6249-S2.E

AN ACT Relating to campaign finance reform; amending RCW 42.17.040, 42.17.390, 42.17.395, 42.17.640, 42.17.690, and 42.17.790; adding new sections to chapter 42.17 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 29.80 RCW; and prescribing penalties.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 42.17 RCW to read as follows:

(1) This section applies to contributions to a candidate, state official, or political committee who has failed to file a statement of acceptance of voluntary expenditure limits set forth in section 3 of this act.

(2) A candidate for a state office may not accept from any person contributions that in the aggregate exceed twenty-five percent of the contribution limits provided for in RCW 42.17.640.

(3) A state official against whom recall charges have been filed, and a political committee having the expectation of making expenditures in support of the recall of the state official, may not accept from any person contributions that in the aggregate exceed twenty-five percent of the contribution limits provided for in RCW 42.17.640.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 42.17 RCW to read as follows:

(1) This section applies to contributions to a candidate, state official, or political committee who has filed a statement of acceptance of voluntary expenditure limits set forth in section 3 of this act.

(2) A candidate for a state office may not accept from any person contributions that in the aggregate exceed the contribution limits provided for in RCW 42.17.640.

(3) A state official against whom recall charges have been filed, and a political committee having the expectation of making expenditures in support of the recall of the state official, may not accept from any person contributions during a recall campaign that in the aggregate exceed the contribution limits provided for in RCW 42.17.640.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 42.17 RCW to read as follows:

When a person becomes a candidate or files for state office, he or she shall sign and file with the commission a statement of acceptance or rejection of the voluntary expenditure limits in section 4 of this act. A state official whose recall is demanded or a political committee having the expectation of making expenditures in support of a recall shall sign and file with the commission a statement of acceptance or rejection of the voluntary expenditure limits in section 4 of this act. The commission shall provide the form of the statement and agreement by rule. The commission shall index and make available for public inspection and copying a list of the statements of acceptance or rejection filed by candidates.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. A new section is added to chapter 42.17 RCW to read as follows:

(1) In accordance with RCW 42.17.690, the commission shall revise expenditure limits applicable in an election cycle for a candidate who files a statement of acceptance under section 3 of this act.

(2) The initial expenditure limits shall be as follows for the following offices and classes of offices:

(a) Governor: One million dollars;

(b) All other state executive offices: Two hundred fifty thousand dollars;

(d) State representative: Fifty thousand dollars.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. A new section is added to chapter 42.17 RCW to read as follows:

(1) It is a violation of this chapter for a person to make a contribution or expenditure in support of or opposition to a candidate other than one within the limits in this chapter or an independent expenditure as defined in RCW 42.17.020.

(2) If a candidate has agreed to expenditure limits under section 3 of this act and: (a) Knowingly accepts a contribution in excess of the amounts allowed; or (b) has encouraged, approved, or collaborated in the making of an unlawful expenditure by another in connection with his or her campaign, the expenditure limit must be reduced by the amount of the unlawful contribution or expenditure.

(3) Payments of candidate filing fees, fees or assessments relating to the primary or general election candidates' pamphlet, or costs incurred in the course of defending against a challenge of a person's eligibility to become a candidate or a motion for injunction under RCW 42.17.390, do not constitute expenditures for the purpose of determining whether a candidate has exceeded an expenditure limit.

Sec. 6. RCW 42.17.040 and 1989 c 280 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Every political committee, within two weeks after its organization or, within two weeks after the date when it first has the expectation of receiving contributions or making expenditures in any election campaign, whichever is earlier, shall file a statement of organization with the commission and with the county auditor or elections officer of the county in which the candidate resides, or in the case of any other political committee, the county in which the treasurer resides. A political committee organized within the last three weeks before an election and having the expectation of receiving contributions or making expenditures during and for that election campaign shall file a statement of organization within three business days after its organization or when it first has the expectation of receiving contributions or making expenditures in the election campaign.

(2) The statement of organization shall include but not be limited to:

(a) The name and address of the committee;

(b) The names and addresses of all related or affiliated committees or other persons, and the nature of the relationship or affiliation;

(c) The names, addresses, and titles of its officers; or if it has no officers, the names, addresses, and titles of its responsible leaders;

(d) The name and address of its treasurer and depository;

(e) A statement whether the committee is a continuing one;

(f) The name, office sought, and party affiliation of each candidate whom the committee is supporting or opposing, and, if the committee is supporting the entire ticket of any party, the name of the party;

(g) The ballot proposition concerned, if any, and whether the committee is in favor of or opposed to such proposition;

(h) What distribution of surplus funds will be made, in accordance with RCW 42.17.095, in the event of dissolution;

(i) The street address of the place and the hours during which the committee will make available for public inspection its books of account and all reports filed in accordance with RCW 42.17.080; and

(j) Such other information as the commission may by regulation prescribe, in keeping with the policies and purposes of this chapter.

