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AN ACT Relating to establishing a public election commission; amending RCW 42.17.350, 42.17.370, 29.04.025, 29.15.030, 29.80.090, 41.06.450, 42.17.190, 42.17.510, and 44.05.020; reenacting and amending RCW 41.64.030, 42.17.2401, 42.17.2401, 42.17.310, 42.17.310, and 43.03.028; adding a new section to chapter 43.88 RCW; creating a new section; providing an effective date; and providing an expiration date.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1. RCW 42.17.350 and 1984 c 287 s 74 are each amended to read as follows:

There is hereby established a "public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission" which shall be composed of five members who shall be appointed by the ((~~governor~~)) secretary of state, with the consent of the senate. All appointees shall be persons of the highest integrity and qualifications. No more than three members shall have an identification with the same political party. The original members shall be appointed within sixty days after January 1, 1973. The term of each member shall be five years ((~~except that the original five members shall serve initial terms of one, two, three, four, and five years, respectively, as designated by the governor~~)). No member of the commission, during his or her tenure, shall (1) hold or campaign for elective office; (2) be an officer of any political party or political committee; (3) permit his or her name to be used, or make contributions, in support of or in opposition to any candidate or proposition; (4) participate in any way in any election campaign; or (5) lobby or employ or assist a lobbyist: PROVIDED, That a member or the staff of the commission may lobby to the limited extent permitted by RCW 42.17.190 on matters directly affecting this chapter. No member shall be eligible for appointment to more than one full term. A vacancy on the commission shall be filled within thirty days of the vacancy by the ((~~governor~~)) secretary of state, with the consent of the senate, and the appointee shall serve for the remaining term of his or her predecessor. A vacancy shall not impair the powers of the remaining members to exercise all of the powers of the commission. Three members of the commission shall constitute a quorum. The commission shall elect its own ((~~chairman~~)) chair and adopt its own rules of procedure in the manner provided in chapter 34.05 RCW. Any member of the commission may be removed by the ((~~governor~~)) secretary of state, but only upon grounds of neglect of duty or misconduct in office.

Members shall be compensated in accordance with RCW 43.03.250 and in addition shall be reimbursed for travel expenses incurred while engaged in the business of the commission as provided in RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060. The compensation provided pursuant to this section shall not be considered salary for purposes of the provisions of any retirement system created pursuant to the general laws of this state.

Sec. 2. RCW 42.17.370 and 1986 c 155 s 11 are each amended to read as follows:

The commission is empowered to:

(1) Adopt, promulgate, amend, and rescind suitable administrative rules to carry out the policies and purposes of this chapter, which rules shall be adopted under chapter 34.05 RCW;

(2) Appoint and set, within the limits established by the committee on agency officials' salaries under RCW 43.03.028, the compensation of an executive director ((~~who~~)). The personnel of the commission shall be supervised by the executive director and shall be arranged in two administrative divisions: The division of disclosure; and the division of investigations and enforcement. The executive director shall perform such other duties and have such powers as the commission may prescribe and delegate to implement and enforce this chapter efficiently and effectively. The commission shall not delegate its authority to adopt, amend, or rescind rules nor shall it delegate authority to determine whether an actual violation of this chapter has occurred or to assess penalties for such violations;

(3) Prepare and publish such reports and technical studies as in its judgment will tend to promote the purposes of this chapter, including reports and statistics concerning campaign financing, lobbying, financial interests of elected officials, and enforcement of this chapter;

(4) Make from time to time, on its own motion, audits and field investigations;

(5) Make public the time and date of any formal hearing set to determine whether a violation has occurred, the question or questions to be considered, and the results thereof;

(6) Administer oaths and affirmations, issue subpoenas, and compel attendance, take evidence and require the production of any books, papers, correspondence, memorandums, or other records relevant or material for the purpose of any investigation authorized under this chapter, or any other proceeding under this chapter;

(7) Adopt and promulgate a code of fair campaign practices;

(8) Relieve, by rule, candidates or political committees of obligations to comply with the provisions of this chapter relating to election campaigns, if they have not received contributions nor made expenditures in connection with any election campaign of more than one thousand dollars;

