S-1894.1  _______________________________________________

                         SENATE BILL 5974

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      55th Legislature     1997 Regular Session

By Senators Kline, Goings, Patterson, Brown, Kohl, Haugen, Spanel, McAuliffe and Snyder

Read first time 02/24/97.  Referred to Committee on Government Operations.

Authorizing public financing of local political campaigns.

    AN ACT Relating to authorization for public funds to be used to finance political campaigns for public office; adding a new section to chapter 42.17 RCW; and repealing RCW 42.17.128.

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:

    A county, city, or town may establish a program where a candidate for a local elected office voluntarily agrees to abide by limitations on the amount of money the candidate, or the candidate's authorized committee, spends to campaign for the office in return for receiving public matching funds from the county, city, or town that are used to assist in funding his or her campaign.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  RCW 42.17.128 and 1993 c 2 s 24 are each repealed.

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