WA DNR Seeking Approval to Transfer Thousands of Acres to Tribes

[bigtex]

Under DNRs Trust Land Transfer program DNR is authorized to transfer (at no cost) DNR lands to other governmental agencies. As part of the process the legislature will then allocate funding to DNR to replace the lands they have transferred. The idea is to get rid of low performing and low timber value DNR lands to acquire higher performing and higher timber value lands. Essentially if DNR transfers away $5,000,000 of lands, then the legislature will give DNR to buy $5,000,000 of new lands.

Typically, these transfers aren't controversial as the lands are given to WDFW, counties, cities, etc. However, this year of the 8 approved transfers 6 will be to several tribes poised to get DNR lands. Including:

-Tulalip Tribe receiving 676 acres along Beckler River Road worth $4M
-Colville Tribe receiving 42 acres along the Methow River worth $450,000
-Yakama Tribe receiving three separate transfers of the Ahtanum State forest totalling 9,936 acres worth $14.9M
-Quillete Tribe receiving 372 acres worth $8.9M

WDFW will receive 1,071 acres of DNR land that is already part of the Quincy Lakes Wildlife Area
DNR's Natural Area Program will receive 95 acres

At the end of the day it comes down to $. You may lose some of your hunting lands because it isn't economical to DNR..

https://www.dnr.wa.gov/publications/em_bc_bnr_tltpres_09042024.pdf

[Alan K]

Surprised they don't have to take them to the open market to ensure they're getting adequate value.

Would be nice to see them saddle the lands with a conservation easement for public access beforehand too, though that would diminish the value.

[Alan K]

Er... Reading this again, this isn't even these entities buying these lands? It's a giveaway, and our legislature via our tax dollars will pay to make the DNR whole?  So taxpayers are paying to give away public lands with no assurances of future public use available? How on Earth would that make any sense?

[Rainier10]

Interesting

[bigtex]

Er... Reading this again, this isn't even these entities buying these lands? It's a giveaway, and our legislature via our tax dollars will pay to make the DNR whole?  So taxpayers are paying to give away public lands with no assurances of future public use available? How on Earth would that make any sense?

Exactly

[Rainier10]

It makes sense if it is government agency to government agency and stays open to public but giving it to the tribes with no stipulation that public retains access is not a good idea in my opinion.

[Caseyd]

Seems that an argument could be made that it would no longer be accessed by the owners/tax payers.

[duckmen1]

I have been saying it since we started the discover pass. Pay to access our lands and get more and more taken away.

[bkaech]

Part of the issue is DNR land is not and has no stipulations to be managed for public access. Its sole purpose (or maybe I should say primary purpose) is to make money on those lands. We take for granted that we can access and recreate on DNR lands, but that is not how they are managed. It would be nice to get the legislature to write in law that public access to state owned land should be maintained and integral to the well-being of our state in a way that money can not quantify, so that we can try to maintain access to DNR lands. ...Just a thought.

I can understand moving these lands from state agency to other state agencies, but once it leaves a state agency it should be the same as any sale.

[Bareback]

DNR at one time was a revenue generating branch of the government. Now, with the current management regime, it’s tax sucking cancer. 

[bigtex]

DNR at one time was a revenue generating branch of the government. Now, with the current management regime, it’s tax sucking cancer.

Actually compared to most agencies DNR is still pretty budget neutral. In FY23 they brought in $475,000,000 which almost all goes to schools. They spent $513,000,000 of which $153,000,000 was fire suppression.

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[MeepDog]

So... Our agency is giving away our land for free to another nation,
So that we can buy more land with our money?

[Slamadoo]

https://www.dnr.wa.gov/news/trust-land-transfer-funding-request-approved-board-natural-resources

[Slamadoo]

Maps

[Slamadoo]

Seems foolish for a state department to be selling public land and resources to a sovereign nation. Would we sell this land to Canada?