(9) Adopt rules prescribing reasonable requirements for keeping accounts of and reporting on a quarterly basis costs incurred by state agencies, counties, cities, and other municipalities and political subdivisions in preparing, publishing, and distributing legislative information. The term "legislative information," for the purposes of this subsection, means books, pamphlets, reports, and other materials prepared, published, or distributed at substantial cost, a substantial purpose of which is to influence the passage or defeat of any legislation. The state auditor in his or her regular examination of each agency under chapter 43.09 RCW shall review the rules, accounts, and reports and make appropriate findings, comments, and recommendations in his or her examination reports concerning those agencies;

(10) After hearing, by order approved and ratified by a majority of the membership of the commission, suspend or modify any of the reporting requirements of this chapter in a particular case if it finds that literal application of this chapter works a manifestly unreasonable hardship and if it also finds that the suspension or modification will not frustrate the purposes of the chapter. The commission shall find that a manifestly unreasonable hardship exists if reporting the name of an entity required to be reported under RCW 42.17.241(1)(g)(ii) would be likely to adversely affect the competitive position of any entity in which the person filing the report or any member of his or her immediate family holds any office, directorship, general partnership interest, or an ownership interest of ten percent or more. Any suspension or modification shall be only to the extent necessary to substantially relieve the hardship. The commission shall act to suspend or modify any reporting requirements only if it determines that facts exist that are clear and convincing proof of the findings required under this section. Any citizen has standing to bring an action in Thurston county superior court to contest the propriety of any order entered under this section within one year from the date of the entry of the order; and

(11) Revise, at least once every five years but no more often than every two years, the monetary reporting thresholds and reporting code values of this chapter. The revisions shall be only for the purpose of recognizing economic changes as reflected by an inflationary index recommended by the office of financial management. The revisions shall be guided by the change in the index for the period commencing with the month of December preceding the last revision and concluding with the month of December preceding the month the revision is adopted. As to each of the three general categories of this chapter (reports of campaign finance, reports of lobbyist activity, and reports of the financial affairs of elected and appointed officials), the revisions shall equally affect all thresholds within each category. Revisions shall be adopted as rules under chapter 34.05 RCW. The first revision authorized by this subsection shall reflect economic changes from the time of the last legislative enactment affecting the respective code or threshold through December 1985.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 43.88 RCW to read as follows:

The budget of the public election commission shall be submitted as and considered to be a part of the budget of the office of the secretary of state.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. The public disclosure commission is hereby abolished and its powers, duties, and functions are hereby transferred to the public election commission. The members of the public disclosure commission immediately before the effective date of this section shall become the initial members of the public election commission on the effective date of this section and shall serve the remainder of the terms for which they were appointed to the public disclosure commission except as they are replaced in accordance with RCW 42.17.350. The executive director of the public disclosure commission immediately before the effective date of this section shall become the executive director of the public election commission on the effective date of this section. The rules of or proposed by the public disclosure commission immediately before the effective date of this section shall be the rules and proposed rules of the public election commission on the effective date of this section. All pending business before the public disclosure commission including enforcement actions shall be continued and acted upon by the public election commission. All existing contracts and obligations shall remain in full force and shall be performed by the public election commission. The transfer of the powers, duties, functions, and personnel of the public disclosure commission shall not affect the validity of any act performed prior to the effective date of this section.

All reports, documents, surveys, books, records, files, papers, or written material in the possession of the public disclosure commission shall be delivered to the custody of the public election commission. All cabinets, furniture, office equipment, motor vehicles, and other tangible property employed by the public disclosure commission shall be made available to the public election commission. All funds, credits, or other assets held by the public disclosure commission shall be assigned to the public election commission.

Any appropriations made to the public disclosure commission shall, on the effective date of this section, be transferred and credited to the public election commission.

Whenever any question arises as to the transfer of any personnel, funds, books, documents, records, papers, files, equipment, or other tangible property used or held in the exercise of the powers and the performance of the duties and functions transferred, the director of financial management shall make a determination as to the proper allocation and certify the same to the state agencies concerned.

All employees of the public disclosure commission are transferred to the jurisdiction of the public election commission. All employees assigned to the public election commission shall perform their usual duties upon the same terms as formerly, without any loss of rights, subject to any action that may be appropriate thereafter.

Nothing contained in this section may be construed to alter any existing collective bargaining unit or the provisions of any existing collective bargaining agreement until the agreement has expired or until the bargaining unit has been modified by action of the personnel board as provided by law.

