RCW 77.15.552
Qualifying commercial fishing violations.
(1) If a person is convicted of two or more qualifying commercial fishing violations within a three-year period, the person's privileges to participate in the commercial fishery to which the violations applied may be suspended by the director for up to one year. A commercial fishery license that is suspended under this section may not be transferred after the director issues a notice of suspension, or used by an alternative operator or transferred during the period of suspension, if the person who is the subject of the suspension notice is the person who owns the commercial fishery license.
(2) For the purposes of this section only, "qualifying commercial fishing violation" means either:
(a) A conviction under RCW 77.15.500, 77.15.510, 77.15.520, 77.15.530, 77.15.550(1)(a), 77.15.570, 77.15.580, or 77.15.590;
(b) A gross misdemeanor or felony involving commercial fish harvesting, buying, or selling that is unlawful under the terms of the license, this title, or the rules issued pursuant to this title, if the quantity of unlawfully harvested, possessed, bought, or sold fish, other than shellfish, groundfish, or coastal pelagic species of baitfish totals greater than six percent, by weight, of the harvest available for inspection at the time of citation and the cumulative value of the unlawfully harvested fish is more than two hundred fifty dollars at the time of citation;
(c) A gross misdemeanor or felony involving commercial groundfish or coastal pelagic baitfish harvest, buying, or selling that is unlawful under the terms of the license, this title, or the rules issued under this title, if: (i) The quantity of unlawfully harvested, possessed, bought, or sold groundfish or coastal pelagic baitfish totals greater than ten percent, by weight, of the harvest available for inspection at the time of citation and has a cumulative value greater than five hundred dollars; or (ii) the quantity, by weight, of the unlawfully commercially harvested groundfish or coastal pelagic baitfish is ten percent greater than the landing allowances provided under rules adopted by the department for species categorized as overfished by the national marine fisheries service; or
(d) A gross misdemeanor or felony involving commercial shellfish harvesting, buying, or selling that is unlawful under the terms of the license, this title, or the rules issued pursuant to this title, if the quantity of unlawfully harvested, possessed, bought, or sold shellfish: (i) Totals greater than six percent of the harvest available for inspection at the time of citation; and (ii) totals fifty or more individual shellfish.
(3)(a) The director may refer a person convicted of one qualifying commercial fishing violation to the license suspension review committee if the director feels that the qualifying commercial fishing violation was of a severe enough magnitude to justify suspension of the individual's license renewal privileges.
(b) The director may refer any person convicted of one egregious shellfish violation to the license suspension review committee.
(c) For the purposes of this section only, "egregious shellfish violation" means a gross misdemeanor or felony involving commercial shellfish harvesting, buying, or selling that is unlawful under the terms of the license, this title, or the rules issued pursuant to this title, if the quantity of unlawfully harvested, possessed, bought, or sold shellfish: (i) Totals more than twenty percent of the harvest available for inspection at the time of citation; (ii) totals five hundred or more individual shellfish; and (iii) is valued at two thousand five hundred dollars or more.
(4) A person who has a commercial fishing license suspended or revoked under this section may file an appeal with the license suspension review committee pursuant to RCW 77.15.554. An appeal must be filed within thirty-one days of notice of license suspension or revocation. If an appeal is filed, the suspension or revocation issued by the department does not take effect until after the license suspension review committee has delivered an opinion. If no appeal is filed within thirty-one days of notice of license suspension or revocation, the right to an appeal is considered waived. All suspensions ordered under this section take effect either thirty-one days following the conviction for the second qualifying commercial fishing violation, or upon a decision pursuant to RCW 77.15.554, whichever is later.
(5) A fishing privilege suspended under this section is in addition to the statutory penalties assigned to the underlying crime.
(6) For the purposes of this section only, the burden is on the state to show the dollar amount or the percent of a harvest that is comprised of unlawfully harvested, bought, or sold individual fish or shellfish.
[ 2003 c 386 § 3.]
NOTES:
Findings—Intent—2003 c 386: See note following RCW 77.15.700.
Structure Revised Code of Washington
Chapter 77.15 - Fish and Wildlife Enforcement Code.
77.15.010 - Exemption for department actions.
77.15.030 - Individual animal unlawfully taken—Separate offense.
77.15.050 - "Conviction" defined.
77.15.060 - Reference to chapters 7.84 and 9A.20 RCW.
77.15.065 - Authority of attorney general if prosecuting attorney defaults.
77.15.070 - Civil forfeiture of property used for violation of chapter.
77.15.075 - Enforcement authority of fish and wildlife officers—Volunteer chaplain.
77.15.085 - Seizure without warrant.
77.15.090 - Search, arrest warrant—Issuance—Execution.
77.15.092 - Arrest without warrant.
77.15.094 - Search without warrant—Seizure of evidence, property—Limitation.
77.15.096 - Inspection without warrant—Commercial fish and wildlife entities—Limitations.
77.15.098 - Willful misconduct/gross negligence—Civil liability.
77.15.110 - Acting for commercial purposes—When—Proof.
77.15.120 - Endangered fish or wildlife—Unlawful taking—Penalty.
77.15.150 - Poison or explosives—Unlawful use—Penalty.
77.15.160 - Infractions—Penalties.
