Reporting Modifications

The Commission denied a request by Protect Marriage Washington, a proponent of Referendum 71, to exempt it from disclosing the names, addresses and occupations of contributors to the public.  The Commission unanimously found that Protect Marriage Washington did not demonstrate a manifestly unreasonable hardship that would result from reporting contributor information and that to grant the request would frustrate the purpose of the campaign finance disclosure law.  The Commission commented that some Protect Marriage Washington’s supporters testified that they had received civil telephone calls and e-mails which, sadly, occurs when emotional issues are on the ballot, but that the examples provided were not clear and convincing evidence that the disclosure requirements were subjecting the committee to a manifestly unreasonable hardship.

Personal Financial Affairs Statement (PDC Form F-1) reporting modifications were granted to:

·   Todd Banks, 2009 candidate for Northshore School District Director, from disclosing business customers of Kenmore Air, a company for which he is General Manager and has an ownership interest.  Mr. Banks testified that Kenmore Air, a sea and landplane airline, operates in the very competitive charter air industry and disclosing the reportable business customers’ names would create a competitive disadvantage for the company.

·   Robert Case, 2009 candidate for College Place School District Director, from reporting the business and other governmental customers of Columbia Rural Electric Assn., a local electricity supplier for whom he serves as a director.  Columbia Rural Electric Assn. is a locally managed, member-owned non-profit corporation operating a distribution system that covers 2,000 square miles in Washington and Oregon that served over 4,400 accounts in 2008.  Mr. Case testified that he has no knowledge about the business or other governmental customers of the Association and he does not have access to any of the customers’ names.

·   Erica Tiliacos, 2009 Candidate for Sammamish City Council, from reporting the business and other governmental customers of Varolii Corporation.  Ms. Tiliacos’s spouse is the President and CEO of Varolii Corporation, a software-as-a-service company located in Seattle, Washington.  Ms. Tiliacos testified that Varolii Corporation is a privately held company operating in a highly competitive field and that it considers its customers’ names to be highly sensitive.  Ms. Tiliacos testified further that she is certain that Varolii Corporation has not received payments from or done business with the City of Sammamish in the previous 12 months.  Except for the business customers disclosed on the corporate website, she does not have access to customer lists nor does she have direct knowledge of any other customer information.

Reporting modifications with no changes were renewed for:

·         Andrew Darvas, King County Superior Court Judge

·         A. Daniel O’Neal, Member of the Washington State Transportation Commission

·         Palmer Robinson, Kiing County Superior Court Judge

Rule Making

Following a public hearing, the Commission adopted new permanent rule, WAC 390-16-049 Out-of-state political committees – Implementation of RCW 42.17.093.  It sets out when an out-of-state political committee must register and report as an in-state committee instead of filing out-of-state committee reports.  The form used by out-of-state political committees (PDC Form C-5), WAC 390-16-050, was also amended.  The rule is effective November 4, 2009.

A public hearing to consider amending WAC 390-37-040 (complaint procedures) will be scheduled in the future.  Additionally, the Commission approved a proposed standardized complaint form that may be used by people who file complaints with the Commission.  The form is intended to assist complainants in identifying evidence and/or witnesses to support their allegations. 

Legislation

Proposed agency request 2010 legislation was reviewed.  The proposal would eliminate the need for candidates and political committees to file campaign reports with local county auditors and repeal language that designates the Office of the Secretary of State as a place to file PDC reports.  The Commission voted to move forward with the proposal.

Advisory Matters

The Commission adopted Interpretation 09-01, Implementing Chapter 358, Laws of 2009 – Penalty Waivers for Small Business Paperwork Violations.  The interpretation formalizes the Commission’s decision that civil penalties should not be waived for first time paperwork violations of RCW 42.17 by small businesses.

Interpretation 04-01, Contribution Limits:  Impact When a State Office Candidate Does Not Have a Primary Election was amended to incorporate recent statutory changes that extended contribution limits to judicial and specific local candidates.

The creation of regional fire authorities and their impact on candidates’ and elected fire commissioners’ filing requirements were discussed.  The discussion will continue at a future meeting.

The Commission meeting materials can be found at www.pdc.wa.gov under Commission Meetings. For additional information concerning these issues contact Lori Anderson, Communications & Training Officer, at (360) 664-2737, toll free 1-877-601-2828 or e-mail at landerson@pdc.wa.gov.