June 30, 2025
Link to My Edmonds News article
U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen (D-2nd District) visited Edmonds’ Willow Creek Hatchery Monday afternoon for a staff briefing on federal funding cuts that threaten hatchery operations and education programs.
“Bottom line is that the total cost of all these cuts to us is about $145,000, which is pretty devastating,” said Sound Salmon Solutions Executive Director Mary Brueggerman.
According to Larsen’s office, the Trump administration has decided to terminate funding for Regional Fisheries Enhancement Groups (RFEGs), like Sound Salmon Solutions, through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife’s Partners for Fish and Wildlife program. Sound Salmon Solutions is one of 14 RFEGs in Washington state, which work with communities across the state to recover salmon. Prior to the Trump administration’s decision, Sound Salmon Solutions received approximately $69,000 annually through U.S. Fish and Wildlife to support their salmon recovery work.
The hatchery raises 80,000 coho salmon annually, releasing them into 10 area streams. The hatchery’s popular summer camp, which is fully booked, provides scholarships for underserved youth funded by grants from No Child Left Inside. Other funding cuts — including those to the State Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), the Regional Fisheries Enhancement Groups (RFEG) and U.S. Fish and Wildlife — have forced more budget reductions.
Sound Salmon Solutions also does “a lot of education in the schools,” Brueggerman said. “We’re currently operating in 26 different elementary schools. In addition to providing education about salmon, their life cycle and their importance as a Northwest cultural icon, we do things like putting a tank in the classroom so students can see the salmon firsthand.
“And so besides the RFEG funding cut from U.S. Fish and Wildlife, OSPI cut $24,000 for these programs in Title 1 schools, again due to loss of federal dollars,” Brueggerman continued. “And the state also completely eliminated the Aquatic Lands Enhancement Account (ALEA) program due to EPA funding being cut off. That’s money we primarily use for hatchery and habitat restoration supplies.”
Larsen pointed out that the funding being cut from the program is being reallocated to other priorities, including to offset proposed federal tax cuts in what Larsen called President Trump’s “Big Ugly Bill.”
“This money is all being reallocated,” Larsen added. “It’s not going to deficit reduction.”
Larsen said he has been working with Sound Salmon Solutions to document the impact of the budget cuts, and he is hoping that funding can be restored.
After the briefing, Larsen received a guided tour of the hatchery, where staff explained operations and outlined some needed maintenance work, including restoration of the main holding pond.