A complaint to the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) regarding Burien city officials’ handling of a minimum wage initiative has ended with a reminder from the Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) to city staff on keeping communications objective, as well as a rebuttal from an activist.
Activist Nancy Kick filed a PDC complaint on Sept. 18, 2024 (separately from Charles Schaefer) after hearing concerns from the Raise the Wage Burien coalition that claimed that city officials used public resources in a biased manner to oppose a proposed wage increase on its website.
As we previously reported, on Oct. 25, 2024, Burien City Manager Adolfo Bailon sent an email to us announcing the closing of the complaint and criticizing the PDC process, calling such filings a “misuse” of public systems, which Kick firmly refuted.
“It is a shame that specific members of the Burien community—and their associates—misuse and abuse legitimate systems at the expense of taxpayers in order to further their own personal political agenda,” Bailon said in his email.
In her response, Kick expressed pride in her efforts to secure fair wages for Burien residents, many of whom struggle to remain in the community due to rising costs. She emphasized that her complaint was filed in good faith, and argued that public complaint channels like the PDC are valid tools for residents to raise concerns without fear of public shaming.
“I am concerned by the suggestion by the city manager that filing a complaint with the PDC is a misuse of government systems,” Kick told The B-Town Blog. “The PDC has created a process by which the public can express concerns. It is reasonable and appropriate for people to use the tools provided to us. I, and all residents, have the right to use these tools without being publicly disparaged by our city’s leadership.”
Kick clarified that her filing was not dismissed outright (as Bailon claimed), as it resulted in a PDC-issued reminder to the city about public communication standards on ballot issues:
“PDC staff is reminding you that subjective statements regarding ballot measures should be avoided. Describing a ballot measure as posing a ‘problem’ and having ‘threatened’ city policy, and characterizing supporters as acting ‘misleadingly,’ will invite the PDC’s scrutiny to determine whether the activity still falls within the narrow exemption to use of public facilities in election campaigns allowed in law.”
She also pointed to previous complaints filed by residents, suggesting that her own experience of public criticism was disproportionate. The incident has underscored a growing debate within Burien over equitable wages and residents’ rights to hold city leadership accountable.
Here’s text of Kick’s full response submitted via email to The B-Town Blog:
“Thank you for the opportunity to respond. I’m proud of my work to support a more equitable wage for the workers in my city that is comparable to our surrounding jurisdictions, covers all workers, and does not penalize some workers for receiving tips and benefits. I’m tired of seeing my neighbors and friends forced to move out of the city to afford to live. I’m tired of their children being forced to change schools mid year. I’m tired of seeing them become homeless because their wage does not cover their families’ needs.
“I filed my complaint after hearing the concerns of members of our community and speaking with Raise the Wage Burien coalition members, who agreed that the concerns seemed valid. While no punitive action was taken against the city, the outcome of the complaint was not a dismissal, but rather the case was closed with a reminder sent to the city regarding the very issues in the complaint I filed. An example of a dismissal can be found in a complaint recently filed against a community member for her public comments. The complaint was filed by Burien’s city manager.
“In addition to the corrections I submitted to the Blog directly, I will say that I am concerned by the suggestion by the city manager that filing a complaint with the PDC is a misuse of government systems. The PDC has created a process by which the public can express concerns. It is reasonable and appropriate for people to use the tools provided to us. I, and all residents, have the right to use these tools without being publicly disparaged by our city’s leadership. This was my first complaint to the PDC and it was made in good faith… but I know for a fact that other Burien residents have filed far more complaints without ever being publicly shamed.”
History of the PDC
According to the PDC website:
“The origin of Washington’s disclosure law can be traced to the efforts of concerned citizens who came together in 1970 believing that the public had the right to know about the financing of political activity in this state. In 1971, following an unsuccessful attempt to generate legislative action and with minimal success in 1972, those concerned citizens who now call themselves the Coalition for Open Government (COG), turned to the people. In order to place Initiative 276 on the November 1972 ballot, COG gathered nearly 163,000 signatures in record-breaking time. Seventy-two percent of voters approved I-276 and the law took effect January 1, 1973. In 1992, over 72% of reform-minded voters enacted contribution limits and other campaign restrictions with the approval of Initiative 134.”
The BEST system of increasing wages is the MERIT system. If workers don’t feel a business pays a fair wage, they can quit and work elsewhere. Eventually, the business is forced to raise their starting wage.
I appreciate Nancy Kick’s response here, and I fully support Burien matching the higher minimum wages of our region, but the official response from PDC to our city manager (whom I do not support) states directly: “As noted in the letter, the PDC
has dismissed this matter in accordance with RCW 42.17A.755(1) and will not conduct a more
formal investigation [.]” Both responses were dismissals of different degrees. Regardless, I agree with Kick that filing the complaint was absolutely NOT a misuse of government resources, and is exactly what the system is for. If you were to compare this to our legal system, just because a judge and jury finds a defendant not guilty doesn’t mean the trial was a misuse of resources. Having read both complaints and both responses, both were dismissed by the PDC, in very clear terms, however Nancy Kick’s complaint at least was rooted in the spirit of the code, while Manager Bailon’s complaint was not. If either could be considered a misuse of resources, it was Bailon’s.
Yes, the PDC response to Kick’s complaint used the word “dismissed,” but it’s important to note that while Bailon is trying to claim “total exoneration,” the response effectively said that this was borderline and shouldn’t be continued. While the complaint Bailon filed was dismissed because it doesn’t even apply to the person he was going after. And why in the world is the city manager retaliating against citizens for speaking at a public meeting? Yes, it may have violated meeting rules, but on the scale of severity, a private citizen speaking for two minutes about a “campaign” issue and a public official using public money to denigrate a citizen initiative aren’t even comparable.