate Lunceford, Forests Issue Chair.
  
  

• If you want to engage more in a current topic, such as Dept. of Natural Resources sustainable harvest calculation or other forest issues, one of our coalition partners probably has a focused action project underway that you can join. Contact Kate Lunceford to discuss opportunities.