Sec. 5. RCW 29.04.025 and 1983 c 294 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:

Each county auditor or county elections official shall ensure that reports filed pursuant to chapter 42.17 RCW are arranged, handled, indexed, and disclosed in a manner consistent with the rules of the public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission adopted under RCW 42.17.375.

Sec. 6. RCW 29.15.030 and 1990 c 59 s 84 are each amended to read as follows:

Declarations of candidacy shall be filed with the following filing officers:

(1) The secretary of state for declarations of candidacy for state-wide offices, United States senate, and United States house of representatives;

(2) The secretary of state for declarations of candidacy for the state legislature, the court of appeals, and the superior court when voters from a district comprising more than one county vote upon the candidates;

(3) The county auditor for all other offices. For any nonpartisan office, other than judicial offices, where voters from a district comprising more than one county vote upon the candidates, a declaration of candidacy shall be filed with the county auditor of the county in which a majority of the registered voters of the district reside.

Each official with whom declarations of candidacy are filed under this section, within one business day following the closing of the applicable filing period, shall forward to the public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission a copy of each declaration of candidacy filed in his or her office during such filing period or a list containing the name of each candidate who files such a declaration in his or her office during such filing period together with a precise identification of the position sought by each such candidate and the date on which each such declaration was filed. Such official, within three days following his or her receipt of any letter withdrawing a person's name as a candidate, shall also forward a copy of such withdrawal letter to the public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission.

Sec. 7. RCW 29.80.090 and 1984 c 54 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:

In addition to other contents included in the candidates' pamphlet, the secretary of state shall prepare and include a section containing (1) a brief explanation of how voters may participate in the election campaign process; (2) the name, address, and telephone number of each political party that has one or more nominees listed in the candidates' pamphlet, but this information shall be included in the candidates' pamphlet only if and as filed with the secretary of state by the state committee of a major political party or the presiding officer of the convention of a minor political party; (3) the address and telephone number of the public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission established under RCW 42.17.350; (4) a summary of the disclosure requirements that apply when contributions are made to candidates and political committees; and (5) an explanation of the federal income tax credits and deductions that are available to persons who make such contributions. Whenever the candidates' pamphlet is combined with the voters' pamphlet, the section shall be placed at or near the beginning of the combined publication.

Sec. 8. RCW 41.06.450 and 1993 c 281 s 37 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) By January 1, 1983, the Washington personnel resources board shall adopt rules applicable to each agency to ensure that information relating to employee misconduct or alleged misconduct is destroyed or maintained as follows:

(a) All such information determined to be false and all such information in situations where the employee has been fully exonerated of wrongdoing, shall be promptly destroyed;

(b) All such information having no reasonable bearing on the employee's job performance or on the efficient and effective management of the agency, shall be promptly destroyed;

(c) All other information shall be retained only so long as it has a reasonable bearing on the employee's job performance or on the efficient and effective management of the agency.

(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, an agency may retain information relating to employee misconduct or alleged misconduct if:

(a) The employee requests that the information be retained; or

(b) The information is related to pending legal action or legal action may be reasonably expected to result.

(3) In adopting rules under this section, the Washington personnel resources board shall consult with the public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission to ensure that the public policy of the state, as expressed in chapter 42.17 RCW, is adequately protected.

Sec. 9. RCW 41.64.030 and 1984 c 287 s 73 and 1984 c 34 s 4 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:

(1) The board shall operate on either a part-time or a full-time basis, as determined by the governor. If it is determined that the board shall operate on a full-time basis, each member of the board shall receive an annual salary to be determined by the governor pursuant to RCW 43.03.040. If it is determined that the board shall operate on a part-time basis, each member of the board shall be compensated in accordance with RCW 43.03.250. Each board member shall receive reimbursement for travel expenses incurred in the discharge of his or her duties in accordance with RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060.

(2) Members of the board shall report their financial affairs to the public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission pursuant to RCW 42.17.240 and 42.17.241.

