H-4222.1

SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 2772

ByHouse State Government & Tribal Relations (originally sponsored by Representatives Walsh, Hudgins, and Pollet; by request of Public Disclosure Commission)

AN ACT Relating to the administration of election campaign activities and reporting statements of financial affairs; amending RCW 42.17A.005, 42.17A.105, 42.17A.700, 42.17A.710, and 42.17A.020; adding a new section to chapter 42.17A RCW; and declaring an emergency.

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

Sec. 1. RCW 42.17A.005 and 2019 c 428 s 3 are each 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)). For purposes of this chapter, a proposition is considered proposed at the time when ((the proposition has been))it is initially filed with the appropriate election ((officer of that constituency before its circulation for signatures))official, or is initially circulated for signatures, whichever occurs first. Reporting requirements apply to expenditures made from the point at which a proposition is considered proposed.

(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) "Books of account" means:

(a) In the case of a campaign or political committee, a ledger or similar listing of contributions, expenditures, and debts, such as a campaign or committee is required to file regularly with the commission, current as of the most recent business day; or

(b) In the case of a commercial advertiser, details of political advertising or electioneering communications provided by the advertiser, including the names and addresses of persons from whom it accepted political advertising or electioneering communications, the exact nature and extent of the services rendered and the total cost and the manner of payment for the services.

(8) "Candidate" means any individual who seeks nomination for election or election to public office. An individual seeks nomination or election when the individual first:

(a) Receives contributions or makes expenditures or reserves space or facilities with intent to promote the individual's candidacy for office;

(b) Announces publicly or files for office;

(c) Purchases commercial advertising space or broadcast time to promote the individual's candidacy; or

(d) Gives consent to another person to take on behalf of the individual any of the actions in (a) or (c) of this subsection.

(9) "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.

(10) "Commercial advertiser" means any person that sells the service of communicating messages or producing material for broadcast or distribution to the general public or segments of the general public whether through brochures, fliers, newspapers, magazines, television, radio, billboards, direct mail advertising, printing, paid internet or digital communications, or any other means of mass communications used for the purpose of appealing, directly or indirectly, for votes or for financial or other support in any election campaign.

(11) "Commission" means the agency established under RCW 42.17A.100.

(12) "Committee" unless the context indicates otherwise, includes a political committee such as a candidate, ballot proposition, recall, political, or continuing political committee.

(13) "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.

(14) "Continuing political committee" means a political committee that is an organization of continuing existence not limited to participation in any particular election campaign or election cycle.

(15)(a) "Contribution" includes:

(i) A loan, gift, deposit, subscription, forgiveness of indebtedness, donation, advance, pledge, payment, transfer of funds, 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 or incidental 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, digital, or other form of political advertising or electioneering communication prepared by a candidate, a political or incidental 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) Accrued interest on money deposited in a political or incidental committee's account;

(ii) Ordinary home hospitality;

(iii) A contribution received by a candidate or political or incidental committee that is returned to the contributor within ten business days of the date on which it is received by the candidate or political or incidental committee;

(iv) A news item, feature, commentary, or editorial in a regularly scheduled news medium that is of interest to the 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 or incidental committee;

(v) An internal political communication primarily limited to the members of or contributors to a political party organization or political or incidental 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 toward 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 or incidental committees either as volunteer services defined in (b)(vi) of this subsection or for payment by the candidate or political or incidental 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 or incidental 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 (15)(b)(ix) is not considered an agent of the candidate or committee as long as the person 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.

(16) "Depository" means a bank, mutual savings bank, savings and loan association, or credit union doing business in this state.

(17) "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.

(18) "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.

(19) "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.

(20) "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.

(21)(a) "Electioneering communication" means any broadcast, cable, or satellite television, radio transmission, digital communication, United States postal service mailing, billboard, newspaper, or periodical that:

(i) 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;

(ii) Is broadcast, transmitted electronically or by other means, 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

(iii) 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 or cost of one thousand dollars or more.

