To the surprise of no one, last year’s mayoral election proved Seattle’s most expensive ever.
That fact comes courtesy of Washington state’s campaign disclosure laws, which also mandate that a name be attached to every contribution over $25 and that donors at the $100 level also disclose their occupation and employer.
Tracking money is important. I know that you can’t buy a politician for 100 bucks. But politicians are human—and any human can differentiate between generous benefactors and folks who haven’t done a damn thing for them.
Let’s take a look at the 2001 election numbers, including our $1.7 million mayor’s race. How is it, for example, that employees of the midsized development firm of Lorig & Associates contributed as much to Seattle mayoral candidates as workers for major employer Costco?
Can you say “government contracts?”
However, last month’s change in state regulations is threatening to make Seattle political observers far less informed. The state used to require occupation and employer disclosure for any donor who contributed “$100 or more.” Now the regulation reads “more than $100.” So, a flat $100 donation will no longer trigger the requirement—but a $100.01 donation will.
Small change? Not for Seattle elections, where the modification would eliminate about one-third of the contributor employment information now available to citizens. We don’t have to follow the state’s lead, says Carol Van Noy, executive director of Seattle’s Ethics and Elections Commission, but commissioners will discuss the state change and forward a recommendation to the City Council.
Expect some support for emulating the state regulation—overworked and unpaid campaign treasurers will likely support simplifying their jobs. But Seattle can’t afford to back off on disclosure requirements, especially after campaign finance watchdogs lost last year’s fight to keep the city’s maximum donation at $400 (it’s now $600).
As the critics predicted, the average mayoral donation rose sharply under the new rule—from $108 in 1997 to $195 in 2001. But at the same time, the total number of mayoral donors actually dropped from more than 10,000 in 1997 to fewer than 9,000 last year.
With more political power being wielded by fewer people, it’s hard to argue that less information is a good thing.
