BILL REQ. #: S-0756.1
| State of Washington | 62nd Legislature | 2011 Regular Session |
Read first time 01/28/11. Referred to Committee on Early Learning & K-12 Education.
AN ACT Relating to creating the office of the superintendent of public instruction as an executive branch agency; amending RCW 28A.300.010, 28A.300.030, 28A.300.035, 28A.300.040, 43.17.010, 43.17.020, 42.17A.705, 29A.04.110, 29A.24.191, 29A.32.031, 29A.36.121, 29A.52.231, 43.01.010, 43.01.020, and 43.03.010; reenacting and amending RCW 42.17A.005; adding a new section to chapter 41.06 RCW; adding a new chapter to Title 43 RCW; recodifying RCW 28A.300.010, 28A.300.020, 28A.300.030, 28A.300.040, 28A.300.050, 28A.300.120, and 28A.300.220; and providing a contingent effective date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 101 RCW 28A.300.010 and 1990 c 33 s 250 are each amended to
read as follows:
((A)) The office of the superintendent of public instruction is
created as an executive branch agency. The executive and
administrative head of the office shall be the superintendent of public
instruction. The superintendent shall be vested with all powers and
duties designated under this chapter and such other powers and duties
as may be authorized by law.
The superintendent of public instruction shall be ((elected by the
qualified electors of the state, on the first Tuesday after the first
Monday in November of the year in which state officers are elected, and
shall hold his or her office for the term of four years, and until his
or her successor is elected and qualified)) appointed by the governor
with the consent of the senate and shall serve at the pleasure of the
governor. The superintendent of public instruction shall be paid a
salary to be fixed by the governor in accordance with RCW 43.03.040.
If a vacancy occurs in the position while the senate is not in session,
the governor shall make a temporary appointment until the next meeting
of the senate.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 102 The superintendent of public instruction
may employ such assistants and personnel as necessary for the general
administration of the agency. This employment shall be in accordance
with the state civil service law, chapter 41.06 RCW, except as
otherwise provided.
Sec. 103 RCW 28A.300.030 and 1975 1st ex.s. c 275 s 46 are each
amended to read as follows:
The superintendent of public instruction, by rule ((or
regulation)), may require the assistance of educational service
district boards and/or superintendents in the performance of any duty,
authority, or power imposed upon or granted to the superintendent of
public instruction by law ((or by the Constitution of the state of
Washington)), upon such terms and conditions as the superintendent of
public instruction shall establish. ((Such authority to assist the
superintendent of public instruction shall be limited to the service
function of information collection and dissemination and the attestment
to the accuracy and completeness of submitted information.))
NEW SECTION. Sec. 104 For rules adopted after the effective date
of this section, the superintendent of public instruction may not rely
solely on a section of law stating a statute's intent or purpose, on
the enabling provisions of the statute establishing the agency, or on
any combination of such provisions, for statutory authority to adopt
any rule.
Sec. 105 RCW 28A.300.035 and 1994 c 113 s 1 are each amended to
read as follows:
If the superintendent of public instruction or the state board of
education, in carrying out their powers and duties under this title
((28A RCW)) or chapter 43.-- RCW (the new chapter created in section
302 of this act), request the service of any certificated or classified
employee of a school district upon any committee formed for the purpose
of furthering education within the state, or within any school district
therein, and such service would result in a need for a school district
to employ a substitute for such certificated or classified employee
during such service, payment for such a substitute may be made by the
superintendent of public instruction from funds appropriated by the
legislature for the current use of the common schools and such payments
shall be construed as amounts needed for state support to the common
schools under RCW 28A.150.380. If such substitute is paid by the
superintendent of public instruction, no deduction shall be made from
the salary of the certificated or classified employee. In no event
shall a school district deduct from the salary of a certificated or
classified employee serving on such committee more than the amount paid
the substitute employed by the district.