Sec. 10. RCW 42.17.190 and 1986 c 239 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Every legislator and every committee of the legislature shall file with the commission quarterly reports listing the names, addresses, and salaries of all persons employed by the person or committee making the filing for the purpose of aiding in the preparation or enactment of legislation or the performance of legislative duties of such legislator or committee during the preceding quarter. The reports shall be made in the form and the manner prescribed by the commission and shall be filed between the first and tenth days of each calendar quarter: PROVIDED, That the information required by this subsection may be supplied, insofar as it is available, by the chief clerk of the house of representatives or by the secretary of the senate on a form prepared by the commission.

(2) Unless authorized by subsection (3) of this section or otherwise expressly authorized by law, no public funds may be used directly or indirectly for lobbying: PROVIDED, This does not prevent officers or employees of an agency from communicating with a member of the legislature on the request of that member; or communicating to the legislature, through the proper official channels, requests for legislative action or appropriations which are deemed necessary for the efficient conduct of the public business or actually made in the proper performance of their official duties: PROVIDED FURTHER, That this subsection does not apply to the legislative branch.

(3) Any agency, not otherwise expressly authorized by law, may expend public funds for lobbying, but such lobbying activity shall be limited to (a) providing information or communicating on matters pertaining to official agency business to any elected official or officer or employee of any agency or (b) advocating the official position or interests of the agency to any elected official or officer or employee of any agency: PROVIDED, That public funds may not be expended as a direct or indirect gift or campaign contribution to any elected official or officer or employee of any agency. For the purposes of this subsection, the term "gift" means a voluntary transfer of any thing of value without consideration of equal or greater value, but does not include informational material transferred for the sole purpose of informing the recipient about matters pertaining to official agency business: PROVIDED FURTHER, That this section does not permit the printing of a state publication which has been otherwise prohibited by law.

(4) No elective official or any employee of his or her office or any person appointed to or employed by any public office or agency may use or authorize the use of any of the facilities of a public office or agency, directly or indirectly, in any effort to support or oppose an initiative to the legislature. "Facilities of a public office or agency" has the same meaning as in RCW 42.17.130. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to the following activities:

(a) Action taken at an open public meeting by members of an elected legislative body to express a collective decision, or to actually vote upon a motion, proposal, resolution, order, or ordinance, or to support or oppose an initiative to the legislature so long as (i) any required notice of the meeting includes the title and number of the initiative to the legislature, and (ii) members of the legislative body or members of the public are afforded an approximately equal opportunity for the expression of an opposing view;

(b) A statement by an elected official in support of or in opposition to any initiative to the legislature at an open press conference or in response to a specific inquiry;

(5) Each state agency, county, city, town, municipal corporation, quasi-municipal corporation, or special purpose district which expends public funds for lobbying shall file with the commission, except as exempted by (d) of this subsection, quarterly statements providing the following information for the quarter just completed:

(a) The name of the agency filing the statement;

(b) The name, title, and job description and salary of each elected official, officer, or employee who lobbied, a general description of the nature of the lobbying, and the proportionate amount of time spent on the lobbying;

(c) A listing of expenditures incurred by the agency for lobbying including but not limited to travel, consultant or other special contractual services, and brochures and other publications, the principal purpose of which is to influence legislation;

(d) For purposes of this subsection the term "lobbying" does not include:

(i) Requests for appropriations by a state agency to the office of financial management pursuant to chapter 43.88 RCW nor requests by the office of financial management to the legislature for appropriations other than its own agency budget requests;

(ii) Recommendations or reports to the legislature in response to a legislative request expressly requesting or directing a specific study, recommendation, or report by an agency on a particular subject;

(iii) Official reports including recommendations submitted to the legislature on an annual or biennial basis by a state agency as required by law;

(iv) Requests, recommendations, or other communication between or within state agencies or between or within local agencies;

(v) Any other lobbying to the extent that it includes:

(A) Telephone conversations or preparation of written correspondence;

(B) In-person lobbying on behalf of an agency of no more than four days or parts thereof during any three-month period by officers or employees of that agency and in-person lobbying by any elected official of such agency on behalf of such agency or in connection with the powers, duties, or compensation of such official: PROVIDED, That the total expenditures of nonpublic funds made in connection with such lobbying for or on behalf of any one or more members of the legislature or state elected officials or public officers or employees of the state of Washington do not exceed fifteen dollars for any three-month period: PROVIDED FURTHER, That the exemption under this subsection is in addition to the exemption provided in (A) of this subsection;

The statements shall be in the form and the manner prescribed by the commission and shall be filed within one month after the end of the quarter covered by the report.

