A bill that would limit campaign contributions in port commission elections is moving to the state Senate after passing the House with near-unanimous approval.
“It’s about fairness, transparency and accountability,” Rep. Sharon Wylie, D-Vancouver, the sponsor of House Bill 2647, said in a news release. “This legislation makes sure that our port districts follow the same laws as everybody else. Like the Legislature, ports are public entities, accountable to the public, so we need to ensure that port districts are responding to constituents and not special interest groups.”
There are 75 public ports in Washington, but only ports with more than 200,000 people in their district — the ports of Seattle and Tacoma — currently are subject to campaign finance law.
The legislation comes just months after the million-dollar race for a seat on the Port of Vancouver commission between Don Orange and Kris Greene. The bill passed the House 97-0 with one absent. It now moves to the Senate.
