McKenna
OLYMPIA, Wash. (Legal Newsline) - Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna announced on Friday that he has reached a $584,000 settlement with the Building Industry Association of Washington's Member Services Corporation.
The BIAW allegedly had a one-year delay in reporting campaign money raised in 2007 to aid Dino Rossi's most recent run for governor. The suit claimed that BIAW's Member Services Corporation should have registered as a political committee.
"We're pleased to have reached a settlement that holds the BIAW-MSC accountable and preserves the integrity of the state's campaign finance disclosure law while avoiding the additional expense to taxpayers of taking this case to trial," McKenna said.
According to the agreement, the BIAW-MSC has one month to pay $242,000 in fines and an additional $50,000 in attorney fees. The remaining $342,000 is suspended, but if the BIAW-MSC is found to commit any new campaign law violations between now and Dec. 31, 2016, they will be responsible for the money.
The Building Industry Association of Washington is a statewide trade association of builders affiliated with the National Association of Home Builders. The BIAW-MSC, a wholly owned subsidiary of BIAW, is organized as a non-profit organization formed in 1993.
The BIAW-MSC is affiliated with the Washington Affordable Housing Council, ChangePAC, It's Time for a Change, and Walking for Washington, which are all registered political committees that have participated for the past several years in Washington state elections.