Realtors' group runs into trouble with PDC again

Six weeks after the Washington Association of Realtors agreed to a $130,000 fine for not properly reporting political spending, state officials are again looking into potential violations by the group.

Phil Stutzman, the Public Disclosure Commission's compliance director, ordered the Realtors this week to file certain reports detailing spending on political mailers. The association did so "under protest," arguing that the spending did not need to be reported.

"They just settled this case with the PDC and they're still out there violating public-disclosure laws," said Jim Frush, an attorney who brought the matter to the PDC's attention Monday.

Washington Realtors is a membership organization that has endorsed Republican Dino Rossi in his rematch against Democratic Gov. Christine Gregoire. It runs the Realtors and Realtors Quality of Life political-action committees, which together have spent $2.3 million on the campaign.

Frush's complaint concerned a series of mailings paid for not by either PAC but by Washington Realtors itself.

The Realtors recently sent out a series of anti-tax fliers around the same time as pro-Rossi mailers sent by the Quality of Life PAC. One shows a hand reaching to pick up a miniature house, and says in part, "Are they coming after your home equity?" Another shows milk being poured into a bucket filled with $100 bills, and says, "They want to milk you for higher taxes."

Problem seen

The mailings urge readers to "Call the Governor at 360-902-4111 and your state legislator at 800-562-6000" to "let them know we can't afford another tax increase," or "let them know our family budgets are dried up."

According to Frush and the PDC, that's the problem. Spending on so-called "issue advocacy" pieces doesn't need to be reported as long as the pieces don't identify a candidate — by name or otherwise — within 60 days of a general election. Mentioning the governor and urging people to call her qualifies the mailings as "electioneering communications," which must be reported, the PDC determined.

Implication cited

The Realtors' mailings imply the governor is trying to institute a tax on home-sale profits or that she generally wants to raise taxes, Frush said.

The Realtors disagreed.

"This mailing is an issue-advocacy piece re: the excise tax and does not support or oppose any candidate," the group wrote in notes filed with three "C6" disclosure reports filed Thursday.

The newly filed forms revealed that the Realtors spent $414,229 for mailings on Oct. 18, 21 and 25.

In a written statement, the Realtors said: "Our efforts aim to increase public awareness of important issues. We are aware of several groups considering real-estate taxes to fund various programs that will be considered by the Legislature next session. We want our state's elected officials to be aware of the public opposition to raising real estate taxes."

After a complaint from a Whatcom County resident about Quality of Life's failure to report last-minute spending on three mailings in the Bellingham mayor's race last year, the PDC investigated the PAC's political-expenditure reporting dating back to 2004.

On Sept. 19, Washington Realtors entered into an agreement with the PDC acknowledging the PAC had failed to properly report nearly $1 million in expenditures in state and local races from 2004 to 2007.

The association agreed to implement a system for tracking "in-kind" contributions — campaign contributions other than cash — and reporting those to the candidate. It also agreed to a $130,000 fine, with $80,000 to be paid within six months. The remaining $50,000 was to be dismissed if the association followed the law through 2011.