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Local News: Monday, January 27, 2003
Legislature 2003
Trapping ban gets new look by lawmakers
By Paul Queary
The Associated Press
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OLYMPIA — Last year, Washington's voter-approved trapping ban barely escaped repeal. Now the ban — despised by many ranchers, farmers, fish-hatchery operators, timber companies and owners of mole-infested lawns — is in the cross hairs again.
Passed in 2000, Initiative 713 bans the use of body-gripping traps to capture any mammal for recreation or commerce in fur. Initiative sponsors, primarily the Humane Society of the United States, argued the traps are cruel and inhumane. Nearly 55 percent of voters — 1.3 million people — agreed.
Until this year, the measure enjoyed a constitutional protection for newly passed initiatives — two-thirds of both the House and the Senate must agree to overturn an initiative within two years of its passage. That requirement helped save the ban last year.
But now a simple majority of lawmakers can change it, and there's no shortage of proposals. Four different bills have been filed. Two of those are scheduled for hearings in the Senate Parks, Fish and Wildlife Committee tomorrow.
One, Senate Bill 5129, by Sen. Dan Swecker, would repeal the entire initiative. Another would restore much of the trapping allowed before the ban.
"My agriculture community is being severely impacted by predator animals and nuisance animals," said Swecker, R-Rochester, Thurston County.
Senate Bill 5179, introduced by committee chairman Bob Oke, R-Port Orchard, but spearheaded by Ed Owens, a lobbyist for fishing, hunting and trapping interests, would allow trapping with body-gripping traps for nuisance wildlife and wildlife-population control. And it would allow the sale of fur from animals trapped for such purposes.
"If you're going to trap an animal legally, you might as well be able to sell its pelt, because that brings the cost down for the consumer," said Owens, who ran the campaign against I-713.
Both proposals are drawing fire from Lisa Wathne, regional director of the Humane Society of the United States, and I-713's chief backer.
"It's outrageous that they would be considering repealing a citizens initiative," said Wathne. "There's no huge fiscal impact because of it. It's a pretty basic, simple issue that has not caused any huge adverse impact."
Republican control of the Senate means one of the bills will likely pass there. Last year, opponents mustered two-thirds of senators to overturn the initiative, a first in state history.
But the repeal died in the House, and Democratic control there could spell trouble again this year.
Rep. Mike Cooper, chairman of the House Fisheries, Ecology and Parks Committee, said he doesn't see a full repeal passing. Cooper, D-Edmonds, said he's had more than 100 messages supporting the ban since the Legislature's session began.
Almost as soon as I-713 passed, problems began to arise. The cage-style live traps allowed by the initiative were less effective, and banning the sale of fur drove trappers' prices up. For beaver, the going rate has soared from $30 to as much as $600, Owens said.
Dam-building beavers flooded timberland, coyotes snatched more lambs and river otters feasted at salmon hatcheries.
In the cities and suburbs where the initiative did best, moles and gophers tore up lawns, parks, playing fields and golf courses.
The initiative's sponsors, protesting that they hadn't meant to ban mole-trapping in the first place, asked lawmakers to amend the initiative in each of the past two years. But rural lawmakers intent on repealing the entire thing balked.
"That's not right to exempt some and not correct it for everyone," said Fred Blauert, a Washtucna sheep rancher and president of the Washington State Sheep Producers Association. "We need to fix it for everybody."
Blauert said he's had to resort to shooting coyotes from airplanes to protect his flock of 300 ewes. The tactic isn't as effective — or as targeted — as trapping just the coyotes that try to prey on his sheep, Blauert said.
Wathne said supporters aren't willing to go beyond loosening the bill to allow trapping for moles, gophers and mountain beaver, a rodent that chews up young trees.
Legislature 2003
Trapping ban gets new look by lawmakers
By Paul Queary
The Associated Press
E-mail this article
Print this article
OLYMPIA — Last year, Washington's voter-approved trapping ban barely escaped repeal. Now the ban — despised by many ranchers, farmers, fish-hatchery operators, timber companies and owners of mole-infested lawns — is in the cross hairs again.
Passed in 2000, Initiative 713 bans the use of body-gripping traps to capture any mammal for recreation or commerce in fur. Initiative sponsors, primarily the Humane Society of the United States, argued the traps are cruel and inhumane. Nearly 55 percent of voters — 1.3 million people — agreed.
Until this year, the measure enjoyed a constitutional protection for newly passed initiatives — two-thirds of both the House and the Senate must agree to overturn an initiative within two years of its passage. That requirement helped save the ban last year.
But now a simple majority of lawmakers can change it, and there's no shortage of proposals. Four different bills have been filed. Two of those are scheduled for hearings in the Senate Parks, Fish and Wildlife Committee tomorrow.
One, Senate Bill 5129, by Sen. Dan Swecker, would repeal the entire initiative. Another would restore much of the trapping allowed before the ban.
"My agriculture community is being severely impacted by predator animals and nuisance animals," said Swecker, R-Rochester, Thurston County.
Senate Bill 5179, introduced by committee chairman Bob Oke, R-Port Orchard, but spearheaded by Ed Owens, a lobbyist for fishing, hunting and trapping interests, would allow trapping with body-gripping traps for nuisance wildlife and wildlife-population control. And it would allow the sale of fur from animals trapped for such purposes.
"If you're going to trap an animal legally, you might as well be able to sell its pelt, because that brings the cost down for the consumer," said Owens, who ran the campaign against I-713.
Both proposals are drawing fire from Lisa Wathne, regional director of the Humane Society of the United States, and I-713's chief backer.
"It's outrageous that they would be considering repealing a citizens initiative," said Wathne. "There's no huge fiscal impact because of it. It's a pretty basic, simple issue that has not caused any huge adverse impact."
Republican control of the Senate means one of the bills will likely pass there. Last year, opponents mustered two-thirds of senators to overturn the initiative, a first in state history.
But the repeal died in the House, and Democratic control there could spell trouble again this year.
Rep. Mike Cooper, chairman of the House Fisheries, Ecology and Parks Committee, said he doesn't see a full repeal passing. Cooper, D-Edmonds, said he's had more than 100 messages supporting the ban since the Legislature's session began.
Almost as soon as I-713 passed, problems began to arise. The cage-style live traps allowed by the initiative were less effective, and banning the sale of fur drove trappers' prices up. For beaver, the going rate has soared from $30 to as much as $600, Owens said.
Dam-building beavers flooded timberland, coyotes snatched more lambs and river otters feasted at salmon hatcheries.
In the cities and suburbs where the initiative did best, moles and gophers tore up lawns, parks, playing fields and golf courses.
The initiative's sponsors, protesting that they hadn't meant to ban mole-trapping in the first place, asked lawmakers to amend the initiative in each of the past two years. But rural lawmakers intent on repealing the entire thing balked.
"That's not right to exempt some and not correct it for everyone," said Fred Blauert, a Washtucna sheep rancher and president of the Washington State Sheep Producers Association. "We need to fix it for everybody."
Blauert said he's had to resort to shooting coyotes from airplanes to protect his flock of 300 ewes. The tactic isn't as effective — or as targeted — as trapping just the coyotes that try to prey on his sheep, Blauert said.
Wathne said supporters aren't willing to go beyond loosening the bill to allow trapping for moles, gophers and mountain beaver, a rodent that chews up young trees.
