ed orcutt

When it comes to managing Washington’s forests and preventing wildfires, House Bill 1168 is getting a lot of attention this session. The proposal would create a dedicated fund of $125 million every biennium for wildfire response, forest restoration and community resilience. The ...

With lawsuits filed and more pending against dairies across Washington for retroactive overtime from the past three years, more and more concern is starting to mount regarding the long-term impact these suits could have on the state’s farm industry. Kal ...

As the 2018 session continues in Olympia, Representative Ed Orcutt said one of, if not the key issue before the House Ag Committee is forest management and health.  He told the Washington Ag Network the state must take an active role improving forest health to help stave off catastrophic wildfires the Inland Northwest suffers year after year.  Or...

In Olympia, Wednesday was the deadline for bills to progress forwarded, to be considered for the remainder of the 2017 session.  However, SB 5239, dubbed the Hirst Fix did not advance.  The legislation sponsored by Moses Lake Republican Judy Warnick would have addressed several components of last fall’s Hirst Decision.  Representativ...

For Representative Ed Orcutt, some of the most pressing agriculture issues in Olympia this session deal with timber management.  The Kalama Republican says the state does not need to tighten forestry regulations, but rather the state needs to encourage responsible timber harvest.  ...