Brian Peck, Republican candidate for the 17th Legislative District seat, failed to disclose on a Washington Public Disclosure Commission financial report that he is a business owner.
The PDC, responding to a complaint from the House Democratic Campaign Committee, has asked Peck to amend the financial report he filed at the beginning of his campaign to disclose that he owns two businesses, including a gas station on St. Johns Road in Vancouver.
“PDC staff did contact Brian Peck about his personal finance report,” commission spokeswoman Lori Anderson said Tuesday. “We learned that he owns a couple of businesses that he did not identify when he filed at the beginning of his campaign. According to Mr. Peck, he mailed off an amended filing yesterday.”
Anderson said no decision has been made on whether the PDC, which enforces state campaign finance disclosure rules, will initiate an enforcement action over Peck’s incomplete filing.
“I made a mistake in the filing process,” Peck acknowledged Wednesday. He said he did disclose the names of the businesses he owns, Peck Petroleum and Peck Property, on the first page of the form, but failed to fill out the part of the form requesting supplemental details, including what percentage of each business he owns.
“That’s all been cleared up,” he said.
Tony Yuchasz of the HDCC, who notified the PDC of the omissions, said all candidates who own businesses are required by state law to disclose to the public their business relationships, so voters can know on whom the candidate relies for income, and whether any unusual transactions have taken place.
Peck has campaigned for election to the open 17th District seat as the owner of a small business who understands the challenges other small-business owners face.
The failure to fully disclose his business interests is Peck’s second run-in with the PDC. On Aug. 30, the commission reprimanded him for failing to disclose in his political advertising that he is not an incumbent in the race.
The commission noted that Peck had posted yard signs saying “Brian Peck State Representative 17 (R)” and had maintained a campaign website that failed to include the words “elect” or “for,” implying that he already held the office.
It is a violation of PDC rules for a candidate to “falsely represent” that he or she is the incumbent for an office when in fact the candidate is not the incumbent.
“I made a mistake on that, too,” Peck said. “I did not have the word, ‘for’ or ‘elect.” My first batch of signs and campaign literature came out that way. I have since corrected the action when it was brought to my attention.”
The PDC elected not to fine Peck for the earlier violation, noting that his campaign had acknowledged the violation and was working to correct the problem.
Peck is running against one-term incumbent Tim Probst, a Vancouver Democrat.
Last week he launched a $40,000 television ad campaign claiming Probst voted for “the largest budget in state history, paid for with higher taxes.”
Probst has protested the ad, noting that he has never voted for an increase in state taxes and that the 2009-11 general fund budget he supported was an all-cuts budget.
Kathie Durbin: 360-735-4523 or kathie.durbin@columbian.com.
