H-4595              _______________________________________________

                                                   HOUSE BILL NO. 1905

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              50th Legislature                              1988 Regular Session

By Representatives Fisher, Nelson and Unsoeld

Read first time 1/29/88 and referred to Committee on Constitution, Elections & Ethics.

AN ACT Relating to grass roots lobbying; amending RCW 42.17.200; and declaring an emergency.

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

        Sec. 1.  Section 20, chapter 1, Laws of 1973 as amended by section 10, chapter 367, Laws of 1985 and RCW 42.17.200 are each amended to read as follows:

          (1) Any person who has made expenditures((, not reported under other sections of this chapter,)) exceeding five hundred dollars in the aggregate within any three-month period or exceeding two hundred dollars in the aggregate within any one-month period in presenting a program addressed to the public, a substantial portion of which is intended, designed, or calculated primarily to influence legislation shall be required to register and report, as provided in subsection (2) of this section, as a sponsor of a grass roots lobbying campaign.

          (2) Within thirty days after becoming a sponsor of a grass roots lobbying campaign, the sponsor shall register by filing with the commission a registration statement, in such detail as the commission shall prescribe, showing:

          (a) The sponsor's name, address, and business or occupation, and, if the sponsor is not an individual, the names, addresses, and titles of the controlling persons responsible for managing the sponsor's affairs;

          (b) The names, addresses, and business or occupation of all persons organizing and managing the campaign, or hired to assist the campaign, including any public relations or advertising firms participating in the campaign, and the terms of compensation for all such persons;

          (c) The names and addresses of each person contributing twenty-five dollars or more to the campaign, and the aggregate amount contributed;

          (d) The purpose of the campaign, including the specific legislation, rules, rates, standards, or proposals that are the subject matter of the campaign;

          (e) The totals of all expenditures made or incurred to date on behalf of the campaign, which totals shall be segregated according to financial category, including but not limited to the following:  Advertising, segregated by media, and in the case of large expenditures (as provided by rule of the commission), by outlet; contributions; entertainment, including food and refreshments; office expenses including rent and the salaries and wages paid for staff and secretarial assistance, or the proportionate amount thereof paid or incurred for lobbying campaign activities; consultants; and printing and mailing expenses.

          (3) Every sponsor who has registered under this section shall file monthly reports with the commission, which reports shall be filed by the tenth day of the month for the activity during the preceding month.  The reports shall update the information contained in the sponsor's registration statement and in prior reports and shall show contributions received and totals of expenditures made during the month, in the same manner as provided for in the registration statement.

          (4) When the campaign has been terminated, the sponsor shall file a notice of termination with the final monthly report, which notice shall state the totals of all contributions and expenditures made on behalf of the campaign, in the same manner as provided for in the registration statement.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.     This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, and safety, the support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and shall take effect immediately.