(3) A committee filing under this section that intends to support or oppose only one candidate or ballot measure, or to contribute to or expend fifty percent or more of its funds on behalf of, or in opposition to, one candidate or ballot measure, shall include the name of that candidate or ballot measure as part of the name of the committee. The commission shall promptly notify the named candidate of the group's organization and intent.

(4) Any material change in information previously submitted in a statement of organization shall be reported to the commission and to the appropriate county elections officer within the ten days following the change.

Sec. 7. RCW 42.17.390 and 1993 c 2 s 28 are each amended to read as follows:

One or more of the following civil remedies and sanctions may be imposed by court order in addition to any other remedies provided by law:

(1) ((~~If the court finds that the violation of any provision of this chapter by any candidate or political committee probably affected the outcome of any election, the result of said election may be held~~)) The court or the legislature, as applicable, shall presume that a material and substantial violation of this chapter has affected the outcome of the election. Unless the presumption is defeated by clear, cogent, and convincing evidence, the court or the legislature, as applicable, shall declare the election void, and a special election must be held within sixty days of such finding. Any action to void an election shall be commenced within one year of the date of the election in question. It is intended that this remedy be imposed freely in all appropriate cases to protect the right of the electorate to an informed and knowledgeable vote.

(2) If any lobbyist or sponsor of any grass roots lobbying campaign violates any of the provisions of this chapter, his registration may be revoked or suspended and he may be enjoined from receiving compensation or making expenditures for lobbying: PROVIDED, HOWEVER, That imposition of such sanction shall not excuse said lobbyist from filing statements and reports required by this chapter.

(3) Any person who violates any of the provisions of this chapter may be subject to a civil penalty of not more than ten thousand dollars for each such violation. However, a person or entity who violates ((~~RCW 42.17.640~~)) this chapter may be subject to a civil penalty of ten thousand dollars or three times the amount of the contribution illegally made or accepted, whichever is greater. The penalty may not be paid from campaign funds, and solicitations to political committees may not be made in connection with the penalty.

(4) Any person who fails to file a properly completed statement or report within the time required by this chapter may be subject to a civil penalty of ten dollars per day for each day each such delinquency continues.

(5) Any person who fails to report a contribution or expenditure may be subject to a civil penalty equivalent to the amount he failed to report.

(6) Any person who makes an independent expenditure that is unlawful because of the encouragement, approval, or collaboration of a candidate may be subject to a penalty of up to three times the amount of the unlawful independent expenditure.

(7) The court may enjoin any person to prevent the doing of any act herein prohibited, or to compel the performance of any act required herein.

Sec. 8. RCW 42.17.395 and 1989 c 175 s 91 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The commission may (a) determine whether an actual violation of this chapter has occurred; and (b) issue and enforce an appropriate order following such determination.

(2) The commission, in cases where it chooses to determine whether an actual violation of this chapter has occurred, shall hold a hearing pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act, chapter 34.05 RCW, to make such determination. Any order that the commission issues under this section shall be pursuant to such hearing.

(3) In lieu of holding a hearing or issuing an order under this section, the commission may refer the matter to the attorney general or other enforcement agency as provided in RCW 42.17.360.

(4) The person against whom an order is directed under this section shall be designated as the respondent. The order may require the respondent to cease and desist from the activity that constitutes a violation and in addition, or alternatively, may impose one or more of the remedies provided in RCW 42.17.390((~~(1) (b), (c), (d), or (e)~~)): PROVIDED, That no individual penalty assessed by the commission may exceed one thousand dollars, and in any case where multiple violations are involved in a single complaint or hearing, the maximum aggregate penalty may not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars.

(5) An order issued by the commission under this section shall be subject to judicial review under the Administrative Procedure Act, chapter 34.05 RCW. If the commission's order is not satisfied and no petition for review is filed within thirty days as provided in RCW 34.05.542, the commission may petition a court of competent jurisdiction of any county in which a petition for review could be filed under that section, for an order of enforcement. Proceedings in connection with the commission's petition shall be in accordance with RCW 42.17.397.

Sec. 9. RCW 42.17.640 and 1995 c 397 s 20 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) No person, other than a bona fide political party or a caucus political committee, may make contributions to a candidate for a state legislative office that in the aggregate exceed five hundred dollars or to a candidate for a state office other than a state legislative office that in the aggregate exceed one thousand dollars for each election in which the candidate is on the ballot or appears as a write-in candidate. Contributions made with respect to a primary may not be made after the date of the primary. Contributions made with respect to a general election may not be made after the final day of the applicable election cycle.

