Nethercutt's Wild Sky bill dies in committee

By Alex Fryer
Seattle Times Washington bureau

9/23/04
WASHINGTON — After months of declaring he had the political muscle in the Republican-ruled House of Representatives to create the first wilderness area in Washington state since 1984, Rep. George Nethercutt, R-Spokane, couldn't get his proposal out of a House committee yesterday.

Minutes before the House Resources Committee was to meet on the legislation, the panel's chairman, Richard Pombo, R-Calif., pulled Nethercutt's Wild Sky bill and a Democratic alternative from consideration, saying the issue had become a "political football."

It's unlikely any version of the proposed 106,000 acres of wilderness in Snohomish County will emerge from Congress this year, said Rep. Jennifer Dunn, R-Bellevue, a longtime supporter.

"I believe this was our last best chance," Dunn said.

Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Lake Stevens, whose 2nd Congressional District includes the proposed Wild Sky area near Index, wanted a wilderness designation that prevented logging, mining and most motorized vehicles.

His bill, which protected lowland forests as well as alpine peaks, had the support of the state's House and Senate Democrats as well as Dunn.

Democratic Sen. Patty Murray twice pushed a Wild Sky measure through the U.S. Senate, but it stalled in the House. Pombo, whose position makes him the House gatekeeper for wilderness designations, said he would not support the Larsen proposal because it included lands that previously had been logged, making it less than pristine.

Last May, Nethercutt, who is running for Murray's seat, announced he would write his own Wild Sky bill, saying he would try to meet Pombo's objections. "I believe I can get a version through the committee that is as good, if not better," he said.

Nethercutt's bill would have extended wilderness protection to 93,000 acres and used a less restrictive designation for 13,000 acres of lowland forests that would allow motorized vehicles and some logging. Dunn co-sponsored his legislation, too.

Less than a hour before the House Resources Committee was to consider both Larsen's and Nethercutt's proposals, Pombo called a meeting with Nethercutt, Larsen, Dunn and Rep. Jay Inslee, D-Bainbridge Island.




Although lawmakers offered different versions of the exchange, they agreed Pombo said he didn't want a divisive, party-line vote in his committee.

Larsen and Inslee insisted they asked Pombo to let the committee vote on both proposals.

Dunn and Nethercutt said the two Democrats rejected Pombo's request that the entire delegation get behind Nethercutt's bill, which Pombo supported.

In the end, Pombo decided to scrap both bills, and Dunn and Nethercutt put the blame on Larsen.

"I was able to get it through if Rick Larsen had not vetoed it," Nethercutt said. "This is pure, unadulterated politics. This isn't about me and my political life. This is about getting something done, and right now we have nothing."

"That is just horsefeathers," countered Inslee. "We wanted a vote today. For him to say Larsen asked Pombo not to bring it up is just false."

Murray stayed out of the fracas yesterday, releasing a statement expressing confidence that a final Wild Sky bill will include the low-elevation lands excised in Nethercutt's bill.

Larsen said he hadn't considered his next step, but he said there is hope until Congress adjourns next month. "Nothing is done until the gavel comes down," he said.