Sec. 106 RCW 28A.300.040 and 2009 c 556 s 10 are each amended to
read as follows:
In addition to any other powers and duties as provided by law, the
powers and duties of the superintendent of public instruction shall be:
(1) To have supervision over all matters pertaining to the public
schools of the state;
(2) To report to the governor and the legislature such information
and data as may be required for the management and improvement of the
schools;
(3) To prepare and have printed such forms, registers, courses of
study, rules for the government of the common schools, and such other
material and books as may be necessary for the discharge of the duties
of teachers and officials charged with the administration of the laws
relating to the common schools, and to distribute the same to
educational service district superintendents;
(4) To travel, without neglecting his or her other official duties
as superintendent of public instruction, for the purpose of attending
educational meetings or conventions, of visiting schools, and of
consulting educational service district superintendents or other school
officials;
(5) To prepare and from time to time to revise a manual of the
Washington state common school code, copies of which shall be made
available online and which shall be sold at approximate actual cost of
publication and distribution per volume to public and nonpublic
agencies or individuals, said manual to contain Titles 28A and 28C RCW,
this chapter, rules related to the common schools, and such other
matter as the state superintendent or the state board of education
shall determine. Proceeds of the sale of such code shall be
transmitted to the public printer who shall credit the state
superintendent's account within the state printing plant revolving fund
by a like amount;
(6) To file all papers, reports and public documents transmitted to
the superintendent by the school officials of the several counties or
districts of the state, each year separately. Copies of all papers
filed in the superintendent's office, and the superintendent's official
acts, may, or upon request, shall be certified by the superintendent
and attested by the superintendent's official seal, and when so
certified shall be evidence of the papers or acts so certified to;
(7) To require annually, on or before the 15th day of August, of
the president, manager, or principal of every educational institution
in this state, a report as required by the superintendent of public
instruction; and it is the duty of every president, manager, or
principal, to complete and return such forms within such time as the
superintendent of public instruction shall direct;
(8) To keep in the superintendent's office a record of all teachers
receiving certificates to teach in the common schools of this state;
(9) To issue certificates as provided by law;
(10) To keep in the superintendent's office at the capital of the
state, all books and papers pertaining to the business of the
superintendent's office, and to keep and preserve in the
superintendent's office a complete record of statistics, as well as a
record of the meetings of the state board of education;
(11) With the assistance of the office of the attorney general, to
decide all points of law ((which)) that may be submitted to the
superintendent in writing by any educational service district
superintendent, or that may be submitted to the superintendent by any
other person, upon appeal from the decision of any educational service
district superintendent; and the superintendent shall publish his or
her rulings and decisions from time to time for the information of
school officials and teachers; and the superintendent's decision shall
be final unless set aside by a court of competent jurisdiction;
(12) To administer oaths and affirmations in the discharge of the
superintendent's official duties;
(13) To deliver to his or her successor((, at the expiration of the
superintendent's term of office,)) all records, books, maps, documents
and papers of whatever kind belonging to the superintendent's office or
which may have been received by the superintendent's for the use of the
superintendent's office;
(14) To administer family services and programs to promote the
state's policy as provided in RCW 74.14A.025;
(15) To promote the adoption of school-based curricula and policies
that provide quality, daily physical education for all students, and to
encourage policies that provide all students with opportunities for
physical activity outside of formal physical education classes;
(16) To perform such other duties as may be required by law.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 107 A new section is added to chapter 41.06
RCW to read as follows:
In addition to the exemptions under RCW 41.06.070, the provisions
of this chapter shall not apply in the office of the superintendent of
public instruction to the superintendent, the superintendent's personal
secretary, the deputy superintendent, all division directors and
assistant directors, and one confidential secretary for each of these
officers.
Sec. 108 RCW 43.17.010 and 2009 c 565 s 25 are each amended to
read as follows:
There shall be departments of the state government which shall be
known as (1) the department of social and health services, (2) the
department of ecology, (3) the department of labor and industries, (4)
the department of agriculture, (5) the department of fish and wildlife,
(6) the department of transportation, (7) the department of licensing,
(8) the department of general administration, (9) the department of
commerce, (10) the department of veterans affairs, (11) the department
of revenue, (12) the department of retirement systems, (13) the
department of corrections, (14) the department of health, (15) the
department of financial institutions, (16) the department of
archaeology and historic preservation, (17) the department of early
learning, ((and)) (18) the Puget Sound partnership, and (19) the office
of the superintendent of public instruction, which shall be charged
with the execution, enforcement, and administration of such laws, and
invested with such powers and required to perform such duties, as the
legislature may provide.
Sec. 109 RCW 43.17.020 and 2009 c 565 s 26 are each amended to
read as follows:
There shall be a chief executive officer of each department to be
known as: (1) The secretary of social and health services, (2) the
director of ecology, (3) the director of labor and industries, (4) the
director of agriculture, (5) the director of fish and wildlife, (6) the
secretary of transportation, (7) the director of licensing, (8) the
director of general administration, (9) the director of commerce, (10)
the director of veterans affairs, (11) the director of revenue, (12)
the director of retirement systems, (13) the secretary of corrections,
(14) the secretary of health, (15) the director of financial
institutions, (16) the director of the department of archaeology and
historic preservation, (17) the director of early learning, ((and))
(18) the executive director of the Puget Sound partnership, and (19)
the superintendent of public instruction.
Such officers, except the director of fish and wildlife, shall be
appointed by the governor, with the consent of the senate, and hold
office at the pleasure of the governor. The director of fish and
wildlife shall be appointed by the fish and wildlife commission as
prescribed by RCW 77.04.055.