77.15.170 - Waste of fish and wildlife—Penalty.
77.15.180 - Unlawful interference with fishing or hunting gear—Penalty.
77.15.190 - Unlawful trapping—Penalty.
77.15.191 - Revocation of trapper's license—Placement of unauthorized traps.
77.15.194 - Unlawful traps—Penalty.
77.15.196 - Unlawful poison—Penalty.
77.15.198 - Violation of RCW 77.15.194 or 77.15.196—Penalty.
77.15.210 - Obstructing the taking of fish, shellfish, or wildlife—Penalty.
77.15.212 - Damages due to violation of RCW 77.15.210—Civil action.
77.15.230 - Department lands or facilities—Unlawful use—Penalty.
77.15.260 - Unlawful trafficking in fish, shellfish, or wildlife—Penalty.
77.15.270 - Providing false information—Penalty.
77.15.280 - Reporting of fish or wildlife harvest—Rules violation—Penalty.
77.15.290 - Unlawful transportation of fish or wildlife—Penalty.
77.15.300 - Unlawful hydraulic project activities—Penalty.
77.15.340 - Unlawful operation of a game farm—Penalty.
77.15.350 - Inspection and disease control of aquatic farms—Rules violation—Penalty.
77.15.360 - Unlawful interfering in department operations—Penalty.
77.15.380 - Unlawful recreational fishing in the second degree—Penalty.
77.15.382 - Unlawful use of shellfish gear for personal use purposes—Penalty.
77.15.390 - Seaweed—Unlawful taking—Penalty.
77.15.395 - Hunter safety—Visible clothing requirement—Penalty.
77.15.400 - Unlawful hunting of wild birds—Violation of a rule requiring nontoxic shot—Penalty.
77.15.410 - Unlawful hunting of big game—Penalty.
77.15.420 - Illegally taken or possessed wildlife—Criminal wildlife penalty assessed.
77.15.425 - Fish and wildlife enforcement reward account.
77.15.430 - Unlawful hunting of wild animals—Penalty.
77.15.440 - Weapons, traps, or dogs on game reserves—Unlawful use—Penalty.
77.15.450 - Spotlighting big game—Penalty.
77.15.470 - Wildlife check stations or field inspections—Unlawful avoidance—Penalty.
77.15.480 - Certain devices declared public nuisances.
77.15.500 - Commercial fishing without a license—Penalty.
77.15.510 - Acting as a game fish guide, food fish guide, or chartering without a license—Penalty.
77.15.520 - Commercial fishing—Unlawful gear or methods—Penalty.
77.15.522 - Unlawful use of shellfish gear for commercial purposes—Penalty.
77.15.530 - Unlawful use of a nondesignated vessel—Penalty.
77.15.540 - Unlawful use of a commercial fishery license—Penalty.
77.15.550 - Violation of commercial fishing area or time—Penalty.
77.15.552 - Qualifying commercial fishing violations.
77.15.554 - License suspension review committee.
77.15.565 - Wholesale fish buyer a limited fish seller—Accounting of commercial harvest—Penalties.
77.15.568 - Secondary commercial fish receiver's failure to account for commercial harvest—Penalty.
77.15.580 - Unlawful use of net to take fish—Penalty.
77.15.590 - Commercial fishing vessel—Unlawful use for recreational or charter fishing—Penalty.
77.15.600 - Engaging in commercial wildlife activity without a license—Penalty.
77.15.610 - Unlawful use of a commercial wildlife license—Penalty.
77.15.620 - Engaging in fish dealing activity without a license—Penalty.
77.15.630 - Unlawful fish and shellfish catch accounting—Penalty.
77.15.640 - Unlawful wholesale fish buying and dealing—Penalty.
77.15.650 - Unlawful purchase or use of a license—Penalty.
77.15.660 - Unlawful use of scientific permit—Penalty.
77.15.675 - Hunting while intoxicated—Penalty.
77.15.680 - Department authority to suspend privileges—Form and procedure.
77.15.690 - Department authority to revoke licenses.
77.15.700 - Grounds for department revocation and suspension of recreational license—Appeal.
77.15.710 - Conviction for assault—Revocation of licenses and suspension of privileges.
77.15.730 - Wildlife violator compact citations and convictions.
77.15.732 - Citations from wildlife violator compact party state—Failure to comply.
77.15.740 - Protection of southern resident orca whales—Unlawful activities—Penalty.
77.15.750 - Unlawful use of a department permit—Penalty.
77.15.760 - Suspension of a master hunter permit—Appeal hearing.
77.15.770 - Unlawful trade in shark fins—Penalty.
77.15.780 - Disposition of judicially forfeited seized property.
77.15.800 - Engaging in wildlife rehabilitation without a permit—Penalty.
77.15.803 - Inspection of aquatic conveyance.
77.15.805 - Violation of an invasive species law—Warrant.
77.15.807 - Invasive species in or on water body or property—Warrant.
77.15.809 - Unlawful use of invasive species in the second degree—Penalty.
77.15.811 - Unlawful use of invasive species in the first degree—Penalty.
77.15.813 - Unlawfully engaging in fishing guide activity—Penalty.
77.15.815 - Unlawfully engaging in commercial whale watching—Penalty.