(6) In lieu of reporting under subsection (5) of this section any county, city, town, municipal corporation, quasi municipal corporation, or special purpose district may determine and so notify the public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission, that elected officials, officers, or employees who on behalf of any such local agency engage in lobbying reportable under subsection (5) of this section shall register and report such reportable lobbying in the same manner as a lobbyist who is required to register and report under RCW 42.17.150 and 42.17.170. Each such local agency shall report as a lobbyist employer pursuant to RCW 42.17.180.

(7) The provisions of this section do not relieve any elected official or officer or employee of an agency from complying with other provisions of this chapter, if such elected official, officer, or employee is not otherwise exempted.

(8) The purpose of this section is to require each state agency and certain local agencies to report the identities of those persons who lobby on behalf of the agency for compensation, together with certain separately identifiable and measurable expenditures of an agency's funds for that purpose. This section shall be reasonably construed to accomplish that purpose and not to require any agency to report any of its general overhead cost or any other costs which relate only indirectly or incidentally to lobbying or which are equally attributable to or inseparable from nonlobbying activities of the agency.

The public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission may adopt rules clarifying and implementing this legislative interpretation and policy.

Sec. 11. RCW 42.17.2401 and 1993 c 492 s 488 and 1993 c 281 s 43 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:

For the purposes of RCW 42.17.240, the term "executive state officer" includes:

(1) The chief administrative law judge, the director of agriculture, the administrator of the office of marine safety, the administrator of the Washington basic health plan, the director of the department of services for the blind, the director of the state system of community and technical colleges, the director of community development, the secretary of corrections, the director of ecology, the commissioner of employment security, the chairman of the energy facility site evaluation council, the director of the energy office, the secretary of the state finance committee, the director of financial management, the director of fisheries, the executive secretary of the forest practices appeals board, the director of the gambling commission, the director of general administration, the secretary of health, the administrator of the Washington state health care authority, the executive secretary of the health care facilities authority, the executive secretary of the higher education facilities authority, the executive secretary of the horse racing commission, the executive secretary of the human rights commission, the executive secretary of the indeterminate sentence review board, the director of the department of information services, the director of the interagency committee for outdoor recreation, the executive director of the state investment board, the director of labor and industries, the director of licensing, the director of the lottery commission, the director of the office of minority and women's business enterprises, the director of parks and recreation, the director of personnel, the executive director of the public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission, the director of retirement systems, the director of revenue, the secretary of social and health services, the chief of the Washington state patrol, the executive secretary of the board of tax appeals, the director of trade and economic development, the secretary of transportation, the secretary of the utilities and transportation commission, the director of veterans affairs, the director of wildlife, the president of each of the regional and state universities and the president of The Evergreen State College, each district and each campus president of each state community college;

(2) Each professional staff member of the office of the governor;

(3) Each professional staff member of the legislature; and

(4) Central Washington University board of trustees, board of trustees of each community college, each member of the state board for community and technical colleges, state convention and trade center board of directors, committee for deferred compensation, Eastern Washington University board of trustees, Washington economic development finance authority, The Evergreen State College board of trustees, forest practices appeals board, forest practices board, gambling commission, Washington health care facilities authority, each member of the Washington health services commission, higher education coordinating board, higher education facilities authority, horse racing commission, state housing finance commission, human rights commission, indeterminate sentence review board, board of industrial insurance appeals, information services board, interagency committee for outdoor recreation, state investment board, liquor control board, lottery commission, marine oversight board, oil and gas conservation committee, Pacific Northwest electric power and conservation planning council, parks and recreation commission, personnel appeals board, board of pilotage commissioners, pollution control hearings board, public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission, public pension commission, shorelines hearing board, public employees' benefits board, board of tax appeals, transportation commission, University of Washington board of regents, utilities and transportation commission, Washington state maritime commission, Washington personnel resources board, Washington public power supply system executive board, Washington State University board of regents, Western Washington University board of trustees, and wildlife commission.