(b) "Electioneering communication" does not include:

(i) 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 the candidate becoming a candidate;

(ii) 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;

(iii) A news item, feature, commentary, or editorial in a regularly scheduled news medium that is:

(A) Of interest to the public;

(B) In a news medium controlled by a person whose business is that news medium; and

(C) Not a medium controlled by a candidate or a political or incidental committee;

(iv) Slate cards and sample ballots;

(v) Advertising for books, films, dissertations, or similar works (A) 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 (B) written about a candidate;

(vi) Public service announcements;

(vii) An internal political communication primarily limited to the members of or contributors to a political party organization or political or incidental 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;

(viii) An expenditure by or contribution to the authorized committee of a candidate for state, local, or judicial office; or

(ix) Any other communication exempted by the commission through rule consistent with the intent of this chapter.

(22) "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 or incidental committee of the principal of a loan, the receipt of which loan has been properly reported.

(23) "Final report" means the report described as a final report in RCW 42.17A.235 (11)(a).

(24) "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.

(25) "Gift" has the definition in RCW 42.52.010.

(26) "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.

(27) "Incidental committee" means any nonprofit organization not otherwise defined as a political committee but that may incidentally make a contribution or an expenditure in excess of the reporting thresholds in RCW 42.17A.235, directly or through a political committee. Any nonprofit organization is not an incidental committee if it is only remitting payments through the nonprofit organization in an aggregated form and the nonprofit organization is not required to report those payments in accordance with this chapter.

(28) "Incumbent" means a person who is in present possession of an elected office.

(29)(a) "Independent expenditure" means an expenditure that has each of the following elements:

(i) It is made in support of or in opposition to a candidate for office by a person who is not:

(A) A candidate for that office;

(B) An authorized committee of that candidate for that office; and

(C) 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;

(ii) It is made in support of or in opposition to a candidate for office by a person with whom the candidate has not 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;

(iii) 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

(iv) 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 one thousand dollars or more. A series of expenditures, each of which is under one thousand dollars, constitutes one independent expenditure if their cumulative value is one thousand dollars or more.

(b) "Independent expenditure" does not include: Ordinary home hospitality; communications with journalists or editorial staff designed to elicit a news item, feature, commentary, or editorial in a regularly scheduled news medium that is of primary interest to the general public, controlled by a person whose business is that news medium, and not controlled by a candidate or a political committee; participation in the creation of a publicly funded voters pamphlet statement in written or video form; an internal political communication primarily limited to contributors to a political party organization or political action committee, the officers, management staff, and stockholders of a corporation or similar enterprise, or the members of a labor organization or other membership organization; or 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 two hundred fifty dollars personally paid for by the worker.

(30)(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.

(31) "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.

(32) "Legislative office" means the office of a member of the state house of representatives or the office of a member of the state senate.

(33) "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.

(34) "Lobbyist" includes any person who lobbies either on the person's own or another's behalf.

(35) "Lobbyist's employer" means the person or persons by whom a lobbyist is employed and all persons by whom the lobbyist is compensated for acting as a lobbyist.

(36) "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.

(37) "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.

(38) "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.

(39) "Political advertising" includes any advertising displays, newspaper ads, billboards, signs, brochures, articles, tabloids, flyers, letters, radio or television presentations, digital communication, 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.

(40) "Political committee" means any person (except a candidate or an individual dealing with the candidate's or individual's 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.

(41) "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.

(42) "Public office" means any federal, state, judicial, county, city, town, school district, port district, special district, or other state political subdivision elective office.

(43) "Public record" has the definition in RCW 42.56.010.

(44) "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.

(45) "Remediable violation" means any violation of this chapter that:

(a) Involved expenditures or contributions totaling no more than the contribution limits set out under RCW 42.17A.405(2) per election, or one thousand dollars if there is no statutory limit;

(b) Occurred:

(i) More than thirty days before an election, where the commission entered into an agreement to resolve the matter; or

(ii) At any time where the violation did not constitute a material violation because it was inadvertent and minor or otherwise has been cured and, after consideration of all the circumstances, further proceedings would not serve the purposes of this chapter;

(c) Does not materially harm the public interest, beyond the harm to the policy of this chapter inherent in any violation; and

(d) Involved:

(i) A person who:

(A) Took corrective action within five business days after the commission first notified the person of noncompliance, or where the commission did not provide notice and filed a required report within twenty-one days after the report was due to be filed; and

(B) Substantially met the filing deadline for all other required reports within the immediately preceding twelve-month period; or

(ii) A candidate who:

(A) Lost the election in question; and

(B) Did not receive contributions over one hundred times the contribution limit in aggregate per election during the campaign in question.

