Pesticide commission name change signed into law

PASCO — A bill changing the name and membership of the Commission on Pesticide Registration sponsored by a local lawmaker has been signed into law.

Senate Bill 5143, sponsored by Pasco Republican Sen. Nikki Torres, goes into effect July 23. It is her first bill to make it through the legislative process.

"I'm pleased that my first piece of legislation to become law is about serving our agricultural community," the freshman senator said. "Washington has a robust agricultural portfolio that includes more than 300 different commodities, and pest management is an important issue that impacts every grower in the state.

"Changing the commission's name not only better reflects its actual work, but the new law also adds a non-voting member who will represent our region and help the federal government understand the specific pest-control issues affecting the Pacific Northwest."

The bill passed the Legisalture unanimously by votes of 49-0 in the Senate on March 2 and 96-0 in the House on March 24.

In addition to changing the commission's name, it adds a Region 10 Environmental Protection Agency representative from Seattle as a non-voting member.