House committee hears bill to add two tribal seats to Board of Natural Resources

The House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee on Feb. 18 heard testimony on Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 5838, which would add two tribal representatives to the Board of Natural Resources and require the governor to solicit nominees from federally recognized tribes and from tribes with treaty-ceded lands. The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Claudia Kaufman, said tribal knowledge and stewardship would strengthen state land management decisions and called the change "respectful and collaborative."

Lily Smith, the committee staffer, told members the measure expands tribal representation from a single seat to two — one for each side of the Cascades — and that nominees must be solicited from tribes with treaty-ceded lands as well as tribes located in Washington. Glenda Breiler, director of tribal relations at the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), said the change "recognizes those contributions in a real and substantive way, with a seat at the table," and that the bill would not replace government-to-government relations.

Tribal leaders described longstanding forest-management programs and urged support. Jared Michael Erickson, chairman of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, noted the tribe manages roughly 922,000 forested acres on reservation lands and said tribal forestry practices have produced resilience and revenue for tribal governments. Tyson Johnston of the Quinault Indian Nation and a Yakama Nation council member also told the committee tribal representation would improve decisions about cultural-resource protection, treaty rights and adaptive management.

Speakers from counties and industry urged caution. Paul Jewell of the Washington State Association of Counties said counties — which currently receive a large share of state trust-land revenue and consider themselves beneficiaries of those trust lands — were not consulted before the bill was expanded from one to two tribal seats. Josh Reese of Skagit County warned that changing board composition could alter the balance of fiduciary obligations and asked for more procedural clarity about how votes and decisionmaking on the six-member board would change. Todd Myers of the Washington Policy Center argued tribes can provide advice without voting authority and questioned accountability pathways for appointed tribal members.

Representative Orcutt and others pressed witnesses to explain who the trust beneficiaries are (counties, school districts and other local taxing districts) and how revenue from timber harvest is split. Paul Jewell described the distribution mechanics and said school districts are often the largest beneficiary.

Chair Reeves recorded the public-signin totals for the engrossed substitute: pro 29, con 128, other 3, and closed the public hearing. The bill received extensive oral testimony on both sides; no final committee action or vote occurred during the Feb. 18 hearing.