(46)(a) "Sponsor" for purposes 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.

(b) "Sponsor," for purposes of a political or incidental committee, means any person, except an authorized committee, to whom any of the following applies:

(i) The committee receives eighty percent or more of its contributions either from the person or from the person's members, officers, employees, or shareholders;

(ii) The person collects contributions for the committee by use of payroll deductions or dues from its members, officers, or employees.

(47) "Sponsored committee" means a committee, other than an authorized committee, that has one or more sponsors.

(48) "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.

(49) "State official" means a person who holds a state office.

(50) "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 or expenses 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 or expenses when it makes its final report under RCW 42.17A.255.

(51) "Technical correction" means the correction of a minor or ministerial error in a required report that does not materially harm the public interest and needs to be corrected for the report to be in full compliance with the requirements of this chapter.

(52) "Treasurer" and "deputy treasurer" mean the individuals appointed by a candidate or political or incidental committee, pursuant to RCW 42.17A.210, to perform the duties specified in that section.

(53) "Violation" means a violation of this chapter that is not a remediable violation, minor violation, or an error classified by the commission as appropriate to address by a technical correction.

Sec. 2. RCW 42.17A.105 and 2010 c 204 s 302 are each amended to read as follows:

The commission shall:

(1) Develop and provide forms for the reports and statements required to be made under this chapter;

(2) ((Prepare and publish a manual setting forth))Provide recommended uniform methods of ((bookkeeping))recordkeeping and reporting for use by persons required to make reports and statements under this chapter;

(3) Compile and maintain a current list of all filed reports and statements;

(4) Investigate whether properly completed statements and reports have been filed within the times required by this chapter;

(5) Upon complaint or upon its own motion, investigate and report apparent violations of this chapter to the appropriate law enforcement authorities;

(6) Conduct a sufficient number of audits and field investigations, as staff capacity permits without impacting the timeliness of addressing alleged violations, to provide a statistically valid finding regarding the degree of compliance with the provisions of this chapter by all required filers. Any documents, records, reports, computer files, papers, or materials provided to the commission for use in conducting audits and investigations must be returned to the candidate, campaign, or political committee from which they were received within one week of the commission's completion of an audit or field investigation;

(7) Prepare and publish an annual report to the governor as to the effectiveness of this chapter and ((its enforcement by appropriate law enforcement authorities))the work of the commission;

(8) Enforce this chapter according to the powers granted it by law;

(9) ((Adopt rules governing the arrangement, handling, indexing, and disclosing of those reports required by this chapter to be filed with a county auditor or county elections official. The rules shall:

(10))) Adopt rules to carry out the policies of chapter 348, Laws of 2006. The adoption of these rules is not subject to the time restrictions of RCW 42.17A.110(1); and

(((11)))(10) Adopt administrative rules establishing requirements for filer participation in any system designed and implemented by the commission for the electronic filing of reports((; and

(12) Maintain and make available to the public and political committees of this state a toll-free telephone number)).

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

(1) All advertising related to an election that encourages, directly or indirectly, people to vote for a person who, as of the date the advertisement is first presented to the public, is not a candidate for that office must include the following statement: "This ad encourages you to vote for a person who is not a candidate for this office as of . . . . . (the date the advertising is first presented to the public)."

(2) All advertising related to an election that incorrectly conveys, directly or indirectly, that a person has the endorsement of an entity or individual for an office in an election, when that person does not have that endorsement for that office in that election, must include the following statement: "As of . . . . . (the date the advertising is first presented to the public) this person does not actually have the endorsement of . . . . . (list individuals or entities whose endorsement was stated or implied) for this office in this election."

(3) For the purposes of this section, "candidate" means:

(a) Prior to the end of the filing period under RCW 29A.24.050 for an election, a person who is a candidate for that election as defined in RCW 42.17A.005; and

(b) After the end of the filing period under RCW 29A.24.050 for an election, a person who has filed a declaration of candidacy for office in that election in accordance with chapter 29A.24 RCW.

