Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
2020 revenues are down
OLYMPIA – As state leaders and legislators prepare to deal with a budget gap in 2021, members of Fish and Wildlife know cuts could be coming to their department, but exact cuts won’t be unknown until Gov. Jay Inslee’s budget is released.
Fish and Wildlife spokesperson Staci Lehman and Officer Curt Wood, who monitors Lincoln County, both said budget cuts could be a reality due to lost revenue from shutdowns in spring 2020, but what those cuts would look like remains to be seen until the governor’s budget comes out and the state legislative session occurs in January.
Wood said some enforcement positions aren’t being filled within the department in anticipation of possible funding reductions, but reiterated the lack of confirmed knowledge regarding cuts.
The department submitted a capital and operating budget proposal in September for 2021-2023. The department is requesting $233 million in capital funds, which it estimates could generate 2,500 private industry jobs starting in July 2021, according to the department’s budget information available on its website.
The operating budget includes a second supplemental request of $1.6 million for emerging needs and $3.7 million of savings, a $11.2 million 2021-23 maintenance level funding request and several 2021-23 “performance level” considerations, which are grouped into three categories: $17 million for emerging issues, $8.1 million to backfill funding shortfalls and $23.5 million of possible reductions to balance the state budget.
The proposed budget also featured a possible $23.5 million in cuts, consistent with the governor’s office’s request for each state department to submit proposals for up to 15% reductions.
The possible cuts listed on the department’s website are broken into eight categories. Many of the possible cuts would affect the department’s work on the West Side of the state, but some would affect the whole state.
The first would be a $2.5 million reduction to conservation, which would cut eight positions supporting fish, wildlife and ecosystem conservation. The second would be a $3.1 million possible cut to lands stewardship, recreation and safety, an umbrella that covers essential stewardship, planning, enforcement, forest health, recreation and real estate property management services.
A third possible cut would be $5.2 million to eliminate six salmon and steelhead hatcheries and eliminate three steelhead hatcheries’ conservation programs, as well as eliminate all early winter steelhead programs in the Puget Sound area.
$5.5 million could be cut under the fishing opportunities blanket, and $2.2 could be cut by closing four trout hatcheries in Mossyrock, Naches, Arlington and Chelan. $1.2 million could be reduced from orca recovery and wildlife trafficking prevention by cutting three officer positions.
$2.5 million could be cut through possible elimination of warmwater gamefish programs, including the closure of the Meseburg Hatchery in Mesa. $1.1 million could be cut from partnership work with volunteers and youth.
Inslee has usually released his budget in mid-to-late December during his eight-year run in office, consistent with most municipalities and organizations releasing their own budgets in the last month of the year.
The state legislature is slated to meet in January 2021, though it remains to be seen whether that meeting will be virtual or in-person with COVID-19 precautions taken.
Drew Lawson is the editor of the Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
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