Sec. 110 RCW 42.17A.705 and 2010 c 204 s 902 are each amended to
read as follows:
For the purposes of RCW 42.17A.700, "executive state officer"
includes:
(1) The chief administrative law judge, the director of
agriculture, the director of the department of services for the blind,
the director of the state system of community and technical colleges,
the director of commerce, the secretary of corrections, the director of
early learning, the director of ecology, the commissioner of employment
security, the chair of the energy facility site evaluation council, 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 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 commission, the executive
director of the Puget Sound partnership, the director of the recreation
and conservation office, 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 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, ((and)) each district
and each campus president of each state community college, and the
superintendent of public instruction;
(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, the boards of
trustees of each community college and each technical college, each
member of the state board for community and technical colleges, state
convention and trade center board of directors, Eastern Washington
University board of trustees, Washington economic development finance
authority, Washington energy northwest executive board, The Evergreen
State College board of trustees, executive ethics board, fish and
wildlife commission, forest practices appeals board, forest practices
board, gambling commission, Washington health care facilities
authority, 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, state investment board, commission on judicial conduct,
legislative ethics board, life sciences discovery fund authority board
of trustees, liquor control board, lottery commission, Pacific
Northwest electric power and conservation planning council, parks and
recreation commission, Washington personnel resources board, board of
pilotage commissioners, pollution control hearings board, public
disclosure commission, public employees' benefits board, recreation and
conservation funding board, salmon recovery funding board, shorelines
hearings board, board of tax appeals, transportation commission,
University of Washington board of regents, utilities and transportation
commission, Washington State University board of regents, and Western
Washington University board of trustees.
Sec. 201 RCW 29A.04.110 and 2005 c 2 s 4 are each amended to read
as follows:
"Partisan office" means a public office for which a candidate may
indicate a political party preference on his or her declaration of
candidacy and have that preference appear on the primary and general
election ballot in conjunction with his or her name. The following are
partisan offices:
(1) United States senator and United States representative;
(2) All state offices, including legislative, except (((a)))
judicial offices ((and (b) the office of superintendent of public
instruction));
(3) All county offices except (a) judicial offices and (b) those
offices for which a county home rule charter provides otherwise.
Sec. 202 RCW 29A.24.191 and 2006 c 344 s 9 are each amended to
read as follows:
A scheduled election shall be lapsed, the office deemed stricken
from the ballot, no purported write-in votes counted, and no candidate
certified as elected, when:
(1) In an election for judge of the supreme court ((or
superintendent of public instruction)), a void in candidacy occurs on
or after the eleventh Tuesday prior to a primary, public filings and
the primary being an indispensable phase of the election process for
such offices;
(2) Except as otherwise specified in RCW 29A.24.181, a nominee for
judge of the superior court entitled to a certificate of election
pursuant to Article 4, section 29, Amendment 41 of the state
Constitution dies or is disqualified on or after the eleventh Tuesday
prior to a primary;
(3) In other elections for nonpartisan office a void in candidacy
occurs or a vacancy occurs involving an unexpired term to be filled on
or after the eleventh Tuesday prior to an election.
Sec. 203 RCW 29A.32.031 and 2009 c 415 s 2 are each amended to
read as follows:
The voters' pamphlet published or distributed under RCW 29A.32.010
must contain:
(1) Information about each measure for an advisory vote of the
people and each ballot measure initiated by or referred to the voters
for their approval or rejection as required by RCW 29A.32.070;
(2) In even-numbered years, statements, if submitted, from
candidates for the office of president and vice president of the United
States, United States senator, United States representative, governor,
lieutenant governor, secretary of state, state treasurer, state
auditor, attorney general, commissioner of public lands,
((superintendent of public instruction,)) insurance commissioner, state
senator, state representative, justice of the supreme court, judge of
the court of appeals, or judge of the superior court. Candidates may
also submit campaign contact information and a photograph not more than
five years old in a format that the secretary of state determines to be
suitable for reproduction in the voters' pamphlet;
(3) In odd-numbered years, if any office voted upon statewide
appears on the ballot due to a vacancy, then statements and photographs
for candidates for any vacant office listed in subsection (2) of this
section must appear;
(4) Contact information for the public disclosure commission
established under RCW ((42.17.350)) 42.17A.100;
(5) Contact information for major political parties;
(6) A brief statement explaining the deletion and addition of
language for proposed measures under RCW 29A.32.080; and
(7) Any additional information pertaining to elections as may be
required by law or in the judgment of the secretary of state is deemed
informative to the voters.