Sec. 12. RCW 42.17.2401 and 1993 sp.s. c 2 s 18, 1993 c 492 s 488, and 1993 c 281 s 43 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:

For the purposes of RCW 42.17.240, the term "executive state officer" includes:

(1) The chief administrative law judge, the director of agriculture, the administrator of the office of marine safety, the administrator of the Washington basic health plan, the director of the department of services for the blind, the director of the state system of community and technical colleges, the director of community, trade, and economic development, the secretary of corrections, the director of ecology, the commissioner of employment security, the chairman of the energy facility site evaluation council, the director of the energy office, the secretary of the state finance committee, the director of financial management, the director of fish and wildlife, the executive secretary of the forest practices appeals board, the director of the gambling commission, the director of general administration, the secretary of health, the administrator of the Washington state health care authority, the executive secretary of the health care facilities authority, the executive secretary of the higher education facilities authority, the executive secretary of the horse racing commission, the executive secretary of the human rights commission, the executive secretary of the indeterminate sentence review board, the director of the department of information services, the director of the interagency committee for outdoor recreation, the executive director of the state investment board, the director of labor and industries, the director of licensing, the director of the lottery commission, the director of the office of minority and women's business enterprises, the director of parks and recreation, the director of personnel, the executive director of the public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission, the director of retirement systems, the director of revenue, the secretary of social and health services, the chief of the Washington state patrol, the executive secretary of the board of tax appeals, ((~~the director of trade and economic development,~~)) the secretary of transportation, the secretary of the utilities and transportation commission, the director of veterans affairs, the president of each of the regional and state universities and the president of The Evergreen State College, each district and each campus president of each state community college;

(2) Each professional staff member of the office of the governor;

(3) Each professional staff member of the legislature; and

Sec. 13. RCW 42.17.310 and 1993 c 360 s 2 and 1993 c 320 s 9 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:

(1) The following are exempt from public inspection and copying:

(a) Personal information in any files maintained for students in public schools, patients or clients of public institutions or public health agencies, or welfare recipients.

(b) Personal information in files maintained for employees, appointees, or elected officials of any public agency to the extent that disclosure would violate their right to privacy.

(c) Information required of any taxpayer in connection with the assessment or collection of any tax if the disclosure of the information to other persons would (i) be prohibited to such persons by RCW 82.32.330 or (ii) violate the taxpayer's right to privacy or result in unfair competitive disadvantage to the taxpayer.

(d) Specific intelligence information and specific investigative records compiled by investigative, law enforcement, and penology agencies, and state agencies vested with the responsibility to discipline members of any profession, the nondisclosure of which is essential to effective law enforcement or for the protection of any person's right to privacy.

(e) Information revealing the identity of persons who are witnesses to or victims of crime or who file complaints with investigative, law enforcement, or penology agencies, other than the public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission, if disclosure would endanger any person's life, physical safety, or property. If at the time a complaint is filed the complainant, victim or witness indicates a desire for disclosure or nondisclosure, such desire shall govern. However, all complaints filed with the public ((~~disclosure~~)) election commission about any elected official or candidate for public office must be made in writing and signed by the complainant under oath.

(f) Test questions, scoring keys, and other examination data used to administer a license, employment, or academic examination.

(g) Except as provided by chapter 8.26 RCW, the contents of real estate appraisals, made for or by any agency relative to the acquisition or sale of property, until the project or prospective sale is abandoned or until such time as all of the property has been acquired or the property to which the sale appraisal relates is sold, but in no event shall disclosure be denied for more than three years after the appraisal.

(h) Valuable formulae, designs, drawings, and research data obtained by any agency within five years of the request for disclosure when disclosure would produce private gain and public loss.

(i) Preliminary drafts, notes, recommendations, and intra-agency memorandums in which opinions are expressed or policies formulated or recommended except that a specific record shall not be exempt when publicly cited by an agency in connection with any agency action.

(j) Records which are relevant to a controversy to which an agency is a party but which records would not be available to another party under the rules of pretrial discovery for causes pending in the superior courts.

(k) Records, maps, or other information identifying the location of archaeological sites in order to avoid the looting or depredation of such sites.

(l) Any library record, the primary purpose of which is to maintain control of library materials, or to gain access to information, which discloses or could be used to disclose the identity of a library user.

(m) Financial information supplied by or on behalf of a person, firm, or corporation for the purpose of qualifying to submit a bid or proposal for (i) a ferry system construction or repair contract as required by RCW 47.60.680 through 47.60.750 or (ii) highway construction or improvement as required by RCW 47.28.070.

