Other LanguagesOlympia- September 18, 1997- A settlement was announced today in a lawsuit filed by the Attorney General's Office on October 10, 1995, challenging the alleged use of public resources to promote a 1994 Seattle School District school construction bond measure. The settlement includes an acknowledgment of violations of state campaign laws along with a commitment by the District to develop a plan to prevent future violations.
"Our goal is to enforce the law and prevent the same or similar violations from occurring in the future," said Washington State Attorney General Chris Gregoire. "As part of the settlement, the defendants and the district will work with the Public Disclosure Commission to clarify the school election campaign guidelines so that everyone will understand the rules."
While an investigation found no evidence the three defendants in the suit acted willfully or in bad faith, they did acknowledge mistakes were made and agreed to pay a total of $10,500 in penalties to the state general fund.
The Seattle School District also has agreed to seek $15,000 in restitution. District officials have said they will look for private donations to cover the restitution to reimburse the district for activities that led to the suit.
The AG's Office investigation was initiated by a referral in February of 1995 from the Public Disclosure Commission.
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