Sec. 204 RCW 29A.36.121 and 2004 c 271 s 129 are each amended to
read as follows:
(1)(a) The positions or offices on a primary consolidated ballot
shall be arranged in substantially the following order: United States
senator; United States representative; governor; lieutenant governor;
secretary of state; state treasurer; state auditor; attorney general;
commissioner of public lands; ((superintendent of public instruction;))
insurance commissioner; state senator; state representative; county
officers; justices of the supreme court; judges of the court of
appeals; judges of the superior court; and judges of the district
court. For all other jurisdictions on the primary consolidated ballot,
the offices in each jurisdiction shall be grouped together and be in
the order of the position numbers assigned to those offices, if any.
(b)(i) The positions or offices on a primary party ballot must be
arranged in substantially the following order: United States senator;
United States representative; governor; lieutenant governor; secretary
of state; state treasurer; state auditor; attorney general;
commissioner of public lands; insurance commissioner; state senator;
state representative; and partisan county officers. For all other
jurisdictions on the primary party ballot, the offices in each
jurisdiction must be grouped together and be in the order of the
position numbers assigned to those offices, if any.
(ii) The positions or offices on a primary nonpartisan ballot must
be arranged in substantially the following order: ((Superintendent of
public instruction;)) Justices of the supreme court; judges of the
court of appeals; judges of the superior court; and judges of the
district court. For all other jurisdictions on the primary nonpartisan
ballot, the offices in each jurisdiction must be grouped together and
be in the order of the position numbers assigned to those offices, if
any.
(2) The order of the positions or offices on an election ballot
shall be substantially the same as on a primary consolidated ballot
except that state ballot issues must be placed before all offices. The
offices of president and vice president of the United States shall
precede all other offices on a presidential election ballot. The
positions on a ballot to be assigned to ballot measures regarding local
units of government shall be established by the secretary of state by
rule.
(3) The political party or independent candidacy of each candidate
for partisan office shall be indicated next to the name of the
candidate on the primary and election ballot. A candidate shall file
a written notice with the filing officer within three business days
after the close of the filing period designating the political party to
be indicated next to the candidate's name on the ballot if either: (a)
The candidate has been nominated by two or more minor political parties
or independent conventions; or (b) the candidate has both filed a
declaration of candidacy declaring an affiliation with a major
political party and been nominated by a minor political party or
independent convention. If no written notice is filed the filing
officer shall give effect to the party designation shown upon the first
document filed. A candidate may be deemed nominated by a minor party
or independent convention only if all documentation required by chapter
29A.20 RCW has been timely filed.
Sec. 205 RCW 29A.52.231 and 2004 c 271 s 174 are each amended to
read as follows:
The offices of ((superintendent of public instruction,)) justice of
the supreme court, judge of the court of appeals, judge of the superior
court, and judge of the district court shall be nonpartisan and the
candidates therefor shall be nominated and elected as such.
All city, town, and special purpose district elective offices shall
be nonpartisan and the candidates therefor shall be nominated and
elected as such.
Sec. 206 RCW 42.17A.005 and 2010 c 204 s 101 are each reenacted
and amended to read as follows:
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter
unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
(1) "Actual malice" means to act with knowledge of falsity or with
reckless disregard as to truth or falsity.
(2) "Agency" includes all state agencies and all local agencies.
"State agency" includes every state office, department, division,
bureau, board, commission, or other state agency. "Local agency"
includes every county, city, town, municipal corporation, quasi-municipal corporation, or special purpose district, or any office,
department, division, bureau, board, commission, or agency thereof, or
other local public agency.
(3) "Authorized committee" means the political committee authorized
by a candidate, or by the public official against whom recall charges
have been filed, to accept contributions or make expenditures on behalf
of the candidate or public official.
(4) "Ballot proposition" means any "measure" as defined by RCW
29A.04.091, or any initiative, recall, or referendum proposition
proposed to be submitted to the voters of the state or any municipal
corporation, political subdivision, or other voting constituency from
and after the time when the proposition has been initially filed with
the appropriate election officer of that constituency before its
circulation for signatures.
(5) "Benefit" means a commercial, proprietary, financial, economic,
or monetary advantage, or the avoidance of a commercial, proprietary,
financial, economic, or monetary disadvantage.
(6) "Bona fide political party" means:
(a) An organization that has been recognized as a minor political
party by the secretary of state;
(b) The governing body of the state organization of a major
political party, as defined in RCW 29A.04.086, that is the body
authorized by the charter or bylaws of the party to exercise authority
on behalf of the state party; or
(c) The county central committee or legislative district committee
of a major political party. There may be only one legislative district
committee for each party in each legislative district.
