Washington Court upholds $25 million penalty against Meta for campaign finance violations

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https://www.khq.com/news/washington-court-upholds-25-million-penalty-against-meta-for-campaign-finance-violations/article_0a699246-b125-11ef-812c-e31088a66f4a.html

Washington Court upholds $25 million penalty against Meta for campaign finance violations

Daniel Fortin NonStop Local Digital Journalist Dec 2, 2024 Updated 14 hrs ago

WASHINGTON — The Washington Court of Appeals has affirmed a ruling upholding a nearly $25 million penalty against Meta for violating Washington’s Fair Campaign Practices Act.

In an opinion released today, the court upheld a 2022 decision that imposed a $24.6 million penalty on Meta, the parent company of Facebook, for failing to comply with the state’s campaign finance disclosure laws.

“More than 50 years ago, Washington state voters had the foresight to demand transparency in political spending,” said Allen Hayward, chair of the Public Disclosure Commission (PDC). “The appellate court agrees with the PDC that disclosure applies equally to modern forms of political advertising.”

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The PDC initially investigated the case and referred it to the Washington state Attorney General’s Office, which filed the lawsuit in 2020. The King County Superior Court awarded $8.22 million in civil penalties and $3.5 million in attorney fees and costs, later tripling both amounts after determining Meta’s violations were intentional.

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(Another win for AG Bob Ferguson, soon to be governor.)

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1. And on to the next court