(2) No person, other than a bona fide political party or a caucus political committee, may make contributions to a state official against whom recall charges have been filed, or to a political committee having the expectation of making expenditures in support of the recall of the state official, during a recall campaign that in the aggregate exceed five hundred dollars if for a state legislative office or one thousand dollars if for a state office other than a state legislative office.

(3)(a) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, no bona fide political party or caucus political committee may make contributions to a candidate during an election cycle that in the aggregate exceed (i) fifty cents multiplied by the number of eligible registered voters in the jurisdiction from which the candidate is elected if the contributor is a caucus political committee or the governing body of a state organization, or (ii) twenty-five cents multiplied by the number of registered voters in the jurisdiction from which the candidate is elected if the contributor is a county central committee or a legislative district committee.

(b) No candidate may accept contributions from a county central committee or a legislative district committee during an election cycle that when combined with contributions from other county central committees or legislative district committees would in the aggregate exceed twenty-five cents times the number of registered voters in the jurisdiction from which the candidate is elected.

(4)(a) Notwithstanding subsection (2) of this section, no bona fide political party or caucus political committee may make contributions to a state official against whom recall charges have been filed, or to a political committee having the expectation of making expenditures in support of the state official, during a recall campaign that in the aggregate exceed (i) fifty cents multiplied by the number of eligible registered voters in the jurisdiction entitled to recall the state official if the contributor is a caucus political committee or the governing body of a state organization, or (ii) twenty-five cents multiplied by the number of registered voters in the jurisdiction from which the candidate is elected if the contributor is a county central committee or a legislative district committee.

(b) No state official against whom recall charges have been filed, no authorized committee of the official, and no political committee having the expectation of making expenditures in support of the recall of a state official may accept contributions from a county central committee or a legislative district committee during an election cycle that when combined with contributions from other county central committees or legislative district committees would in the aggregate exceed twenty-five cents multiplied by the number of registered voters in the jurisdiction from which the candidate is elected.

(5) For purposes of determining contribution limits under subsections (3) and (4) of this section, the number of eligible registered voters in a jurisdiction is the number at the time of the most recent general election in the jurisdiction.

(6) Notwithstanding subsections (1) through (4) of this section, no person other than ((~~an individual,~~)) a bona fide political party((,)) or caucus political committee may make contributions reportable under this chapter to a caucus political committee that in the aggregate exceed five hundred dollars in a calendar year or to a bona fide political party that in the aggregate exceed two thousand five hundred dollars in a calendar year. This subsection does not apply to loans made in the ordinary course of business.

(7) For the purposes of ((~~RCW 42.17.640 through 42.17.790~~)) this chapter, a contribution to the authorized political committee of a candidate, or of a state official against whom recall charges have been filed, is considered to be a contribution to the candidate or state official.

(8) A contribution received within the twelve-month period after a recall election concerning a state office is considered to be a contribution during that recall campaign if the contribution is used to pay a debt or obligation incurred to influence the outcome of that recall campaign.

(9) The contributions allowed by subsection (2) of this section are in addition to those allowed by subsection (1) of this section, and the contributions allowed by subsection (4) of this section are in addition to those allowed by subsection (3) of this section.

(10) ((~~RCW 42.17.640 through 42.17.790 apply~~)) This chapter applies to a special election conducted to fill a vacancy in a state office. However, the contributions made to a candidate or received by a candidate for a primary or special election conducted to fill such a vacancy shall not be counted toward any of the limitations that apply to the candidate or to contributions made to the candidate for any other primary or election.

(11) Notwithstanding the other subsections of this section, no corporation or business entity not doing business in Washington state, no labor union with fewer than ten members who reside in Washington state, and no political committee that has not received contributions of ten dollars or more from at least ten persons registered to vote in Washington state during the preceding one hundred eighty days may make contributions reportable under this chapter to a candidate, to a state official against whom recall charges have been filed, or to a political committee having the expectation of making expenditures in support of the recall of the official. This subsection does not apply to loans made in the ordinary course of business.

(12) Notwithstanding the other subsections of this section, no county central committee or legislative district committee may make contributions reportable under this chapter to a candidate, state official against whom recall charges have been filed, or political committee having the expectation of making expenditures in support of the recall of a state official if the county central committee or legislative district committee is outside of the jurisdiction entitled to elect the candidate or recall the state official.

(13) No person may accept contributions that exceed the contribution limitations provided in this section.

(14) The following contributions are exempt from the contribution limits of this section:

(a) An expenditure or contribution earmarked for voter registration, for absentee ballot information, for precinct caucuses, for get-out-the-vote campaigns, for precinct judges or inspectors, for sample ballots, or for ballot counting, all without promotion of or political advertising for individual candidates; or

(b) An expenditure by a political committee for its own internal organization or fund raising without direct association with individual candidates.

