Seattle, WA Council Passes New Political Consultant Regulations Ordinance

Seattle City Council recently passed an ordinance which requires political consultants to register with the Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission within 15 days of providing political consulting services. Political consultants will also be required to disclose information including which local candidates, campaigns, and city ballot measures they work with and when that work began. Initially the bill was intended to prohibit political consultants from simultaneously holding city contracts while doing outside campaign work and also provided for a one-year cooling-off period before consultants could return to work for the city after campaign activities. However, those prohibitions were removed, and the bill instead focuses on consultant registration and reporting. Council Bill 121130 will become effective 30 days after the mayor’s approval.