Trust Land Transfer: Conservation Program Update, & How to Get Involved
By Jim Freeburg
Advocacy and the Issaquah Alps Trails Club (IATC) are like moss on the trees of the Pacific Northwest. Even if you don’t notice it, it’s always there. The IATC continues to be a leader in conservation advocacy, protecting our backyard treasures from development and overuse, and promoting a positive, eternal vision for the Issaquah Alps.
One of the areas where IATC has been leading is with an obscure land conservation tool called trust land transfer (TLT), a state program that repositions state trust land into conservation status. Quick history lesson here: at statehood, the cash-poor, land-rich federal government gave land to the State of Washington with the idea that the state could provide non-tax revenue for public services, like school construction. Much of the gifted land (yes, taken from the indigenous peoples of this region) was heavily forested, meaning that Washington State could log the trees and use timber revenue to build schools and pay for local government services. The land, called trust land, was often ecologically valuable and obvious to all of us – more valuable to our society as conservation land than as 2x4s. Thirty-five years ago, state legislators realized that we needed to conserve certain state trust lands, but we also needed to provide ongoing revenue for government services. The state created a program called trust land transfer that took special land out of trust status and put it into conservation status. In return, legislative funding would buy replacement land elsewhere to provide ongoing funding.
Trust land transfer was the tool the state used to create the Mt. Si Natural Resources Conservation Area (NRCA), the Middle Fork Snoqualmie NRCA (Mailbox Peak), and the West Tiger Mountain NRCA. It also added hundreds of acres to Lake Sammamish State Park, Squak Mountain State Park, and even the Iron Horse Trail. Since its inception in 1989, the legislature has invested over $800 million in TLT – that’s real money going into conservation. In short, it’s been a critical element in reshaping the map to protect the places we love.
A snapshot of TLT projects in the Issaquah Alps; photo courtesy of Mark Boyar
However, five years ago, TLT was in danger. Funding and public support had dwindled as priorities shifted and challenges with the program became apparent. At that point, the IATC and other conservation groups stepped up and convinced DNR and state legislators to revitalize the program. There’s still a need for more conservation, and this valuable tool was too good to retire. The IATC helped get local legislators on board, and former state Senator Mark Mullet and current state Representative Lisa Callan oversaw an influx of $30 million for 15 TLT projects around the state in 2023 and 2024, including projects in the West Tiger NRCA and Middle Fork Snoqualmie NRCA.
The IATC is continuing to advocate for trust land transfer funding during the current legislative session in Olympia. We need this tool to continue smart land management policy in the Issaquah Alps. We hope you’ll join us for a TLT lobby day in Olympia on February 19th — sign up below. With new leadership in Olympia and a budget crunch, it’s more important than ever to speak to our leaders and remind them of our priorities. We’ll train you on how to talk to your legislators about trust land transfer, and we’ll make sure you get all the information you need to be an effective advocate. Like moss on the trees, IATC’s advocacy persists. Join us.
Join us for a TLT Lobby Day in Olympia on February 19th!
Sign up and make your voice heard in support of conservation.
Jim Freeburg is a professional lobbyist focused on making life better for his two young daughters, specifically around health care and land conservation. He’s a lifelong Washingtonian who now lives in Renton. He loves to run around Cougar Mountain, take his oldest daughter skiing at Snoqualmie or row on Lake Washington. He’s also a board member of the Mountains to Sound Greenway and lends a hand with some health care advocacy organizations.