BP BHEAD INT S [atlas:bill]

AN ACT Relating to subpoena power of the public disclosure commission; amending RCW 42.17.370; and adding new sections to chapter 42.17 RCW.

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

Sec. 1. RCW 42.17.370 and 1995 c 397 s 17 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. Any rule relating to campaign finance, political advertising, or related forms that would otherwise take effect after June 30th of a general election year shall take effect no earlier than the day following the general election in that year;

(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 shall perform such 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,~~)) and 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~~)) in connection with a proceeding authorized under this chapter;

(7) Issue subpoenas to compel attendance and require the production of books, papers, correspondence, memorandums, or other records relevant or material for the purpose of an investigation authorized under this chapter according to section 2 of this act;

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

((~~(8)~~)) (9) 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)~~)) (10) 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)~~)) (11) 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. Requests for renewals of reporting modifications may be heard in a brief adjudicative proceeding as set forth in RCW 34.05.482 through 34.05.494 and in accordance with the standards established in this section. No initial request may be heard in a brief adjudicative proceeding and no request for renewal may be heard in a brief adjudicative proceeding if the initial request was granted more than three years previously or if the applicant is holding an office or position of employment different from the office or position held when the initial request was granted. The commission shall adopt administrative rules governing the proceedings. 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)~~)) (12) 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;

((~~(12)~~)) (13) Develop and provide to filers a system for certification of reports required under this chapter which are transmitted by facsimile or electronically to the commission. Implementation of the program is contingent on the availability of funds.

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

(1) During the course of an audit or investigation, the commission may issue a subpoena directed to a person believed to possess information that is relevant and material to the audit or the investigation and that is within the scope of the investigation as provided in subsection (2) of this section.

(2) The commission may issue a subpoena for the purposes specified in RCW 42.17.370(7) if:

(a) The information sought by the subpoena is necessary for an investigation arising from a complaint filed under section 3 of this act or an investigation instituted by the commission upon motion;

(b) The information sought by the subpoena is relevant and material to the investigation upon which the subpoena is based;

(c) The information sought by the subpoena does not exceed the scope of the investigation upon which the subpoena is based; and

(d) The subpoena includes the information specified in subsection (3) of this section.

(3) All subpoenas issued by the commission must include the following information:

(a) A concise statement of the scope and nature of the investigation;

(b) A brief statement of the facts upon which the investigation is based;

(d) A notice of a reasonable time and place for the production of the information sought by the subpoena; and

(e) A notice that if the information sought by the subpoena is not produced, the commission will apply to the superior court for an appropriate order or other remedy.

(4) The subpoena issued by the commission may be served either by personal service or certified mail.

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

(1) A complaint upon which an investigation is based must be in writing and signed by the complainant under oath. The complaint must include:

(a) A statement:

(i) Describing the nature of the alleged violation or violations;

(ii) Listing the date, time, and place, or a reasonable approximation thereof, of each violation; and

(iii) Identifying the person or persons responsible for each violation; and

(b) Copies of all available documentation and any other evidence that the complainant can supply to demonstrate a basis for investigating whether a violation of this chapter has occurred.

(2) The commission shall notify the respondent that a complaint has been filed within ten days of receipt by the commission. The notice must contain a concise statement of the nature of the complaint and must identify the origin of the complaint and the statutory provision alleged to have been violated.

(3) The commission shall review the complaint and determine whether to conduct an investigation. The commission shall initiate an enforcement hearing whenever an investigation reveals facts that are believed to constitute a material violation of this chapter and that do not constitute substantial compliance with this chapter.

(4) The commission shall notify the respondent of a hearing initiated under subsection (3) of this section at least ten days before the scheduled hearing date.