August 09, 2019

The Public Disclosure Commission is seeking public comment on proposed permanent rules that would help implement 2019 legislation that clarified some areas of the state's campaign finance disclosure law, enacted reforms to make reporting easier and more useful, and improved the public's access to information.

SHB 1195, agency-request legislation that was the product of public and stakeholder engagement, makes changes to financial affairs disclosure (F-1) reporting, the modification process in which filers can request exemptions to requirements, and makes electronic filing mandatory when the option exists. ESHB 1379 requires political committees sponsoring political advertising to provide additional sponsor identification when their top 5 donors include other political committees.

A public hearing on the proposed permanent rules is scheduled for Sept. 26 at 9:45 a.m. at the PDC office, 711 Capitol Way S., Suite 206, Olympia, WA. Written comments should be submitted no later than Sept. 24 to pdc@pdc.wa.gov.

The proposed changes to the rules are:

WAC 390-05 General policies and definitions

WAC 390-16 Campaign finance reporting

WAC 390-18 Political advertising

WAC 390-24 Reports of financial affairs

WAC 390-28 Modifications of reporting requirements

WAC 390-37 Enforcement rules