November 04, 2024
The Public Disclosure Commission began its Oct. 24 regular meeting with discussion on the agency’s goals, particularly its continuing commitment to improve its processes in an effort to get information to voters in a timely manner.
“All of us recognize the real goal is of the PDC is to try and provide information to voters in a timely fashion, so that before they vote they have information about what candidates have and have not done,” said Commission Chair Allen Hayward.
PDC staff currently prioritize cases involving candidates and committees participating in the current election year. State law requires the agency to resolve a case within 90 days or open a formal investigation. The PDC has been experiencing increased volume of complaints in the past year.
Commission denies request for reconsideration by Let’s Go Washington on violations, $20,000 fine
On Oct. 9, the Commission found that the Let’s Go Washington failed to report subvendors used by signature gathering firms and failed to produce campaign records when requested by the PDC, issuing a $20,000 fine with half suspended under certain conditions
The Commission held a hearing on the allegations against Let’s Go Washington on Oct. 3.
Let’s Go Washington asked the Commission to reconsider that ruling on Oct. 24, arguing that the Commission erred in ruling that the committee didn’t do its due diligence to determine if signature-gathering vendors also used subvendors, as required by law, and that the committee had new evidence showing that the vendors did not use subvendors that it did not have at the previous hearing. Let’s Go Washington also asked the Commission to reconsider its decision on the campaign records issue.
At the previous hearing, the Commission heard evidence that the committee didn’t turn over campaign records as requested by PDC staff, and as required by law, until after staff issued a subpoena for the records.
In a reconsideration hearing, staff and the requesting party brief the Commission, which then must first vote on whether to consider the request. If the Commission votes to consider the request, then it can discuss the matter and decide whether to grant the reconsideration.
The Commission declined to consider the request.
Commission considers several possible violations of campaign finance law by Washington State Republican Party – decision expected before election day
The Commission conducted a hearing at its Oct. 24 regular meeting involving charges that the Washington State Republican Party violated state campaign disclosure law in a number of instances, related to activities in both the 2023 and 2024 election cycles.
The Commission issued a written decision in the matter on October 30, fining the WSRP $5,000 for four violations, including rulings that the party made an illegal contribution to a political committee, accepted over-limit anonymous contributions, failed to include sponsor ID on a text message in the 2023 election, and delayed reporting the expenditure until after the election was over.
PDC staff filed a number of administrative charges against the state Republican Party, covering three separate incidents:
- That the party failed to include sponsor identification information in a campaign text message in 2023. Campaigns are required to include sponsor identification on text messages, as they are in most other forms of political advertising. PDC staff also alleged that the party filed expenditure reports related to that 2023 text message campaign 87 days late.
- That the party made a $100,000 contribution from their exempt fund to the Let’s Go Washington ballot measure committee. State party committees have an exempt fund and a non-exempt fund. While non-exempt funds may be used for all expenditures, exempt accounts can only be used for certain activities, such as get-out-the-vote drives, sample ballots, internal costs or independent expenditures, but does not allow direct contributions to other campaigns.
- And, that the party failed to disclose the source of monetary contributions in the 2024 election cycle and deposited over-limit anonymous contributions. The party deposited $106,500 in anonymous contributions on Sept. 17, 2024. Campaigns and committees are restricted to accept no more than $500 or 1 percent of their total contributions in a calendar year from anonymous sources.
The Commission can issue fines of up to $10,000 per violation. PDC staff recommended a fine of at least $5,000 in this case.
Assistant Attorney General Susie Giles-Klein represented PDC staff at the hearing. Attorney Joel Ard represented the Republican Party.
Ard argued that the charges brought by the PDC were excessive, and that the issues identified by staff were either already remedied by the party or were in the process of being remedied.
Giles-Klein and PDC Compliance Officer Jennifer Hansen went through the PDC’s case in detail. They began by discussing the first alleged violation – that the party sponsored an inflammatory campaign text message to voters in the days leading up to the 2023 election without required sponsor identification, and without reporting the expenditure until 87 days after it occurred.
The text message said, “Reject Han Tran anti-semitic Northshore school board candidate who calls for Israel’s destruction and the elimination of Jews. Vote 11/7, protect kids.”
The PDC received a complaint that the message did not contain information about who paid for it and conducted an investigation, eventually linking the message to the Washington State Republican Party. The party acknowledged that it had sponsored the ad and failed to include sponsor ID as required. The party then reported the purchase of the ad 87 days late on an amended report.
