This morning, Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced that Service Employees International Union Local 775 must pay over $39,000 in penalties and attorneys’ fees to the state of Washington for concealing more than $1.4 million in political contributions over several years.
“This is a victory for government transparency,” said James Abernathy, general counsel for The Freedom Foundation, “and a stinging rebuke for the union machine that’s corrupted Washington state politics for generations. And it’s just the beginning.”
The Freedom Foundation last fall filed the original Public Disclosure Commission complaint that prompted the AG’s Office to file its suit against SEIU 775.
“The union maintained its failure to report more than $1.4 million in political spending was an honest mistake, a minor clerical error,” Abernathy said. “But hiding that much of your members’ dues money isn’t a clerical error. The union employs an army of lawyers and accountants to make sure mistakes like that don’t happen. On the contrary, this was precisely the outcome they wanted. They just didn’t count on getting caught.”
SEIU 775 is among Washington’s most powerful and politically active unions and has funded its campaign activities by forcing healthcare providers to pay exorbitant dues.
Abernathy said, “The union deliberately misled not only the public about the extent of its political activity, but also its own members, many of whom strongly disagree with the leftist agenda the union traditionally pursues – including issues that have little or nothing to do with workplace conditions.
“And now, in addition to their leadership’s political philandering, the rank and file will be picking up the tab for its cover-up,” he said.
SEIU 775 isn’t alone in its actions, Abernathy said. The Freedom Foundation recently filed similar complaints against SEIU 925 and the Washington State Labor Council.
“We expect the courts to find them guilty of the same contempt for public disclosure,” he said. “The unions have engaged in a pattern of lawless behavior and this is just the tip of the iceberg. We have further complaints to file, and we fully expect more penalties to be meted out.”
Abernathy said the amount of the fine is irrelevant, since SEIU 775 will inevitably send the bill to its members anyway.
“What matters,” he said, “is that the people of Washington delivered a message today to the union bosses and the elected officials whose compliance they’ve purchased with someone else’s money.
“The moral of the story is that business as usual isn’t good enough anymore in Washington state,” Abernathy said. “It’s a lesson the unions will ignore at their own peril.”
The Freedom Foundation is a member-supported, Northwest-based think tank promoting individual liberty, free enterprise and limited, accountable government.