(7) "Candidate" means any individual who seeks nomination for
election or election to public office. An individual seeks nomination
or election when he or she first:
(a) Receives contributions or makes expenditures or reserves space
or facilities with intent to promote his or her candidacy for office;
(b) Announces publicly or files for office;
(c) Purchases commercial advertising space or broadcast time to
promote his or her candidacy; or
(d) Gives his or her consent to another person to take on behalf of
the individual any of the actions in (a) or (c) of this subsection.
(8) "Caucus political committee" means a political committee
organized and maintained by the members of a major political party in
the state senate or state house of representatives.
(9) "Commercial advertiser" means any person who sells the service
of communicating messages or producing printed material for broadcast
or distribution to the general public or segments of the general public
whether through the use of newspapers, magazines, television and radio
stations, billboard companies, direct mail advertising companies,
printing companies, or otherwise.
(10) "Commission" means the agency established under RCW
42.17A.100.
(11) "Compensation" unless the context requires a narrower meaning,
includes payment in any form for real or personal property or services
of any kind. For the purpose of compliance with RCW 42.17A.710,
"compensation" does not include per diem allowances or other payments
made by a governmental entity to reimburse a public official for
expenses incurred while the official is engaged in the official
business of the governmental entity.
(12) "Continuing political committee" means a political committee
that is an organization of continuing existence not established in
anticipation of any particular election campaign.
(13)(a) "Contribution" includes:
(i) A loan, gift, deposit, subscription, forgiveness of
indebtedness, donation, advance, pledge, payment, transfer of funds
between political committees, or anything of value, including personal
and professional services for less than full consideration;
(ii) An expenditure made by a person in cooperation, consultation,
or concert with, or at the request or suggestion of, a candidate, a
political committee, the person or persons named on the candidate's or
committee's registration form who direct expenditures on behalf of the
candidate or committee, or their agents;
(iii) The financing by a person of the dissemination, distribution,
or republication, in whole or in part, of broadcast, written, graphic,
or other form of political advertising or electioneering communication
prepared by a candidate, a political committee, or its authorized
agent;
(iv) Sums paid for tickets to fund-raising events such as dinners
and parties, except for the actual cost of the consumables furnished at
the event.
(b) "Contribution" does not include:
(i) Standard interest on money deposited in a political committee's
account;
(ii) Ordinary home hospitality;
(iii) A contribution received by a candidate or political committee
that is returned to the contributor within five business days of the
date on which it is received by the candidate or political committee;
(iv) A news item, feature, commentary, or editorial in a regularly
scheduled news medium that is of primary interest to the general
public, that is in a news medium controlled by a person whose business
is that news medium, and that is not controlled by a candidate or a
political committee;
(v) An internal political communication primarily limited to the
members of or contributors to a political party organization or
political committee, or to the officers, management staff, or
stockholders of a corporation or similar enterprise, or to the members
of a labor organization or other membership organization;
(vi) The rendering of personal services of the sort commonly
performed by volunteer campaign workers, or incidental expenses
personally incurred by volunteer campaign workers not in excess of
fifty dollars personally paid for by the worker. "Volunteer services,"
for the purposes of this subsection, means services or labor for which
the individual is not compensated by any person;
(vii) Messages in the form of reader boards, banners, or yard or
window signs displayed on a person's own property or property occupied
by a person. However, a facility used for such political advertising
for which a rental charge is normally made must be reported as an in-kind contribution and counts towards any applicable contribution limit
of the person providing the facility;
(viii) Legal or accounting services rendered to or on behalf of:
(A) A political party or caucus political committee if the person
paying for the services is the regular employer of the person rendering
such services; or
(B) A candidate or an authorized committee if the person paying for
the services is the regular employer of the individual rendering the
services and if the services are solely for the purpose of ensuring
compliance with state election or public disclosure laws; or
(ix) The performance of ministerial functions by a person on behalf
of two or more candidates or political committees either as volunteer
services defined in (b)(vi) of this subsection or for payment by the
candidate or political committee for whom the services are performed as
long as:
(A) The person performs solely ministerial functions;
(B) A person who is paid by two or more candidates or political
committees is identified by the candidates and political committees on
whose behalf services are performed as part of their respective
statements of organization under RCW 42.17A.205; and
(C) The person does not disclose, except as required by law, any
information regarding a candidate's or committee's plans, projects,
activities, or needs, or regarding a candidate's or committee's
contributions or expenditures that is not already publicly available
from campaign reports filed with the commission, or otherwise engage in
activity that constitutes a contribution under (a)(ii) of this
subsection.
A person who performs ministerial functions under this subsection
(13)(b)(ix) is not considered an agent of the candidate or committee as
long as he or she has no authority to authorize expenditures or make
decisions on behalf of the candidate or committee.