(15) Contributions to a state legislative candidate may be accepted by the candidate or a political committee supporting the candidate only if the person making the contribution resides or works in the legislative district of the candidate.

(16) Contributions to a state legislator against whom recall charges have been filed or to a political committee having the expectation of making expenditures in support of the recall of a state legislator may be accepted by the legislator or committee only if the person making the contribution resides or works in the legislative district of the state legislator against whom the recall charges have been filed.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. A new section is added to chapter 29.80 RCW to read as follows:

The secretary of state shall add to each candidates' pamphlet a list of the campaign spending limits recommended by the public disclosure commission for each of the state offices for which the statements of candidates appear in the pamphlet and a brief explanation of the effect of a promise filed with the commission under section 3 of this act.

In preparing the candidates' pamphlet for publication, the secretary of state shall secure from the public disclosure commission its most current list of candidates who have promised to limit spending, in accordance with section 3 of this act. Using this list, the secretary of state shall print a notice, explaining the voluntary campaign limits or referring to the location in the pamphlet of the explanation required by this section, on each page of the pamphlet containing the statements and photographs of candidates. The secretary of state shall develop distinctive symbols or logos that will identify whether a particular candidate has or has not accepted the voluntary spending limits for that campaign. Based on the information supplied by the public disclosure commission under this section immediately prior to publication of the pamphlet, the secretary of state shall print the appropriate symbol or logo in conjunction with the statement of each candidate to indicate whether or not the candidate has accepted the voluntary spending limits for that campaign.

Sec. 11. RCW 42.17.690 and 1993 c 2 s 9 are each amended to read as follows:

((At the beginning of each even-numbered calendar year, the commission shall increase or decrease all dollar amounts in this chapter based on changes in economic conditions as reflected in the inflationary index used by the commission under RCW 42.17.370.)) The commission shall, by January 1, 1998, and by January 1st of each even-numbered year thereafter, adopt revisions in the existing contribution and expenditure limits. Revisions must be for the purpose of recognizing: (1) Changes in the number of registered voters state-wide; and (2) economic changes as reflected by an inflationary index recommended by the office of financial management. The revisions must be guided by the change in the index for the two-year period before the date the revision is to be adopted. The new dollar amounts established by the commission under this section shall be rounded off by the commission to amounts as judged most convenient for public understanding and so as to be within ten percent of the target amount equal to the base amount provided in this chapter multiplied by the increase in the inflationary index since December 3, 1992.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 12. A new section is added to chapter 42.17 RCW to read as follows:

Notwithstanding RCW 42.17.640, no person other than a bona fide political party or a caucus political committee may make contributions reportable under this chapter to a political committee other than a candidate, a state official against whom recall charges have been filed, a bona fide political party, or a caucus political committee, that in the aggregate exceed five hundred dollars in a calendar year.

Sec. 13. RCW 42.17.790 and 1995 c 397 s 27 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) ((~~Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section,~~)) A candidate for public office or the candidate's political committee is prohibited from accepting contributions or expending any funds contributed to the candidate or the candidate's political committee before the designation by the candidate of the office to which the candidate is seeking election.

(2) A candidate for public office or the candidate's political committee may not use or permit the use of contributions, whether or not surplus, solicited for or received by the candidate for public office or the candidate's political committee to further the candidacy of the individual for an office ((~~other than the~~)) unless that specific office is designated on the statement of organization or has been expressly designated by the candidate. With regard to contributions accepted after the effective date of this act, within thirty days after the individual becomes a candidate for an office other than the office expressly designated by the candidate on the statement of organization, the candidate or the candidate's political committee shall return unspent contributions on a pro rata basis according to the proportionate amount that the original unspent contributions bear to the total contributions received by the candidate and the candidate's political committee. Unspent contributions that cannot be returned after reasonable efforts shall be contributed to a charitable organization registered under chapter 19.09 RCW. Alternatively, the candidate may maintain unspent contributions in a separate account until after filing of the last report under RCW 42.17.080 or 42.17.105, whichever is later, and may then dispose of these unspent contributions under RCW 42.17.095. A contribution solicited for or received on behalf of the candidate for public office is considered solicited or received for the candidacy for which the individual is then a candidate if the contribution is solicited or received before the general elections for which the candidate for public office is a nominee or is unopposed.

(((2) With the written approval of the contributor, a candidate for public office or the candidate's political committee may use or permit the use of contributions, whether or not surplus, solicited for or received by the candidate for public office or the candidate's political committee from that contributor to further the candidacy of the individual for an office other than the office designated on the statement of organization. If the contributor does not approve the use of his or her contribution to further the candidacy of the individual for an office other than the office designated on the statement of organization at the time of the contribution, the contribution must be considered surplus funds and disposed of in accordance with RCW 42.17.095.))