Proposed Settlement Between Facebook and Washington State Is “Dangerous” and “Troubling,” Experts Say

Originally published on Feb. 10. The Public Disclosure Commission will be having further discussions about this proposed settlement this Thursday, February 27, beginning at 1 pm. Live stream info here.

Under the terms of the proposed deal, Mark Zuckerberg’s company would pay $75,000 to Washington state, wouldn’t have to admit it broke campaign finance laws, and wouldn’t have to make firm promises to change its behavior. Drew Angerer / Getty Images

After nearly a year of investigation and negotiation, Facebook and staff at the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission are embracing a proposed settlement that would allow the $600 billion company to pay a $75,000 fine and walk away from charges it repeatedly broke state campaign finance law.

The deal, which has not yet been approved by the PDC’s five governor-appointed commissioners, would also allow Facebook to avoid any admission of guilt for failing to make required disclosures about hundreds of ads it sold to influence Seattle’s 2019 city council elections.

In addition, the proposed agreement would allow Facebook to refrain from making any binding promises to follow Washington state’s nation-leading political ad transparency laws going forward.

After reviewing the settlement document, formally called a stipulation, a half-dozen experts in campaign finance and digital ad transparency told The Stranger they were surprised by its language. They called the potential deal “troubling,” described the fine amount as “incredibly small,” and expressed concern about the message such an agreement would send.