Campaign contribution limits

AN ACT Relating to establishing campaign contribution limits for 1
state employees; and amending RCW 29B.40.020. 2
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:3
Sec. 1. RCW 29B.40.020 and 2024 c 164 s 444 are each amended to 4
read as follows: 5
(1) The contribution limits in this section apply to:6
(a) Candidates for legislative office; 7
(b) Candidates for state office other than legislative office;8
(c) Candidates for county office; 9
(d) Candidates for port district office; 10
(e) Candidates for city council office; 11
(f) Candidates for mayoral office; 12
(g) Candidates for school board office; 13
(h) Candidates for public hospital district board of 14
commissioners in districts with a population over 150,000;15
(i) Persons holding an office in (a) through (h) of this 16
subsection against whom recall charges have been filed or to a 17
political committee having the expectation of making expenditures in 18
support of the recall of a person holding the office;19
(j) Caucus political committees; 20
(k) Bona fide political parties. 21
S-4386.1
SENATE BILL 6341
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2026 Regular Session
By Senator McCune
p. 1 SB 6341
(2) ((No)) (a) Except as provided in (b) of this subsection, no 1
person, other than a bona fide political party or a caucus political 2
committee, may make contributions to a candidate for a legislative 3
office, county office, city council office, mayoral office, school 4
board office, or public hospital district board of commissioners that 5
in the aggregate exceed eight hundred dollars or to a candidate for a 6
public office in a port district or a state office other than a 7
legislative office that in the aggregate exceed one thousand six 8
hundred dollars for each election in which the candidate is on the 9
ballot or appears as a write-in candidate. Contributions to 10
candidates subject to the limits in this section made with respect to 11
a primary may not be made after the date of the primary. However, 12
contributions to a candidate or a candidate's authorized committee 13
may be made with respect to a primary until 30 days after the 14
primary, subject to the following limitations: (((a))) (i) The 15
candidate lost the primary; (((b))) (ii) the candidate's authorized 16
committee has insufficient funds to pay debts outstanding as of the 17
date of the primary; and (((c))) (iii) the contributions may only be 18
raised and spent to satisfy the outstanding debt. Contributions to 19
candidates subject to the limits in this section made with respect to 20
a general election may not be made after the final day of the 21
applicable election cycle. 22
(b) No state employee as defined in RCW 42.52.010 may make 23
contributions to a political committee or to a candidate for 24
legislative office, state office, county office, city council office, 25
mayoral office, school board office, public office in a port 26
district, or public hospital district board of commissioners that in 27
the aggregate exceed $250.28
(3) No person, other than a bona fide political party or a caucus 29
political committee, may make contributions to a state official, a 30
county official, a city official, a school board member, a public 31
hospital district commissioner, or a public official in a port 32
district against whom recall charges have been filed, or to a 33
political committee having the expectation of making expenditures in 34
support of the recall of the state official, county official, city 35
official, school board member, public hospital district commissioner, 36
or public official in a port district during a recall campaign that 37
in the aggregate exceed eight hundred dollars if for a legislative 38
office, county office, school board office, public hospital district 39
office, or city office, or one thousand six hundred dollars if for a 40
p. 2 SB 6341
port district office or a state office other than a legislative 1
office. 2
(4)(a) Notwithstanding subsection (2) of this section, no bona 3
fide political party or caucus political committee may make 4
contributions to a candidate during an election cycle that in the 5
aggregate exceed (i) eighty cents multiplied by the number of 6
eligible registered voters in the jurisdiction from which the 7
candidate is elected if the contributor is a caucus political 8
committee or the governing body of a state organization, or (ii) 9
forty cents multiplied by the number of registered voters in the 10
jurisdiction from which the candidate is elected if the contributor 11
is a county central committee or a legislative district committee.12
(b) No candidate may accept contributions from a county central 13
committee or a legislative district committee during an election 14
cycle that when combined with contributions from other county central 15
committees or legislative district committees would in the aggregate 16
exceed forty cents times the number of registered voters in the 17
jurisdiction from which the candidate is elected. 18
(5)(a) Notwithstanding subsection (3) of this section, no bona 19
fide political party or caucus political committee may make 20
contributions to a state official, county official, city official, 21
school board member, public hospital district commissioner, or a 22
public official in a port district against whom recall charges have 23
been filed, or to a political committee having the expectation of 24
making expenditures in support of the state official, county 25
official, city official, school board member, public hospital 26
district commissioner, or a public official in a port district during 27
a recall campaign that in the aggregate exceed (i) eighty cents 28
multiplied by the number of eligible registered voters in the 29
