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Kirkland Reporter

Kirkland
invites public to talk shoreline, parking

Kirkland
Police Blotter

Kirkland
seeks public feedback on city manager search

Governing
with Style | Kirkland City Council should involve public in city manager
search

Former
Redmond Mayor to run for Kirkland City Council position No. 7

Eastside

Public
disclosure rules to change

Public disclosure complaint filed against City
of Kirkland, 67 other agencies

By MATT PHELPS
Kirkland Reporter
Staff Writer
Aug 03 2010

Conservative watchdog group Evergreen Freedom Foundation has filed complaints
with the Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) alleging that 68 government agencies
in Washington State, including the City of Kirkland, have paid lobbyists but
failed to disclose the payments. The City of Kirkland is alleged of paying two
lobbyists at total of $143,000 from 2005-2009, without filing paperwork with the
PDC.

"When the city became aware that the complaint was filed with the PDC, we
immediately contacted the PDC to acknowledge it," said City of Kirkland
Communications Program Manager Marie Stake, noting that the city was not
directly notified about the complaint. "We've assured the PDC that we take this
issue seriously and will take any necessary action to ensure Kirkland is in full
compliance."

The complaint alleges that "the City of Kirkland apparently failed to
properly file L-5 lobbying forms as required for public agencies under RCW
42.17.190," and that the only report available on the PDC Web site from the City
of Kirkland is from the first quarter of 2007.

"There are no other reports disclosing the expenditures for the other
quarters," said Preston Mui of the Evergreen Freedom Foundation in the
complaint. "Because of this, I believe Kirkland failed to properly file L-5
lobbying forms with the PDC."

The two lobbying agencies that the City of Kirkland used were Soren Northwest
Inc. and Phil Watkins Public Affairs Inc.

The report said that Soren Northwest Inc. received payments from the City of
Kirkland totaling $95,000 from 2005-2009. The company had approximately $324,500
in undisclosed payments to government agencies in Washington State, according to
the report.

The City of Kirkland paid Phil Watkins Public Affairs Inc. $6,066.68. The
company had approximately $48,000 of undisclosed payments from government
agencies around Washington State in 2005, the report stated.

Of the 68 complaints, the report did not place the City of Kirkland in the
top 20 in the state. The University of Washington paid out the most to lobbyists
from 2000-2009 with $1.6 million. Seattle was the highest-ranking city on the
list at No. 5 with $1.2 million. The last agency on the list, No. 20, was the
King County Public Hospital District No. 1 with $672,849.69.

The Evergreen Freedom Foundation said in a press release that "data compiled
by contract lobbyists and public agency lobbying report forms filed with the
Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) reveal $6 million worth of taxpayer-funded
lobbying expenditures in 2009 alone," and that Washington State government
agencies have spent $24 million from 2005-2009 on lobbyists.

View the full report here: www.effwa.org/main/article.php?article_id=3199

Kirkland Reporter Staff Writer Matt Phelps can be reached at [email-masked] or
425-822-9166 ext. 5052.

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