Committee to relay support for amendment to publish 1997 'heavy cut' rule in H.488

Danielle Fitsco, commissioner for Parks and Recreation, asked the Senate Natural Resources & Energy committee on Wednesday, May 21, to support an amendment to H.488 (the miscellaneous agricultural subjects bill) that would republish the "heavy cut" rule established in 1997.

Fitsco told the committee the heavy cut rule was developed after the 1997 law and has been used since then. She said a 2016 change to administrative rules procedures created a risk that rules not formally published in the code by February could be repealed, and the proposed amendment would publish the longstanding rule to avoid that outcome. "I'm here because we are seeking an amendment to age 4 88, which is the miscellaneous agricultural subject bill," Fitsco said, explaining the request to codify the rule's publication.

The commissioner said the administration had contacted the chair of the Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules (LCAR) and worked with legislative counsel to draft the fix. Fitsco further reported outreach with the Resiliency Advisory group and industry representatives, saying the logging and wood-products industries offered support for publishing the rule.

Committee members expressed no substantive opposition during the discussion and said they would relay their support to the Senate Finance committee and to individual senators involved in finance. One member said they would pass along support to Senator Beck and to staff working on Senate Finance. The committee did not take a formal vote; members characterized the request as an administrative fix and agreed to communicate support to the bill's sponsors in finance.

Next steps: staff will notify Senate Finance of the committee's support and the bill sponsor(s) may pursue the amendment in the Finance committee. No formal committee motion or recorded vote was taken at the Natural Resources & Energy meeting.