jurisdiction entitled to recall the state official if the contributor 30
is a caucus political committee or the governing body of a state 31
organization, or (ii) forty cents multiplied by the number of 32
registered voters in the jurisdiction from which the candidate is 33
elected if the contributor is a county central committee or a 34
legislative district committee. 35
(b) No official holding an office specified in subsection (1) of 36
this section against whom recall charges have been filed, no 37
authorized committee of the official, and no political committee 38
having the expectation of making expenditures in support of the 39
recall of the official may accept contributions from a county central 40
p. 3 SB 6341
committee or a legislative district committee during an election 1
cycle that when combined with contributions from other county central 2
committees or legislative district committees would in the aggregate 3
exceed forty cents multiplied by the number of registered voters in 4
the jurisdiction from which the candidate is elected.5
(6) For purposes of determining contribution limits under 6
subsections (4) and (5) of this section, the number of eligible 7
registered voters in a jurisdiction is the number at the time of the 8
most recent general election in the jurisdiction. 9
(7) Notwithstanding subsections (2) through (5) of this section, 10
no person other than an individual, bona fide political party, or 11
caucus political committee may make contributions reportable under 12
this title to a caucus political committee that in the aggregate 13
exceed eight hundred dollars in a calendar year or to a bona fide 14
political party that in the aggregate exceed four thousand dollars in 15
a calendar year. This subsection does not apply to loans made in the 16
ordinary course of business. 17
(8) For the purposes of RCW 29B.20.050, 29B.40.020 through 18
29B.40.040, 29B.40.140 through 29B.40.230, 29B.40.240, 29B.45.020, 19
and 29B.45.030, a contribution to the authorized political committee 20
of a candidate or of an official specified in subsection (1) of this 21
section against whom recall charges have been filed is considered to 22
be a contribution to the candidate or official. 23
(9) A contribution received within the 12-month period after a 24
recall election concerning an office specified in subsection (1) of 25
this section is considered to be a contribution during that recall 26
campaign if the contribution is used to pay a debt or obligation 27
incurred to influence the outcome of that recall campaign.28
(10) The contributions allowed by subsection (3) of this section 29
are in addition to those allowed by subsection (2) of this section, 30
and the contributions allowed by subsection (5) of this section are 31
in addition to those allowed by subsection (4) of this section.32
(11) RCW 29B.20.050, 29B.40.020 through 29B.40.040, 29B.40.140 33
through 29B.40.230, 29B.40.240, 29B.45.020, and 29B.45.030 apply to a 34
special election conducted to fill a vacancy in an office specified 35
in subsection (1) of this section. However, the contributions made to 36
a candidate or received by a candidate for a primary or special 37
election conducted to fill such a vacancy shall not be counted toward 38
any of the limitations that apply to the candidate or to 39
p. 4 SB 6341
contributions made to the candidate for any other primary or 1
election. 2
(12) Notwithstanding the other subsections of this section, no 3
corporation or business entity not doing business in Washington 4
state, no labor union with fewer than 10 members who reside in 5
Washington state, and no political committee that has not received 6
contributions of ten dollars or more from at least 10 persons 7
registered to vote in Washington state during the preceding 180 days 8
may make contributions reportable under this title to a state office 9
candidate, to a state official against whom recall charges have been 10
filed, or to a political committee having the expectation of making 11
expenditures in support of the recall of the official. This 12
subsection does not apply to loans made in the ordinary course of 13
business. 14
(13) Notwithstanding the other subsections of this section, no 15
county central committee or legislative district committee may make 16
contributions reportable under this title to a candidate specified in 17
subsection (1) of this section, or an official specified in 18
subsection (1) of this section against whom recall charges have been 19
filed, or political committee having the expectation of making 20
expenditures in support of the recall of an official specified in 21
subsection (1) of this section if the county central committee or 22
legislative district committee is outside of the jurisdiction 23
entitled to elect the candidate or recall the official.24
(14) No person may accept contributions that exceed the 25
contribution limitations provided in this section.26
(15) The following contributions are exempt from the contribution 27
limits of this section: 28
(a) An expenditure or contribution earmarked for voter 29
registration, for absentee ballot information, for precinct caucuses, 30
for get-out-the-vote campaigns, for precinct judges or inspectors, 31
for sample ballots, or for ballot counting, all without promotion of 32
or political advertising for individual candidates;33
(b) An expenditure by a political committee for its own internal 34
organization or fund-raising without direct association with 35
individual candidates; or 36
p. 5 SB 6341
(c) An expenditure or contribution for independent expenditures 1
as defined in RCW 29B.10.310 or electioneering communications as 2
defined in RCW 29B.10.220. 3
--- END ---
p. 6 SB 6341