Originally published Saturday, July 26, 2008 at 12:00 AM
Builders secretly raising money to defeat Gregoire, group says
A group led by two former state Supreme Court justices is accusing the Building Industry Association of Washington (BIAW) of amassing $3.5 million in an illegal secret fund for its campaign to defeat Democratic Gov. Christine Gregoire.
Seattle Times Olympia bureau
OLYMPIA — A group led by two former state Supreme Court justices is accusing the Building Industry Association of Washington (BIAW) of amassing $3.5 million in an illegal secret fund for its campaign to defeat Democratic Gov. Christine Gregoire.
In a letter Friday to Attorney General Rob McKenna and three county prosecutors, the group said it will sue if the government attorneys do not take action against the BIAW and two local builders associations.
Lawyers for the group, which includes former state Supreme Court Justices Faith Ireland and Robert Utter, say internal BIAW documents prove that the builders have been secretly soliciting money for the campaign fund. They say the builders associations have failed to properly register as "political committees" or report where the money is coming from.
"We now have the goods on the builders, and it's time these kinds of illegal tactics be stopped," said Mike Withey, a Seattle attorney.
Withey is handling the case along with Knoll Lowney, another Seattle attorney whose firm often represents liberal causes.
The Olympia-based BIAW has spent millions of dollars during the past decade on conservative issues and candidates. The group is widely despised by labor unions, environmentalists and Democrats.
As it did in 2004, the BIAW is airing television and radio ads attacking Gregoire's record. The group this week posted a new video on its Web site, Changeourgov.com, claiming Gregoire supports a state income tax — an assertion Gregoire vehemently denies.
The BIAW also has spent heavily to elect conservative judges to the state Supreme Court.
Tom McCabe, the BIAW's executive vice president, said he wasn't worried about Friday's lawsuit threat.
"It's just one more attack ... to try to shut us up," McCabe said.
In 2005, labor lobbyists tried unsuccessfully to get the Democratic-controlled Legislature to cut off one of the BIAW's main sources of political funds — money it makes running a workers-compensation safety program for thousands of homebuilders statewide.
In 1997, the Washington State Labor Council filed a complaint accusing the builders group of illegally using money from the workplace-safety program for political purposes. After a monthslong investigation, the state Public Disclosure Commission determined the BIAW's political spending was legal.
![]()
But Lowney said the new case raised Friday is different. It accuses the BIAW and the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish counties of improperly using their members' money, and also of illegally soliciting campaign cash from outside groups and individuals.
The internal documents cited in the complaint were gathered through discovery in another lawsuit Lowney's firm is pressing against the BIAW on behalf of several of the association's members.
Most campaign-finance complaints are filed directly with the Public Disclosure Commission. But state law also allows citizens to pursue complaints through the courts, so long as they first give the attorney general and appropriate prosecuting attorneys a chance to act on the allegations.
McKenna and the local prosecutors have 55 days to decide whether to take up the case against BIAW.
Janelle Guthrie, spokeswoman for McKenna, said the attorney general had not yet seen the letter from Withey and Lowney.
"However, upon receiving a letter such as this, it is standard practice for us to send it to the Public Disclosure Commission for preliminary investigation prior to making a decision to take action," Guthrie said.
Ralph Thomas: rthomas@seattletimes.com
Copyright © 2008 The Seattle Times Company
New laws help tenants evicted due to foreclosure
Researchers stunned by inmates' success raising endangered frogs
Seattle may allow homeowners to build backyard cottages
Federal Way group on trail of missing pets
Must Metro commuting at Northgate be so chaotic?

2009 fireworks time lapse
With strict parking rules enforced at this year's July 4th celebration on Wallingford Ave North, less cars and more spectators filled the streets.
Entertainment | Top Video | World | Offbeat Video | Sci-Tech
nwjobs

Post a comment

Michelle Goodman blogs about work/life balance.
Tax tips for new independent professionals
Post a comment
nwautos

Choosing a new car? Weigh the impact of your choice on your wallet and on the planet.
Post a comment
nwhomes

Find a new home or condo that fits your lifestyle.
Search New Developments
Builder Directory
- Landmark Smith Tower mostly vacant
- Property taxes: Appeals shoot up in King, Snohomish Counties
- Shooting unveils very different sides of McNair
- Palin links resignation to 'higher calling' and blasts media in Facebook posting
- Former NFL MVP McNair killed
- Hard times for tourist towns means good deals for travelers
- Tukwila residents rally against light-rail noise
- Confessions of an Idol Addict | "American Idols" on tour: Live coverage from opening date
- Quincy Jones remembers "the biggest entertainer on the planet": Michael Jackson
- Plasma and LCD beware; OLED screens ready to go mainstream
- Seattle Mariners at Boston Red Sox: 07/05 game thread
247 - Palin links resignation to 'higher calling' and blasts media in Facebook posting
179 - Hatred for the NBA runs deep, but don't take it out on the players
137 - Tukwila residents rally against light-rail noise
128 - Former NFL MVP McNair killed
113 - Property taxes: Appeals shoot up is King, Snohomish Counties
105 - Tent City on campus: UW stalls decision
102 - Anti-tax rally in Olympia attracts about 1,500
69 - Mariners did their part, now they need help
46 - Megachurch pastor Rick Warren addresses US Muslims
36
- Property taxes: Appeals shoot up in King, Snohomish Counties
- Hard times for tourist towns means good deals for travelers
- Landmark Smith Tower mostly vacant
- Plasma and LCD beware; OLED screens ready to go mainstream
- The People's Pharmacy | Estrogen mimicker found in sunscreen
- Tent City on campus: UW stalls decision
- Toyota's Toyoda scolds execs for emulating U.S. car companies' mistakes
- Seattle may allow homeowners to build backyard cottages
- Tukwila residents rally against light-rail noise
- Outdoor-theater season kicks off at Volunteer Park





