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Committee hears tribal support for bill easing confidential government-to-government consultation at FSEC
Summary
Senate Bill 60-10 would exempt certain government-to-government consultations between FSEC and federally recognized tribes from the Open Public Meetings Act when no deliberation or commitments occur, and requires tribes to be given draft consultation summaries for review; tribal leaders and conservation groups supported the bill while some business groups requested timelines to prevent permitting delays.
Senate Bill 60-10, debated before the Senate Environment, Energy and Technology Committee, would amend the Open Public Meetings Act to exempt government‑to‑government consultation between the Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council (FSEC) and federally recognized tribes when there is no deliberation or commitments by council members. Matt Sheppard, staff to the committee, said the bill also requires the council to provide consultation summaries to tribes for review and gives tribes 30 days to request corrections or submit their own summary for inclusion in the governor’s report.
Tribal leaders told the committee that the change would strengthen confidentiality protections and help tribes share sensitive cultural and treaty‑protected information without public disclosure. Jared Takala of the Yakama Nation told the panel that allowing the full FSEC council to hear confidential tribal concerns would give the council a fuller picture of project impacts: "To have an opportunity to discuss this with the full FSEC council would allow us to ensure they have a full picture of a project's impact," he said.
Supporters including Washington Conservation Action and Renewable Northwest said the bill would respect tribal sovereignty while improving project outcomes by identifying potential concerns early. Lisa McClain, FSEC’s tribal liaison, said FSEC supports the bill’s intent but will submit clarifying language to avoid inadvertently changing other statutory provisions.
The Association of Washington Business cautioned that the expanded consultation option could increase scheduling complexity and suggested adding timelines to the process to reduce the risk of permitting delays. A fiscal note presented during the briefing indicated no fiscal impact. The committee collected testimony and closed the hearing without taking an immediate vote.
