Public Utility District No. 1 v. State

174 Wash. App. 793
CourtCourt of Appeals of Washington
DecidedMay 7, 2013
DocketNos. 29121-9-III; 29123-5-III
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 174 Wash. App. 793 (Public Utility District No. 1 v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Public Utility District No. 1 v. State, 174 Wash. App. 793 (Wash. Ct. App. 2013).

Opinion

Kulik, J.

¶1 — More than 15 years ago, the Okanogan County Public Utility District No. 1 (PUD) began the process required to construct a new transmission line and substation between Pateros and Twisp in the Methow Valley. Following a decade of environmental review and litigation, PUD obtained an environmental impact statement (EIS). Next, PUD needed to obtain easements over the proposed land. PUD negotiated with approximately 85 percent of the property owners for easements on their land. Ultimately, PUD filed a petition for condemnation against the remaining property owners. This included the State,1 which owned school trust lands that were required for the project.

¶2 Conservation Northwest (CNW), a group engaged in conservation activities, filed a motion to intervene. The court granted CNW’s motion. Both CNW and the State filed motions for summary judgment, arguing that PUD lacks the authority to condemn school trust land. The State stipulated to the entry of the order on public use and necessity, which addressed the narrow issues of whether the transmission line project was a public use and whether the easements sought were reasonably necessary for that use.

¶3 The court denied the State’s and CNW’s motions, granted summary judgment in favor of PUD, and entered findings of fact, conclusions of law, and an order on public use and necessity.

¶4 CNW appealed, challenging the order of summary judgment, in addition to the order on public use and necessity. PUD then cross appealed, challenging the trial court’s order granting intervention to CNW. The State also appealed the summary judgment order, contending that PUD had no statutory authority to condemn the State trust lands at issue here.

[797]*797¶5 We conclude that the State trust lands may be condemned as a matter of law. We affirm summary judgment in favor of PUD and the denial of summary judgment to the State and CNW. Given that we affirm the trial court’s order on the PUD’s condemnation authority, we need not address the PUD’s cross appeal challenging CNW’s limited intervention.

FACTS

¶6 A. Introduction. In 1889, Washington became a state. At that time, the federal government granted to Washington approximately three million acres of land for educational purposes and the support of common schools. Enabling Act, ch. 180, §§ 10,11, 25 Stat. 676 (1889). The lands consisted of sections 16 and 36 of each township in Washington. Id. Section 11 of the Enabling Act reserved these lands for “school purposes only” and set forth certain restrictions on their sale and lease to ensure that the lands would derive to the sole benefit of Washington schools. Id. This concern is echoed in the Washington Constitution. The constitution provides that all “public lands granted to the state are held in trust for all the people” and restricts the manner in which such trust lands may be disposed. Const. art. XVI, § 1.

¶7 The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is the state agency charged by the legislature with the management of these lands. In 1957, the management responsibilities were consolidated in DNR, which was created to provide effective and efficient management of these state lands. RCW 43.30.010, .030. Peter Goldmark, the elected Commissioner of Public Lands (Commissioner), serves as the administrator of DNR. The Commissioner is a member of the Board of Natural Resources that establishes policies regarding the appropriate management of state lands and resources. RCW 43.30.205, .215.

¶8 DNR has been granted the exclusive statutory authority and discretion to lease trust lands for various purposes, [798]*798including commercial, agricultural, and recreational uses. RCW 79.13.010.

¶9 In 1996, Okanogan PUD proposed a new transmission line to improve electrical service to the citizens of Methow Valley. PUD sought to construct the transmission line and substation between Pateros and Twisp (hereinafter the project).2

¶10 From the initial planning for the project in 1996, the project has been subject to extensive scrutiny. Gebbers v. Okanogan County Pub. Util. Dist. No. 1, 144 Wn. App. 371, 376, 183 P.3d 324, review denied, 165 Wn.2d 1004, 198 P.3d 511 (2008). As part of the review, PUD and the United States Forest Service prepared a draft EIS seeking input from citizens, environmental groups, and governmental agencies. Fifteen alternatives were identified and six alternatives and a no-action alternative were approved for consideration. PUD conducted two public hearings, held several public meetings, and responded to over 400 public comment letters. Id. A final EIS was released in March 2006, and PUD made its selection later that month. Id.

¶11 Following 10 years of environmental review, the superior court and this court affirmed PUD’s decisions regarding the project and the sufficiency of the final EIS. Id. at 393. We held that the environmental effects of the project were adequately disclosed, discussed, and substantiated in the final EIS. We also held that PUD did not act arbitrarily and capriciously in selecting the transmission line route. Id. The Supreme Court denied review. Gebbers, 165 Wn.2d 1004.

¶12 PUD negotiated the easements required for the project with approximately 85 percent of the property owners along the transmission line route, but eventually filed eminent domain proceedings against the remaining [799]*799owners, including the State. The State lands in question are school trust lands managed by the DNR. PUD filed its amended petition for condemnation on April 14, 2010.

¶13 At summary judgment on the condemnation petition, CNW argued that the proposed Pateros-Twisp transmission line would bisect the largest contiguous publicly owned shrub-steppe habitat in the Methow Valley and would have multiple adverse environmental impacts, including the introduction of noxious weeds, fragmentation of wildlife habitat, increased fire risk, and exacerbating erosion and sedimentation.

¶14 The State argued that it leased these lands for cattle grazing to generate money for trust beneficiaries and to preserve this land as a part of the trust corpus for the benefit of future generations. To this end, the State had entered into enforceable leases for the use of these parcels and had issued permits to allow for cattle grazing on certain parcels. In total, the proposed Pateros-Twisp transmission line would cross state trust lands that are subject to five active grazing leases and two grazing permit range areas. These leases and permits actively generate income to benefit Washington schools.

¶15 However, the leases on the property generate less than $3,000 annually for the school beneficiaries, not including DNR administrative costs. PUD’s proposed easements pass over no more than an estimated 4 percent of the area of any one lease and as little as 0.02 percent for one of the leased areas.

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Related

Public Utility District No. 1 v. State
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Bluebook (online)
174 Wash. App. 793, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/public-utility-district-no-1-v-state-washctapp-2013.