(c) Contributions other than money or its equivalent are deemed to
have a monetary value equivalent to the fair market value of the
contribution. Services or property or rights furnished at less than
their fair market value for the purpose of assisting any candidate or
political committee are deemed a contribution. Such a contribution
must be reported as an in-kind contribution at its fair market value
and counts towards any applicable contribution limit of the provider.
(14) "Depository" means a bank, mutual savings bank, savings and
loan association, or credit union doing business in this state.
(15) "Elected official" means any person elected at a general or
special election to any public office, and any person appointed to fill
a vacancy in any such office.
(16) "Election" includes any primary, general, or special election
for public office and any election in which a ballot proposition is
submitted to the voters. An election in which the qualifications for
voting include other than those requirements set forth in Article VI,
section 1 (Amendment 63) of the Constitution of the state of Washington
shall not be considered an election for purposes of this chapter.
(17) "Election campaign" means any campaign in support of or in
opposition to a candidate for election to public office and any
campaign in support of, or in opposition to, a ballot proposition.
(18) "Election cycle" means the period beginning on the first day
of January after the date of the last previous general election for the
office that the candidate seeks and ending on December 31st after the
next election for the office. In the case of a special election to
fill a vacancy in an office, "election cycle" means the period
beginning on the day the vacancy occurs and ending on December 31st
after the special election.
(19) "Electioneering communication" means any broadcast, cable, or
satellite television or radio transmission, United States postal
service mailing, billboard, newspaper, or periodical that:
(a) Clearly identifies a candidate for a state, local, or judicial
office either by specifically naming the candidate, or identifying the
candidate without using the candidate's name;
(b) Is broadcast, transmitted, mailed, erected, distributed, or
otherwise published within sixty days before any election for that
office in the jurisdiction in which the candidate is seeking election;
and
(c) Either alone, or in combination with one or more communications
identifying the candidate by the same sponsor during the sixty days
before an election, has a fair market value of five thousand dollars or
more.
(20) "Electioneering communication" does not include:
(a) Usual and customary advertising of a business owned by a
candidate, even if the candidate is mentioned in the advertising when
the candidate has been regularly mentioned in that advertising
appearing at least twelve months preceding his or her becoming a
candidate;
(b) Advertising for candidate debates or forums when the
advertising is paid for by or on behalf of the debate or forum sponsor,
so long as two or more candidates for the same position have been
invited to participate in the debate or forum;
(c) A news item, feature, commentary, or editorial in a regularly
scheduled news medium that is:
(i) Of primary interest to the general public;
(ii) In a news medium controlled by a person whose business is that
news medium; and
(iii) Not a medium controlled by a candidate or a political
committee;
(d) Slate cards and sample ballots;
(e) Advertising for books, films, dissertations, or similar works
(i) written by a candidate when the candidate entered into a contract
for such publications or media at least twelve months before becoming
a candidate, or (ii) written about a candidate;
(f) Public service announcements;
(g) A mailed internal political communication primarily limited to
the members of or contributors to a political party organization or
political committee, or to the officers, management staff, or
stockholders of a corporation or similar enterprise, or to the members
of a labor organization or other membership organization;
(h) An expenditure by or contribution to the authorized committee
of a candidate for state, local, or judicial office; or
(i) Any other communication exempted by the commission through rule
consistent with the intent of this chapter.
(21) "Expenditure" includes a payment, contribution, subscription,
distribution, loan, advance, deposit, or gift of money or anything of
value, and includes a contract, promise, or agreement, whether or not
legally enforceable, to make an expenditure. "Expenditure" also
includes a promise to pay, a payment, or a transfer of anything of
value in exchange for goods, services, property, facilities, or
anything of value for the purpose of assisting, benefiting, or honoring
any public official or candidate, or assisting in furthering or
opposing any election campaign. For the purposes of this chapter,
agreements to make expenditures, contracts, and promises to pay may be
reported as estimated obligations until actual payment is made.
"Expenditure" shall not include the partial or complete repayment by a
candidate or political committee of the principal of a loan, the
receipt of which loan has been properly reported.
(22) "Final report" means the report described as a final report in
RCW 42.17A.235(2).
(23) "General election" for the purposes of RCW 42.17A.405 means
the election that results in the election of a person to a state or
local office. It does not include a primary.
(24) "Gift" has the definition in RCW 42.52.010.
(25) "Immediate family" includes the spouse or domestic partner,
dependent children, and other dependent relatives, if living in the
household. For the purposes of the definition of "intermediary" in
this section, "immediate family" means an individual's spouse or
domestic partner, and child, stepchild, grandchild, parent, stepparent,
grandparent, brother, half brother, sister, or half sister of the
individual and the spouse or the domestic partner of any such person
and a child, stepchild, grandchild, parent, stepparent, grandparent,
brother, half brother, sister, or half sister of the individual's
spouse or domestic partner and the spouse or the domestic partner of
any such person.
