Completing the Registration (Hired directly by the client/employer)

The lobbyist/firm must complete a separate registration of a contract/business relationship for each lobbyist employer/client 

  1. Login to the lobbyist electronic filing system using your user account. The PDC uses the Secure Access Washington (SAW) single sign-on system for its lobbyist electronic filing system. Learn about setting up a SAW account here.
  2. Under Lobbyists I File For, choose the name of the lobbyist/firm who the registration of the contract will be filed for.
  3. Go to the “Clients/Employers” tab and click the add employment/contract registration.
  4. Choose between the following: Hired directly by the client (employer) or subcontracting (hired by another lobbyist/firm). If the lobbyist is subcontracting from another lobbyist/firm, please see instructions below.
  5. Type to search the name of the lobbyist employer. If you cannot find the name of the employer, please contact the PDC for verification that the employer does not exist in our system.. Until the employer establishes a profile in our system, you will not be able to continue with the contract registration process.
  6. Choose the biennium covered by the contract.
  7. In the next screen, complete the form and certify.
  8. Select the lobbyist agents that will lobby for the employer during the biennium selected. Click next to continue. You can also finish later or delete your registration and start over.
  9. Complete the following sections;
  • Compensation
  • Areas of interest
  • Expenses and Reimbursement
  • Lobbying Length and Exemptions
  • Reporting periods
  • Review  
  1. If no problems are identified, select “preview and submit.”
  2. Review your work one more time, and click the "certify” button. If you need to make edits, select “Edit” instead.
  3. Lobbyist employers will then need to log approve the contract/registration. To begin, click on the client under “Clients/Employers I file for.”

Completing the Registration (Subcontracting (hired by another lobbyist/firm) )

The lobbyist/firm must complete a separate registration for each employer (client).

  1. Login to the lobbyist electronic filing system.
  2. Under Lobbyists I File For, click on the name of the lobbyist/firm who the registration will be filed for.
  3. Go to the “Clients/Employers” tab and click the button the add an employment/contract registration.
  4. Choose the following: Subcontracting (hired by another lobbyist/firm). If the lobbyist is hired directly by the client (employer), please see previous instructions.
  5. Select the lobbying firm that hired you. If the name does not appear in the list, please contact the PDC for assistance.
  6. Choose the employer: Select the client from the list of the principal lobbyist's employers displayed. A separate registration is required if the subcontracting lobbyist is representing more than one employer of the principal lobbyist. If the name of the employer is not displayed in this list, it is because the principal lobbyist has not submitted a registration for the employer. If this is the case, please stop and contact the principal lobbyist, requesting the registration to be completed. Once this is done, the subcontracting lobbyist may proceed with the registration.
  7. Select the lobbyist agents that will lobby for the employer during the biennium selected. Click next to continue. You can also finish later or delete your registration and start over.
  8. 7.Complete the following sections:
  • Compensation
  • Areas of interest
  • Expenses and Reimbursement
  • Reporting periods
  • Review
  1. If no problems are identified, select “preview and submit,” then certify.
  2. The registration has now been submitted but will only be valid once the principal lobbyist/firm "approves" it. The principal lobbyist/firm will receive an email to the address we have on record requesting their approval of the submission.
  3. Once the principal lobbyist/firm approves the registration, the subcontracting lobbyist will see registration listed in the Employment via Subcontract section.

Terminating, Suspending and Reinstating Registrations

To terminate a registration with an employer, amend the registration to uncheck any months for which lobbying will not be provided.

A lobbyist must file an L-2 for the last month or portion thereof for which they were registered. For example, if lobbying activities conclude on May 23, an L-2 covering May 1 to May 23 would be filed on or before June 15 and must include the termination notice.

A lobbyist may temporarily suspend a registration by amending the registration to indicate the months in which no lobbying will be done for a specific period of time, no lobbying expenditures will be made during the time specified and no compensation will be earned for lobbying. During the period of the suspension, no monthly L-2 reports are required. A lobbyist who has suspended a registration reinstates it by amending the registration.