To nominate a parcel for transfer through the Trust Land Transfer (TLT) program, you must have agreement from a receiving agency to accept the transferred parcel and manage it indefinitely. The transferred parcel should be managed to enhance or preserve its ecological values and public benefits. Many past transfers have become parks, open spaces, nature preserves, or similar designations.

 

Per SHB 1460, the receiving agency must be a public agency or federally recognized tribe. Public agencies are defined under RCW 79.17.200. Examples of public agencies include but are not limited to the following:

• Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission (“State Parks”)
• Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
• DNR’s Natural Areas Program
• Cities or towns
• Counties
• Public utility districts

 

Important: For a receiving agency, accepting a parcel can be a major decision. The agency is accepting the land and the responsibility and expense of managing that land for years into the future. This decision takes time. Receiving agencies may need to work through their own planning process, which includes understanding how the parcel fits into long-term management plans and agency budgets, and also doing outreach within and outside of their organization.

 

For that reason, DNR recommends you contact a receiving agency as soon as possible after you have selected a parcel to nominate. Consider asking the receiving agency how long they will need to arrive at a decision. Depending on their answer, you may need to delay your application to a subsequent biennium.

 

Only proposed transfers that have an identified receiving agency will progress to the next step in the process, the eligibility determination.

DNR’s Natural Areas Program manages two kinds of natural areas: Natural Area Preserves (NAP) and Natural Resources Conservation Areas (NRCA). If you are considering DNR's Natural Areas Program as a receiving agency, keep in mind that you may only nominate state trust land parcels that fall within an NAP or NRCA boundary (as designated through a formal boundary order). Please visit the Natural Areas Program page for contact information or read a fact sheet about the program.

Yes! If you are a receiving agency interested in acquiring a parcel, you may nominate the parcel yourself. In this case, the receiving agency is also acting as the applicant.

No, the parcel will be transferred directly to the receiving agency with no money changing hands. DNR will pay for standard transaction-related expenses, such as the appraisal, out of the legislative appropriation. However, the receiving agency will be responsible for all costs related to the parcel's long-term management once the transfer is complete. Refer to the Transfer and Replacement page for more information.