(26) "Incumbent" means a person who is in present possession of an
elected office.
(27) "Independent expenditure" means an expenditure that has each
of the following elements:
(a) It is made in support of or in opposition to a candidate for
office by a person who is not (i) a candidate for that office, (ii) an
authorized committee of that candidate for that office, (iii) a person
who has received the candidate's encouragement or approval to make the
expenditure, if the expenditure pays in whole or in part for political
advertising supporting that candidate or promoting the defeat of any
other candidate or candidates for that office, or (iv) a person with
whom the candidate has collaborated for the purpose of making the
expenditure, if the expenditure pays in whole or in part for political
advertising supporting that candidate or promoting the defeat of any
other candidate or candidates for that office;
(b) The expenditure pays in whole or in part for political
advertising that either specifically names the candidate supported or
opposed, or clearly and beyond any doubt identifies the candidate
without using the candidate's name; and
(c) The expenditure, alone or in conjunction with another
expenditure or other expenditures of the same person in support of or
opposition to that candidate, has a value of eight hundred dollars or
more. A series of expenditures, each of which is under eight hundred
dollars, constitutes one independent expenditure if their cumulative
value is eight hundred dollars or more.
(28)(a) "Intermediary" means an individual who transmits a
contribution to a candidate or committee from another person unless the
contribution is from the individual's employer, immediate family, or an
association to which the individual belongs.
(b) A treasurer or a candidate is not an intermediary for purposes
of the committee that the treasurer or candidate serves.
(c) A professional fund-raiser is not an intermediary if the fund-raiser is compensated for fund-raising services at the usual and
customary rate.
(d) A volunteer hosting a fund-raising event at the individual's
home is not an intermediary for purposes of that event.
(29) "Legislation" means bills, resolutions, motions, amendments,
nominations, and other matters pending or proposed in either house of
the state legislature, and includes any other matter that may be the
subject of action by either house or any committee of the legislature
and all bills and resolutions that, having passed both houses, are
pending approval by the governor.
(30) "Legislative office" means the office of a member of the state
house of representatives or the office of a member of the state senate.
(31) "Lobby" and "lobbying" each mean attempting to influence the
passage or defeat of any legislation by the legislature of the state of
Washington, or the adoption or rejection of any rule, standard, rate,
or other legislative enactment of any state agency under the state
administrative procedure act, chapter 34.05 RCW. Neither "lobby" nor
"lobbying" includes an association's or other organization's act of
communicating with the members of that association or organization.
(32) "Lobbyist" includes any person who lobbies either in his or
her own or another's behalf.
(33) "Lobbyist's employer" means the person or persons by whom a
lobbyist is employed and all persons by whom he or she is compensated
for acting as a lobbyist.
(34) "Ministerial functions" means an act or duty carried out as
part of the duties of an administrative office without exercise of
personal judgment or discretion.
(35) "Participate" means that, with respect to a particular
election, an entity:
(a) Makes either a monetary or in-kind contribution to a candidate;
(b) Makes an independent expenditure or electioneering
communication in support of or opposition to a candidate;
(c) Endorses a candidate before contributions are made by a
subsidiary corporation or local unit with respect to that candidate or
that candidate's opponent;
(d) Makes a recommendation regarding whether a candidate should be
supported or opposed before a contribution is made by a subsidiary
corporation or local unit with respect to that candidate or that
candidate's opponent; or
(e) Directly or indirectly collaborates or consults with a
subsidiary corporation or local unit on matters relating to the support
of or opposition to a candidate, including, but not limited to, the
amount of a contribution, when a contribution should be given, and what
assistance, services or independent expenditures, or electioneering
communications, if any, will be made or should be made in support of or
opposition to a candidate.
(36) "Person" includes an individual, partnership, joint venture,
public or private corporation, association, federal, state, or local
governmental entity or agency however constituted, candidate,
committee, political committee, political party, executive committee
thereof, or any other organization or group of persons, however
organized.
(37) "Political advertising" includes any advertising displays,
newspaper ads, billboards, signs, brochures, articles, tabloids,
flyers, letters, radio or television presentations, or other means of
mass communication, used for the purpose of appealing, directly or
indirectly, for votes or for financial or other support or opposition
in any election campaign.
(38) "Political committee" means any person (except a candidate or
an individual dealing with his or her own funds or property) having the
expectation of receiving contributions or making expenditures in
support of, or opposition to, any candidate or any ballot proposition.
