Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission meets in Olympia

The Washington state Fish and Wildlife Commission held a hybrid meeting in Olympia from June 11 to 13 to approve proposed land transactions and the lynx periodic status review, a recent news release announced.

The commission also heard briefings about the agency budget, agency request legislation, tideland and shoreline legal frameworks, and the electronic catch record card (eCRC) system.

Thursday, June 11, began with meetings of the Big Tent, Habitat, Fish and Wildlife committees.

The Big Tent Committee discussed its decision-making project, efforts to build community support, and future meeting planning. The Habitat Committee discussed no net loss and net ecological gain standards and an update about the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife's (WDFW) Lands 20/20 process.

The Fish Committee heard an annual briefing on the non-native game fish policy C-3632. It also discussed walleye and prey availability in the Snake River, non-native fish in the Columbia Basin Irrigation Project (CBIP), and non-native bass and predation in the Chehalis River. The Wildlife Committee concluded Thursday's meeting with a discussion around wildlife disease and future meeting planning.

The full commission convened on Friday, June 12, with a report out of the prior day's committee meetings. The commission approved an Executive Committee request to delegate a decision on administrative changes to hunting season rules to the director. The commission also approved a Big Tent Committee request to direct staff to develop a statement of work for facilitated conversations with the public.

An open public input opportunity followed the director's report.

The commission then approved a 40-acre land acquisition in Pacific County and the sale of a partial easement along Dreamz Road in Asotin County, the release stated. The commission heard briefings on agency request legislation and WDFW budget requests. That afternoon, the commission approved the lynx periodic status review and heard a briefing on tideland and shoreline legal frameworks, followed by an update on the department's licensing modernization effort.

Saturday, June 13, included an open public input opportunity, followed by a meeting debriefing and future meeting planning.

The Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission is a panel appointed by the governor that sets policy for the Washington state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

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This story was originally published June 18, 2026 at 11:18 AM.