SEIU state council to pay $128,000 in civil fines over campaign-finance lawsuit

OLYMPIA — The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Washington State Council 14 has agreed to pay a six-figure settlement over a campaign-finance lawsuit.

Announced Tuesday afternoon by the state Attorney General’s Office, the settlement requires SEIU to pay $128,262.75 in civil fines, as well as $18,300.85 in costs and fees, according to a copy of the settlement.

Another $104,942.25 in civil fines is suspended, provided the organization has no violations over the next four years.

While the SEIU state council “has its own registered political committee, the council itself also acted as a political committee by devoting a majority of its annual expenditures to electoral political activity during 2014 and 2016,” according to a news release by the Attorney General’s Office.

Tuesday’s settlement is the latest exchange of blows between labor unions — big Democratic campaign donors in Washington — and the right-leaning Freedom Foundation, which filed the complaint.

Read more: https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/seiu-state-council-to-pay-128000-in-civil-fines-over-campaign-finance-lawsuit/