Will focus on reducing catastrophic wildfire risk, preserving habitat and public recreation

YACOLT – Pledging to support the state’s foresters and scientists in sustainably managing forests for social, economic and environmental benefits and reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfires, Republican Jaime Herrera Beutler announced her candidacy for Washington State Commissioner of Public Lands.  

“Decades of undermanagement and neglect have turned too many of our public forests into crowded, diseased tinderboxes,” said Herrera Beutler.  “Fires now run rampant every summer.  They ruin our days with smoke, emit carbon, make home insurance unavailable and housing even more unaffordable. And for those unfortunate enough to live in the path of one of those fires, they can cause unimaginable heartache. I spent a dozen years in Congress fighting for more resources to responsibly manage our forests, remove the dead and diseased trees that serve as fuel for the fires that plague us every summer, and quickly fight the fires that do occur.  I’ll do the same as Lands Commissioner.”

Herrera Beutler, who formerly represented Southwest Washington’s Third Congressional District in Congress, points to her work on responsible forest management and wildfire prevention, wildlife habitat conservation and protection of endangered salmon, combatting ocean acidification to reverse the deterioration of shellfish habitat, and increasing recreational access to public lands.

“We are so fortunate to live in America’s most beautiful state, and all of us have a responsibility to keep it that way,” said Herrera Beutler.  “I will work with Tribes, scientists, landowners, sportsmen, the forest industry and conservation groups to make sure Washington’s forests and diverse array of species and habitats thrive, and to preserve access to recreational use of public land for its owners – the people of Washington.”

Herrera Beutler is a graduate of the University of Washington and recently completed a Fellowship-in-Residency at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Institute of Politics.  She serves on the board of the National Kidney Foundation and as a strategic advisor to the Children’s Hospital Association.  She lives on five acres in Yacolt with her husband, Dan, and her three children, Abigail, Ethan and Isana.    

“We’re raising our family in the path of the Yacolt Burn, which stood for over a century as the largest forest fire in Washington state history,” said Herrera Beutler. “In just the past decade, that terrible record has already been surpassed three times.  I won’t leave my kids a legacy of burning forests and choking smoke. We can and will do better.”

For more information, visit www.JaimeForLands.com.