OLYMPIA — Attorney General Bob Ferguson released the following statement about his decision to file a second campaign finance disclosure lawsuit against Google:

“My office will file a lawsuit against Google for violating Washington campaign finance disclosure laws. I take repeat violations of our campaign finance laws seriously. This is the second time Google has been accused of not complying with campaign finance laws related to making required information about political advertisements available to Washington voters. The first time resulted in Google paying $217,000 to Washington. The Public Disclosure Commission referred this matter to our office on Sept. 3. Normally, we don’t announce lawsuits until they are filed, but we are required by statute to publish a decision on whether to commence an action within 45 days after a referral. In 1972, the people of Washington passed Initiative 276 requiring transparency in our elections. We will continue working to ensure that our elections are transparent.”

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The Office of the Attorney General is the chief legal office for the state of Washington with attorneys and staff in 27 divisions across the state providing legal services to roughly 200 state agencies, boards and commissions. Visit www.atg.wa.gov to learn more.

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