Title 29B — Title 29B CAMPAIGN DISCLOSURE AND CONTRIBUTION

(1) The people of the state of Washington find and declare that:(a) The financial strength of certain individuals or organizations should not permit them to exercise a disproportionate or controlling influence on the election of candidates.(b) Rapidly increasing political campaig…

(1) The contribution limits in this section apply to:(a) Candidates for legislative office;(b) Candidates for state office other than legislative office;(c) Candidates for county office;(d) Candidates for port district office;(e) Candidates for city council office;(f) Candidates …

(1) No person may make contributions to a candidate for judicial office that in the aggregate exceed *one thousand six hundred dollars for each election in which the candidate is on the ballot or appears as a write-in candidate. Contributions made with respect to a primary may no…

(1) Contributions to candidates for state office made and received before December 3, 1992, are considered to be contributions under RCW 29B.20.050, 29B.40.020 through 29B.40.040, 29B.40.140 through 29B.40.230, 29B.40.240, 29B.45.020, and 29B.45.030. Monetary contributions that e…

(1) A foreign national may not make a contribution to any candidate or political committee, make an expenditure in support of or in opposition to any candidate or ballot measure, or sponsor political advertising or an electioneering communication.(2) A person may not make a contr…

(1) Each candidate or political committee that has accepted a contribution, and each out-of-state committee that has accepted a contribution reportable under RCW 29B.25.110, from a partnership, association, corporation, organization, or other combination of persons must receive a…

(1) It is a violation of this title for any person to make, or for any candidate or political committee to accept from any one person, contributions reportable under RCW 29B.25.100 in the aggregate exceeding fifty thousand dollars for any campaign for statewide office or exceedin…

No expenditures may be made or incurred by any candidate or political committee unless authorized by the candidate or the person or persons named on the candidate's or committee's registration form. A record of all such expenditures shall be maintained by the treasurer.No expendi…

The surplus funds of a candidate or a candidate's authorized committee may only be disposed of in any one or more of the following ways:(1) Return the surplus to a contributor in an amount not to exceed that contributor's original contribution;(2) Using surplus, reimburse the can…

No contribution shall be made and no expenditure shall be incurred, directly or indirectly, in a fictitious name, anonymously, or by one person through an agent, relative, or other person in such a manner as to conceal the identity of the source of the contribution or in any othe…

A candidate may not knowingly establish, use, direct, or control more than one political committee for the purpose of supporting that candidate during a particular election campaign. This does not prohibit: (1) In addition to a candidate's having his or her own political committe…

A political committee may make a contribution to another political committee only when the contributing political committee has received contributions of ten dollars or more each from at least 10 persons registered to vote in Washington state.[ 2024 c 164 s 454; 2011 c 145 s 5. F…

Contributions received and reported in accordance with RCW 29B.25.060 through 29B.25.100 and 29B.40.080 may only be paid to a candidate, or a treasurer or other individual or expended for such individual's personal use under the following circumstances:(1) Reimbursement for or pa…

(1) Contributions by spouses are considered separate contributions.(2) Contributions by unemancipated children under 18 years of age are considered contributions by their parents and are attributed proportionately to each parent. Fifty percent of the contributions are attributed …

For purposes of this title:(1) A contribution by a political committee with funds that have all been contributed by one person who exercises exclusive control over the distribution of the funds of the political committee is a contribution by the controlling person.(2) Two or more…

All contributions made by a person or entity, either directly or indirectly, to a candidate, to a state official against whom recall charges have been filed, or to a political committee, are considered to be contributions from that person or entity to the candidate, state officia…

(1) A loan is considered to be a contribution from the lender and any guarantor of the loan and is subject to the contribution limitations of this title. The full amount of the loan shall be attributed to the lender and to each guarantor.(2) A loan to a candidate for public offic…

(1) A person, other than an individual, may not be an intermediary or an agent for a contribution.(2) An individual may not make a contribution on behalf of another person or entity, or while acting as the intermediary or agent of another person or entity, without disclosing to t…

(1) A person may not make a contribution of more than *one hundred dollars, other than an in-kind contribution, except by a written instrument containing the name of the donor and the name of the payee.(2) A political committee may not make a contribution, other than in-kind, exc…

A person may not solicit from a candidate for public office, political committee, political party, or other person money or other property as a condition or consideration for an endorsement, article, or other communication in the news media promoting or opposing a candidate for p…

A person may not, directly or indirectly, reimburse another person for a contribution to a candidate for public office, political committee, or political party.[ 2024 c 164 s 463; 1995 c 397 s 26; 1993 c 2 s 18 (Initiative Measure No. 134, approved November 3, 1992). Formerly RCW…

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, a candidate for public office or the candidate's authorized committee may not use or permit the use of contributions, whether or not surplus, solicited for or received by the candidate or the candidate's authorized committ…

(1) No employer or labor organization may increase the salary of an officer or employee, or compensate an officer, employee, or other person or entity, with the intention that the increase in salary, or the compensation, or a part of it, be contributed or spent to support or oppo…

(1) A labor organization may not use agency shop fees paid by an individual who is not a member of the organization to make contributions or expenditures to influence an election or to operate a political committee, unless affirmatively authorized by the individual.(2) A labor or…