(n) Railroad company contracts filed prior to July 28, 1991, with the utilities and transportation commission under RCW 81.34.070, except that the summaries of the contracts are open to public inspection and copying as otherwise provided by this chapter.

(o) Financial and commercial information and records supplied by private persons pertaining to export services provided pursuant to chapter 43.163 RCW and chapter 53.31 RCW.

(p) Financial disclosures filed by private vocational schools under chapter 28C.10 RCW.

(q) Records filed with the utilities and transportation commission or attorney general under RCW 80.04.095 that a court has determined are confidential under RCW 80.04.095.

(r) Financial and commercial information and records supplied by businesses during application for loans or program services provided by chapter 43.163 RCW and chapters 43.31, 43.63A, 43.160, and 43.168 RCW.

(s) Membership lists or lists of members or owners of interests of units in timeshare projects, subdivisions, camping resorts, condominiums, land developments, or common-interest communities affiliated with such projects, regulated by the department of licensing, in the files or possession of the department.

(t) All applications for public employment, including the names of applicants, resumes, and other related materials submitted with respect to an applicant.

(u) The residential addresses and residential telephone numbers of employees or volunteers of a public agency which are held by the agency in personnel records, employment or volunteer rosters, or mailing lists of employees or volunteers.

(v) The residential addresses and residential telephone numbers of the customers of a public utility contained in the records or lists held by the public utility of which they are customers.

(w)(i) The federal social security number of individuals governed under chapter 18.130 RCW maintained in the files of the department of health, except this exemption does not apply to requests made directly to the department from federal, state, and local agencies of government, and national and state licensing, credentialing, investigatory, disciplinary, and examination organizations; (ii) the current residential address and current residential telephone number of a health care provider governed under chapter 18.130 RCW maintained in the files of the department, if the provider requests that this information be withheld from public inspection and copying, and provides to the department an accurate alternate or business address and business telephone number. On or after January 1, 1995, the current residential address and residential telephone number of a health care provider governed under RCW 18.130.140 maintained in the files of the department shall automatically be withheld from public inspection and copying if the provider has provided the department with an accurate alternative or business address and telephone number.

(x) Information obtained by the board of pharmacy as provided in RCW 69.45.090.

(y) Information obtained by the board of pharmacy or the department of health and its representatives as provided in RCW 69.41.044, 69.41.280, and 18.64.420.

(z) Financial information, business plans, examination reports, and any information produced or obtained in evaluating or examining a business and industrial development corporation organized or seeking certification under chapter 31.24 RCW.

(aa) Financial and commercial information supplied to the state investment board by any person when the information relates to the investment of public trust or retirement funds and when disclosure would result in loss to such funds or in private loss to the providers of this information.

(bb) Financial and valuable trade information under RCW 51.36.120.

(cc) Client records maintained by an agency that is a domestic violence program as defined in RCW 70.123.020 or a rape crisis center as defined in RCW 70.125.030.

(dd) Information that identifies a person who, while an agency employee: (i) Seeks advice, under an informal process established by the employing agency, in order to ascertain his or her rights in connection with a possible unfair practice under chapter 49.60 RCW against the person; and (ii) requests his or her identity or any identifying information not be disclosed.

(ee) Business related information protected from public inspection and copying under RCW 15.86.110.

(2) Except for information described in subsection (1)(c)(i) of this section and confidential income data exempted from public inspection pursuant to RCW 84.40.020, the exemptions of this section are inapplicable to the extent that information, the disclosure of which would violate personal privacy or vital governmental interests, can be deleted from the specific records sought. No exemption may be construed to permit the nondisclosure of statistical information not descriptive of any readily identifiable person or persons.

(3) Inspection or copying of any specific records exempt under the provisions of this section may be permitted if the superior court in the county in which the record is maintained finds, after a hearing with notice thereof to every person in interest and the agency, that the exemption of such records is clearly unnecessary to protect any individual's right of privacy or any vital governmental function.

(4) Agency responses refusing, in whole or in part, inspection of any public record shall include a statement of the specific exemption authorizing the withholding of the record (or part) and a brief explanation of how the exemption applies to the record withheld.

Sec. 14. RCW 42.17.310 and 1993 c 360 s 2, 1993 c 320 s 9, and 1993 c 280 s 35 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows: