This bill creates a new commission nominating committee and changes how members of the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission are chosen and regulated. The governor, in consultation with the chair of the Senate Natural Resources Committee, must appoint the nominating committee and convene its first meeting by January 2026. The committee, composed of specified interest-category representatives (including hunting, angling, commercial fishing, environmental, agricultural, tribal, law enforcement, local government, and outdoor business interests), serves staggered four-year terms, selects cochairs, makes recommendations by two-thirds vote, and is required to recommend all potential fish and wildlife commissioners; the governor may appoint only individuals recommended by the committee. The bill sets deadlines for filling commission vacancies, requires senate confirmation before a commissioner may serve, and prevents immediate reappointment of a rejected appointee. The bill amends RCW 77.04.030, RCW 43.06.092, RCW 77.04.040, and RCW 77.04.055 and adds new sections to chapter 77.04 RCW. It imposes eligibility and qualification requirements for commissioners (including support for science-based management and demonstrated engagement via purchasing a hunting or fishing license in two of the most recent five consecutive years unless a federally recognized tribal member), prohibits holding other state/county/municipal elective or appointive office or certain compensated-conflict positions, requires compliance with ethics and public records laws (chapters 42.52 and 42.56 RCW), and requires the commission to meet annually with the governor. The bill explicitly assigns the commission authority to set hunting, trapping, and fishing seasons and related rules, to adopt rules implementing state fish and wildlife law, to give final approval to specified agreements and the department’s budget proposals, and to select its staff and appoint the department director. The bill also establishes a new removal procedure allowing the Senate to initiate a removal vote for commissioners for specified causes (failure to fulfill certain statutory or regulatory mandates, excessive absence, dishonesty, willful misconduct, or activities that reasonably appear to be conflicts of interest); a removed seat must be filled under the new nominating and appointment procedures. Important contextual details are not provided in the extracted text: the exact contents of the cited provisions (RCW 77.04.012, RCW 77.04.020, and WAC 220-101-010), the statutory identity of the referenced "department," the detailed method for selecting individual nominating committee members beyond gubernatorial appointment in consultation with the Senate chair, and the specifics of initial staggering of nominating committee terms.

If enacted, the bill moves real control over who can be appointed to the Fish and Wildlife Commission from the governor acting alone to a new, stakeholder-based nominating committee the governor must convene by January 2026, and it gives the commission stronger, explicit authority over seasons, rules, agreements, and the department budget and leadership. Practically, that means applicants will need to meet new eligibility checks (including recent hunting or fishing license history for most applicants), the commission will be required to meet annually with the governor and to rely on department recommendations and peer-reviewed science for hunting and fishing rules, and vacancies may be filled by the nominating committee if the governor delays, changing how quickly and from whom new members are named. The people and institutions most affected are the governor (reduced discretion in appointments), the state Senate (expanded confirmation and a new removal pathway), organized stakeholders named on the nominating committee (hunting, fishing, tribes, environmental, agriculture, local government, law enforcement and recreation businesses gain formal influence), current and prospective commissioners (new eligibility, conflict restrictions, and greater removal risk), and the department (the commission gains final say on budget and appoints the director and staff). The bill leaves out key implementation specifics—texts it cites (certain RCWs and a WAC) and the precise appointment mechanics for committee members—so some operational details and timing consequences remain uncertain.