(4) In a written communication, the information required by subsections (1) and (2) of this section must:

(a) Appear in a size equal to or greater than the largest size type otherwise used in the communication, adjacent to the text that:

(i) Encourages a vote, for the disclaimer in subsection (1) of this section; or

(ii) Conveys an endorsement, for the disclaimer in subsection (2) of this section;

(b) Not be subject to the half-tone or screening process; and

(c) Be set apart from any other printed matter. Except as provided in (a) of this subsection, no text may be before, after, or immediately adjacent to the information required by subsections (1) and (2) of this section.

(5) In a communication that is being transmitted by television or other medium that includes a visual image, the information required by subsections (1) and (2) of this section must either:

(a) Be clearly spoken; or

(b) Appear in print and be visible for at least four seconds, in letters greater than four percent of the visual screen height, with a reasonable color contrast with the background.

(6) In a communication that does not include a visual image, the information required by subsections (1) and (2) of this section must be clearly spoken.

Sec. 4. RCW 42.17A.700 and 2019 c 428 s 35 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) After January 1st and before April 15th of each year, every elected official and every executive state officer ((who served for any portion of the preceding year)) shall electronically file with the commission a statement of financial affairs for the preceding calendar year ((or for that portion of the year served)). Any official or officer in office for any period of time in a calendar year, but not in office as of January 1st of the following year, ((may))must electronically file either within sixty days of leaving office or during the January 1st through April 15th reporting period of that following year. Such filing must include information for the portion of the current calendar year for which the official or officer was in office.

(2) Within two weeks of becoming a candidate, every candidate shall file with the commission a statement of financial affairs for the preceding twelve months. However, a candidate who already has an existing obligation to file a statement for the preceding year must report for that period.

(3) Within two weeks of appointment, every person appointed to a vacancy in an elective office or executive state officer position during the months of January through November shall file with the commission a statement of financial affairs for the preceding twelve months((, except as provided in subsection (4) of this section)). For appointments made in December, the appointee must file the statement of financial affairs between January 1st and January 15th of the immediate following year for the preceding twelve-month period ending on December 31st.

(4) ((A statement of a candidate or appointee filed during the period from January 1st to April 15th shall cover the period from January 1st of the preceding calendar year to the time of candidacy or appointment if the filing of the statement would relieve the individual of a prior obligation to file a statement covering the entire preceding calendar year.

(5))) No individual may be required to file more than once in any calendar year.

(((6)))(5) Each statement of financial affairs filed under this section shall be sworn as to its truth and accuracy.

(((7)))(6) Every elected official and every executive state officer shall file with their statement of financial affairs a statement certifying that they have read and are familiar with RCW 42.17A.555 or 42.52.180, whichever is applicable.

(((8)))(7) For the purposes of this section, the term "executive state officer" includes those listed in RCW 42.17A.705.

(((9)))(8) This section does not apply to incumbents or candidates for a federal office or the office of precinct committee officer.

Sec. 5. RCW 42.17A.710 and 2019 c 428 s 36 are each amended to read as follows:

(((1) The statement of financial affairs required by RCW 42.17A.700 shall disclose the following information for the reporting individual and each member of the reporting individual's immediate family:

(4) Items of value given to an official's or employee's spouse, domestic partner, or family member are attributable to the official or employee, except the item is not attributable if an independent business, family, or social relationship exists between the donor and the spouse, domestic partner, or family member.))The statement of financial affairs that an elected official and executive state officer must file under RCW 42.17A.700 is for the purpose of providing necessary information to the public for transparency and accountability about an official's personal financial interests to help ensure that the official is making decisions in the best interest of the public, not enhancing a personal financial interest, and to help identify potential conflicts of interest. The financial affairs statement, known as an "F-1," requires the disclosure of personal financial information of the filer and the immediate family members of the filer, which means spouse, or registered domestic partner, and dependents. The commission shall establish rules for the information that must be reported in the statement of financial affairs, and shall provide an electronic filing application.

Sec. 6. RCW 42.17A.020 and 1973 c 1 s 44 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) All statements and reports filed under this chapter shall be public records of the agency where they are filed, and shall be available for public inspection and copying during normal business hours at the expense of the person requesting copies, provided that the charge for such copies shall not exceed actual cost to the agency.

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