Ard argued that the ad only cost the Party $150 and was arguably reportable in the first place. He said the agency should have given the Party a warning, rather than take it to a full hearing of the Commission.
“This late expenditure coupled with the lack of sponsor ID added to the effect of the members of the public who received this text message,” Giles-Klein said. “It impacted the public in a way that it didn’t allow them to know this information before the election.”
The second instance of a potential violation involved a $100,000 expenditure from the Party’s exempt account for the Let’s Go Washington political committee. PDC staff argued that the expense was not an allowed use of exempt funds, which are restricted by state law, and do not allow for direct contributions to candidates and committees.
Exempt accounts do not have contribution limits – any contributor can give any amount to an exempt account. Meanwhile non-exempt accounts have some contribution limits, but allow for a greater variety of expenditure. PDC staff argued that the Party should reimburse its exempt account from its non-exempt account for the expense.
Ard and the Republican Party argued that it was a typical practice of the Party to use its exempt account in this way, but that the Party was in the process of transferring funds as requested by PDC staff.
In the last instance of a potential violation, PDC staff argued that the Party reported in September 2023 accepting $106,500 in anonymous contributions, in violation of state law, which only allows anonymous contributions of $500 or 1 percent of total contributions for the calendar year.
Giles-Klein said the amount far exceeded 1 percent of the Party’s total contributions for the year. When the Party filed the September report, it included a memo stating that the report would be amended to itemize donors. The PDC became aware of the contribution, and when the report had not been amended in two weeks, asked the Party to amend it by Oct. 11.
The Party did not amend the report by that date. The PDC filed administrative charges for an over-limit contribution, and the Party amended their reports to disclose contributors of the entire amount by the date of the hearing.
PDC to hold hearing on sponsor identification rules
The Commission plans to hold a public hearing at its December 12 regular commission meeting to discuss new rules for sponsor identification on yard signs.
Sponsors of political advertisements are, with some exceptions, required to include sponsor identification on those advertisements.
Early this year, the state Legislature removed an exemption in state law for sponsor ID on yard signs 4 feet by 8 feet or smaller. This spring, the Commission passed emergency rules on the new sponsor ID requirements in order to get new rules on the books in time for the general election cycle. The emergency rules will be in effect through Dec. 15, but could be extended another 120 days.
The emergency rules included a provision that signs printed before the effective date of the law, June 6, 2024, did not need to have sponsor ID. The permanent rules remove that exception.
The draft permanent rules also include a change to the existing exemption for campaign paraphernalia 4 inches by 15 inches – roughly the dimensions of a bumper sticker. As a clarification, the new rules will exempt campaign paraphernalia of 60 square inches or less.
Commission issues fines for unfiled personal financial affairs disclosures
The PDC issued a $2,000 fine, with $1,500 suspended under certain conditions, to Ben Callies, a Mossyrock School District board member, for failing to file his personal financial affairs disclosure, or F-1, for calendar year 2023, due in April 2024.
Individuals in elected and some appointed positions in Washington are required by law to file personal financial affairs statements annually by April 15, covering the previous calendar year. Candidates are required to file within two weeks of beginning their campaign. The reports are intended to reveal potential conflicts of interest for officials.
Callies had previously failed to file the F-1 in 2023, for calendar year 2022, and was fined $250 by the PDC.
Commissioner J. Robert Leach said he hoped suspending a portion of the fine would provide an incentive for Callies to get the report submitted.
In a second case, the Commission issued a $1,000 fine, with $500 suspended, to Kittitas County Coroner Nicholas Henderson, for failing to file his F-1 for calendar year 2023, due in April 2024.
In both of the cases heard, the elected officials received seven reminders prior to the report’s due date, and received hearing notices and communications about missing the due date, but did not respond to staff or participate in the hearing process.
Staff noted that Henderson is a long-serving elected official who has only once previously missed filing the F-1, for calendar year 2022 due in 2023, for which he was fined $250.
Enforcement update
The PDC received 116 new complaints between Sept. 18 and Oct. 16, and as of Oct. 16 has 326 total cases open.
Staff resolved 65 cases in that time frame, including two closed administratively, one dismissed by the executive director, six violations found by the commission, one remediable violation, five technical corrections, four dismissed with no evidence of violation, 10 reminder letters, 37 warning letters and one statement of understanding.
The PDC continues to receive an increased volume of complaints. Recently, the agency has seen an increase in complaints for lack of sponsor ID in political advertising and misuse of public facilities, which are common near elections, as well as an increase in complaints regarding commercial advertiser records requests.