Anderson, Anthony D.: Alleged Violation of RCW 42.17A.700, .710 for failure to disclose 2017 & 2018 financial interest & directorship on the F-1 Statement of Personal Financial Affairs (Jul 2019).

Case

#55593

Respondent

Tony Anderson

Complainant

Glen Morgan

Description

The PDC received a complaint alleging that Anthony (Tony) Anderson (the “Respondent”) may have violated RCW 42.17A.700 by failing to report membership and/or ownership interest in Emerald City Media and board directorship with Puget Sound Access on his statement of financial affairs (F-1) report for election years 2018 & 2019. PDC staff reviewed the allegations; the applicable statutes, rules and reporting requirements; the response provided by the Respondent; and the applicable PDC reports filed by the Respondent to determine whether they support a finding of one or more violations. 

Staff’s review found the following:

Pursuant to RCW 42.17A.700, candidates are required to file a Personal Financial Affairs Statement (F-1 report) with the PDC, certifying financial activity for the preceding twelve months, within two weeks of becoming a candidate. The information to be disclosed on the F-1 report includes, among other things, any officer, director or member positions held with - and ownership interest in - any corporation or limited liability company. 

According to documents filed with the WA State Secretary of State’s Office, the Respondent held the positions of “Director,” “Secretary” and “Governor” (governing person) with Puget Sound Access from 2008-2013, 2014-2016, and 2018 respectively. Documents filed with the Secretary of State’s Office also show that the Respondent held the positions of “Member/Manager” and “Governor” (governing person) with Emerald City Media in 2017 and 2018 respectively.

The Respondent said he contacted the PDC in 2017 to ask whether volunteer, non-profit board member positions needed to be disclosed on the F-1 report and was told that the question was being evaluated by the PDC. The Respondent subsequently amended his F-1 report for 2017 to disclose his 2016 position with the Puget Sound Access “to be on the safe side.” 

The Respondent’s positions with Emerald City Media, LLC and Puget Sound Access were not disclosed on his F-1 report covering 2017. On the F-1 report covering 2018, the Respondent’s position with Emerald City Media, LLC was reported but the position with Puget Sound Access was not disclosed. 

In his response to the allegation, the Respondent explained that Emerald City Media, LLC is a self-funded video production project from which he derives no income. The Respondent’s failure to report Emerald City Media, LLC on his F-1 report covering 2017 was due to his erroneous belief that unpaid positions did not need to be disclosed on an F-1 report. 

The Respondent also stated he contacted the PDC again, prior to becoming a candidate for election year 2019, to find out if the agency had completed its evaluation regarding reporting voluntary, nonprofit positions on the F-1 report but said he never received a reply. As a result, the Respondent said he stepped down from his board member position with Puget Sound Access in May of 2019. Uncertainty regarding PDC requirements contributed to the Respondent’s failure to report his 2017-2018 relationship with Puget Sound Access on F-1 reports. The Respondent made a good-faith effort to resolve non-compliance by amending his F-1 reports to include the missing information for Emerald City Media, LLC and Puget Sound Access. 

Based on these findings, staff determined that, in this instance, failure to timely and accurately report business ownership interest and non-profit board directorship on F-1 reports does not amount to a violation that warrants further investigation. PDC staff reminded the Respondent about the importance of fully disclosing business ownership interest and both paid and unpaid positions on the F-1 report. The PDC finds that no further action is warranted, and has dismissed this matter in accordance with RCW 42.17A.755(1).

Disposition

Case Closed with Reminder

Date Opened

August 02, 2019

Areas of Law

RCW 42.17A.700, RCW 42.17A.710

Documents

• 55593 Anderson Tony Reminder Letter.pdf
• 55593 Anderson Tony Response.pdf
• 55593 Anderson Tony Complaint With Attachments.pdf