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Divided testimony on bill linking predator mitigation to ungulate declines; committee holds HB 2221
Summary
HB 22 21 would require WDFW to trigger predator mitigation when certain ungulate populations fall 25% below a 10‑year rolling average. Agency staff raised feasibility and cost concerns; conservation scientists warned lethal removal may be ineffective; tribes, counties and producers offered both support and opposition. The committee announced it will hold the bill for further work.
House Bill 22 21, which would require the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to designate ungulate populations at risk and initiate predator mitigation when counts drop 25% below the 10‑year rolling average, prompted strongly divided testimony on Jan. 30.
WDFW staff (Mick Cope) told the committee some bill requirements are logistically and financially impractical, flagged the challenge of meeting historic harvest benchmarks, and said implementation costs for population surveys and mitigation would exceed…
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