Public funds, whether derived through taxes, fees, penalties, or any other sources, shall not be used to finance political campaigns for state or school district office. A county, city, town, or district that establishes a program to publicly finance local political campaigns may…

No elective official nor any employee of his or her office nor any person appointed to or employed by any public office or agency may use or authorize the use of any of the facilities of a public office or agency, directly or indirectly, for the purpose of assisting a campaign fo…

(1) During the period beginning on the thirtieth day before the date a regular legislative session convenes and continuing through the date of final adjournment, and during the period beginning on the date a special legislative session convenes and continuing through the date tha…

(1) No state or local official or state or local official's agent may knowingly solicit, directly or indirectly, a contribution to a candidate for public office, political party, or political committee from an employee in the state or local official's agency.(2) No state or local…

After January 1st and before April 15th of each calendar year, the state treasurer, each county, public utility district, and port district treasurer, and each treasurer of an incorporated city or town whose population exceeds 1,000 shall file with the commission:(1) A statement …

No state elected official or municipal officer may speak or appear in a public service announcement that is broadcast, shown, or distributed in any form whatsoever during the period beginning January 1st and continuing through the general election if that official or officer is a…

(1) Before lobbying, or within 30 days after being employed as a lobbyist, whichever occurs first, unless exempt under RCW 29B.50.040, a lobbyist shall register by filing with the commission a lobbyist registration statement, in such detail as the commission shall prescribe, that…

(1) A lobbyist who is registered under RCW 29B.50.010 before December 31, 2019, is required to update the lobbyist's registration materials to include the attestation required by RCW 29B.50.010(1)(j) by December 31, 2019.(2) The commission shall revoke the registration of any lob…

Each lobbyist shall at the time the lobbyist registers submit electronically to the commission a recent photograph of the lobbyist of a size and format as determined by rule of the commission, together with the name of the lobbyist's employer, the length of the lobbyist's employm…

The following persons and activities are exempt from registration and reporting under RCW 29B.50.010, 29B.50.050, and 29B.50.100:(1) Persons who limit their lobbying activities to appearing before public sessions of committees of the legislature, or public hearings of state agenc…

(1) Any lobbyist registered under RCW 29B.50.010 and any person who lobbies shall file electronically with the commission monthly reports of the lobbyist's or person's lobbying activities. The reports shall be made in the form and manner prescribed by the commission and must be s…

(1) When a listing or a report of contributions is made to the commission under RCW 29B.50.050(2)(c), a copy of the listing or report must be given to the candidate, elected official, professional employee of the legislature, or officer or employee of an agency, or a political co…

Any lobbyist registered under RCW 29B.50.010, any person who lobbies, and any lobbyist's employer making a contribution or an aggregate of contributions to a single entity that is one thousand dollars or more during a special reporting period, as specified in RCW 29B.25.140, befo…

(1) Every employer of a lobbyist registered under this title during the preceding calendar year and every person other than an individual who made contributions aggregating to more than *sixteen thousand dollars or independent expenditures aggregating to more than *eight hundred …

(1) The house of representatives and the senate shall report annually: The total budget; the portion of the total attributed to staff; and the number of full-time and part-time staff positions by assignment, with dollar figures as well as number of positions.(2) Unless authorized…

(1) Any person who has made expenditures, not reported by a registered lobbyist under RCW 29B.50.050 or by a candidate or political committee under RCW 29B.25.070 or 29B.25.090, exceeding *one thousand dollars in the aggregate within any three-month period or exceeding *five hund…

If any person registered or required to be registered as a lobbyist, or any employer of any person registered or required to be registered as a lobbyist, employs a member or an employee of the legislature, a member of a state board or commission, or a full-time state employee, an…

It is a violation of this title for any person to employ for pay or any consideration, or pay or agree to pay any consideration to, a person to lobby who is not registered under this title except upon the condition that such a person must register as a lobbyist as provided by thi…

(1) A person required to register as a lobbyist under RCW 29B.50.010 shall substantiate financial reports required to be made under this title with accounts, bills, receipts, books, papers, and other necessary documents and records. All such documents must be obtained and preserv…

(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 fo…

For the purposes of RCW 29B.55.010, "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 secretary of children, youth, and families, the director of the state system o…

(1) The statement of financial affairs required by RCW 29B.55.010 shall disclose the following information for the reporting individual and each member of the reporting individual's immediate family:(a) Occupation, name of employer, and business address;(b) Each bank account, sav…

No payment shall be made to any person required to report under RCW 29B.55.010 and no payment shall be accepted by any such person, directly or indirectly, in a fictitious name, anonymously, or by one person through an agent, relative, or other person in such a manner as to conce…

(1) In addition to the penalties in subsection (2) of this section, and any other remedies provided by law, one or more of the following civil remedies and sanctions may be imposed by court order in addition to any other remedies provided by law:(a) If the court finds that the vi…

(1) The commission may initiate or respond to a complaint, request a technical correction, or otherwise resolve matters of compliance with this title, in accordance with this section. If a complaint is filed with or initiated by the commission, the commission must:(a) Dismiss the…

The following procedure shall apply in all cases where the commission has petitioned a court of competent jurisdiction for enforcement of any order it has issued pursuant to this title:(1) A copy of the petition shall be served by certified mail directed to the respondent at his …