Political Buzz » Public Disclosure Commission

PDC staff recommends dismissal of Inslee complaint vs. McKenna

Brad Shannon — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 22:25:17 +0000

Staffers at the state Public Disclosure Commission are recommending dismissal of a campaign finance complaint brought against Republican Rob McKenna’s gubernatorial campaign by his Democratic rival, Jay Inslee. The full report, which did find errors by the McKenna campaign, is here.

The PDC staff’s recommendation to drop the case is the same conclusion it reached last week about a complaint McKenna’s team filed against Inslee’s campaign.

The commission on Monday then rejected the McKenna complaints against Inslee. The recommendation on the complaint against McKenna now goes to the five-member citizen commission on Thursday, Oct. 25.

At issue …

Tacoma: PAC that sent attack mailer about Jack Connelly in 27th District state senate race still hasn’t reported it

Lewis Kamb — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 20:08:10 +0000

At least 10 days have gone by, but a political action committee that recently distributed $8,000 worth of attack mailers against 27th District senate candidate Jack Connelly still has yet to file a report with the state’s campaign finance watchdog.

And that means the group, Tacomans for Integrity in Goverment, is likely running afoul of state campaign finance law.

“If they spend at least $1,000 in support or opposition to any candidate, the committee must file a special report within 24 hours of when the ad is presented to the public or on the first business day when …

Former Pierce County Councilman Shawn Bunney agrees to pay fine for mail piece

Jordan Schrader — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 01:41:30 +0000

The state’s campaign watchdog decided Bunney’s election-year mailing crossed the line separating a taxpayer-funded newsletter and a campaign ad.

Fifteen months after coming up short in the 2010 campaign for state House, Bunney has agreed to pay an $850 fine, plus another $850 that will be suspended if no more violations turn up. The Public Disclosure Commission approved the settlement today on a 3-0 vote.

The Republican former councilman from Lake Tapps followed county rules that restrict mailings after July 31 — a deadline the council changed to May 31 after the flap over Bunney’s mailer. But the PDC says he …

PDC staff recommends Americans for Prosperity case be dismissed

Jordan Schrader — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 22:03:36 +0000

Conservative group Americans for Prosperity-Washington didn’t run afoul of Washington election law, the staff of the state’s campaign watchdog agency has determined.

The group led by Kirby Wilbur, now chairman of the state Republican Party, attacked incumbent Democratic state lawmakers in ads and mailers and didn’t report the spending to the Public Disclosure Commission until after the November 2010 election.

Democrats complained, especially because they saw it as similar to campaign attacks on Republicans by liberal and labor groups using a Democratic consultant, Moxie Media, which has come under scrutiny for misleading voters.

But the PDC staff determined the …

PDC turns page; Doug Ellis says farewell

Brad Shannon — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 22:12:09 +0000

Doug Ellis, the interim director for the state Public Disclosure Commission since March 2010, bid farewell to his public service career yesterday. A few of the people Ellis worked with during his 19-year stint at the elections watchdog agency stopped in at the PDC to munch a cookie and say goodbye.

Read full post.

Rep. Campbell asks for independent look at Moxie

Brad Shannon — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 20:21:35 +0000

Republican state Rep. Tom Campbell is distancing himself from independent campaign ads by Moxie Media, which has come under fire for its alleged concealment of funding sources for some of its ads this fall.

Campbell, a Republican who was losing to fellow Republican J.T. Wilcox in the August primary, compared the case to Watergate and sent Attorney General Rob McKenna’s office a letter asking for an independent prosecutor to look into Moxie’s actions using funds from labor groups.

McKenna’s legal staff already filed a lawsuit Friday against Moxie and has insisted before it is independent in these kinds of cases. …

Public Disclosure Commission decides to take on ‘push polls’

Jordan Schrader — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 18:23:40 +0000

The Public Disclosure Commission today voted to draft proposed legislation that would require disclosure in “push polls” and other kinds of political advertising by telephone.

Proposals written by staff will be considered by the commission and could be forwarded on to the Legislature as recommendations. The goal is to inform voters who’s paying for calls to their home that aim to persuade.

While still in the early stages, the proposals may not change anything about the kind of phone calls that voters have been hearing in recent weeks from organized labor and other groups, even though the calls often deliver negative …

Keys to Tacoma firefighters’ influence: cash, signs, bodies

David Wickert — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 18:44:11 +0000

Tacoma politicians tell us the Tacoma Professional Firefighters Union is very influential in city politics. The reasons: cash, signs and bodies.

As I reported yesterday, the firefighters union is the top contributor to City of Tacoma candidates since 2003. The union’s political action committee – Active in Democracy – has contributed nearly $30,000 to candidates in recent elections. And that doesn’t count contributions by individual firefighters.

The PAC gets its money from small contributions by union members. Documents on file with the state Public Disclosure Commission indicate union members currently contribute about $6 several times a year …