(39) "Primary" for the purposes of RCW 42.17A.405 means the
procedure for nominating a candidate to state or local office under
chapter 29A.52 RCW or any other primary for an election that uses, in
large measure, the procedures established in chapter 29A.52 RCW.
(40) "Public office" means any federal, state, judicial, county,
city, town, school district, port district, special district, or other
state political subdivision elective office.
(41) "Public record" has the definition in RCW 42.56.010.
(42) "Recall campaign" means the period of time beginning on the
date of the filing of recall charges under RCW 29A.56.120 and ending
thirty days after the recall election.
(43) "Sponsor of an electioneering communications, independent
expenditures, or political advertising" means the person paying for the
electioneering communication, independent expenditure, or political
advertising. If a person acts as an agent for another or is reimbursed
by another for the payment, the original source of the payment is the
sponsor.
(44) "State office" means state legislative office or the office of
governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general,
commissioner of public lands, insurance commissioner, ((superintendent
of public instruction,)) state auditor, or state treasurer.
(45) "State official" means a person who holds a state office.
(46) "Surplus funds" mean, in the case of a political committee or
candidate, the balance of contributions that remain in the possession
or control of that committee or candidate subsequent to the election
for which the contributions were received, and that are in excess of
the amount necessary to pay remaining debts incurred by the committee
or candidate with respect to that election. In the case of a
continuing political committee, "surplus funds" mean those
contributions remaining in the possession or control of the committee
that are in excess of the amount necessary to pay all remaining debts
when it makes its final report under RCW 42.17A.255.
(47) "Treasurer" and "deputy treasurer" mean the individuals
appointed by a candidate or political committee, pursuant to RCW
42.17A.210, to perform the duties specified in that section.
Sec. 207 RCW 43.01.010 and 1965 c 8 s 43.01.010 are each amended
to read as follows:
The governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, treasurer,
auditor, attorney general, ((superintendent of public instruction,))
commissioner of public lands, and insurance commissioner, shall hold
office for the term of four years, and until their successors are
elected and qualified; and the term shall commence on the Wednesday
after the second Monday of January following their election.
Sec. 208 RCW 43.01.020 and 1965 c 8 s 43.01.020 are each amended
to read as follows:
The governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, treasurer,
auditor, attorney general, ((superintendent of public instruction,))
commissioner of public lands, and insurance commissioner, shall, before
entering upon the duties of their respective offices, take and
subscribe an oath or affirmation in substance as follows: I do
solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitution of the
United States and the Constitution and laws of the state of Washington,
and that I will faithfully discharge the duties of the office of (name
of office) to the best of my ability.
The oath or affirmation shall be administered by one of the
justices of the supreme court at the capitol. A certificate shall be
affixed thereto by the person administering the oath, and the oath or
affirmation so certified shall be filed in the office of the secretary
of state before the officer shall be qualified to discharge any
official duties: PROVIDED, That the oath of the secretary of state
shall be filed in the office of the state auditor.
Sec. 209 RCW 43.03.010 and 1989 c 10 s 8 are each amended to read
as follows:
The annual salaries of the following named state elected officials
shall be prescribed by the Washington citizens' commission on salaries
for elected officials: Governor; lieutenant governor: PROVIDED, That
in arriving at the annual salary of the lieutenant governor the
commission shall prescribe a fixed amount plus a sum equal to 1/260th
of the difference between the annual salary of the lieutenant governor
and the annual salary of the governor for each day that the lieutenant
governor is called upon to perform the duties of the governor by reason
of the absence from the state, removal, resignation, death, or
disability of the governor; secretary of state; state treasurer; state
auditor; attorney general; ((superintendent of public instruction;))
commissioner of public lands; and state insurance commissioner.
Members of the legislature shall receive for their service per annum
the amount prescribed by the Washington citizens' commission on
salaries for elected officials; and in addition, reimbursement for
mileage for travel to and from legislative sessions as provided in RCW
43.03.060.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 301 The following sections are each recodified
in chapter 43.--- RCW (the new chapter created in section 302 of this
act):
RCW 28A.300.010
RCW 28A.300.020
RCW 28A.300.030
RCW 28A.300.040
RCW 28A.300.050
RCW 28A.300.120
RCW 28A.300.220
NEW SECTION. Sec. 302 Sections 102 and 104 of this act
constitute a new chapter in Title
NEW SECTION. Sec. 303 This act takes effect January 13, 2012, if
the proposed amendments to Article III of the state Constitution,
eliminating the superintendent of public instruction as a statewide
elected official (S-0755/11), is validly submitted to and is approved
and ratified by the voters at the next general election. If the
proposed amendment is not approved and ratified, this act is void in
its entirety.