After over three years of litigation, the Washington State Supreme Court has upheld a record-setting $25 million fine issued to Facebook’s parent company, Meta Platforms, Inc., for violating the state's campaign finance disclosure law requiring digital platforms to maintain records of political advertising on their sites.
Campaign Legal Center (CLC) and partners have been calling on the courts to ensure these disclosure requirements — which provide Washington voters with critical information about who is paying to target specific audiences with political messaging to influence their vote — to remain in place.
This is a key step toward protecting transparency in the new era of digital advertising. The courts correctly demonstrated that campaign finance disclosure laws are constitutional — now, it’s time for Congress to act by passing the DISCLOSE Act to safeguard our elections and public trust in the democratic process.
How Transparency Laws Safeguard Elections
Between 2018 and 2021, Meta repeatedly failed to comply with the state’s Fair Campaign Practices Act (FCPA). Under the FCPA, media entities that run election ads must maintain and, upon request, disclose records about who purchases political ads and how much they paid, as well as copies of the ads.
For online platforms such as Facebook, the law also requires disclosure of information regarding the demographics of audiences targeted and reached by political advertisements.
After multiple fines and continued violations, the Washington Attorney General sued the company. The lawsuit resulted in a record $25 million fine for Meta’s repeat violations. In response, Meta challenged the constitutionality of the law, arguing the law violated their First Amendment right to free speech and Eighth Amendment right from “excessive fines.”
CLC, joined by the League of Women Voters of Washington, Fix Democracy First and the Brennan Center for Justice, filed an amicus brief highlighting the importance of laws in promoting informed voters and preserving confidence in the integrity of elections.
The brief further detailed how rising online political spending has contributed to an increase in misinformation and political polarization and how comprehensive disclosure laws, by shining a light on this new spending, can combat the negative effects of this trend.
In December 2024, the Court of Appeals upheld the trial court’s decision, quoting CLC’s brief in their opinion, explaining that the “ability to secretively direct a range of specially tailored, and perhaps even conflicting, messages to different audiences is incompatible with the core legitimizing aspects of democratic society.”
The court concluded that Washington's disclosure requirements appropriately protect voters in the modern era of social media advertising. Meta appealed the decision to the Washington State Supreme Court.
CLC and its partners again filed an amicus brief supporting the state of Washington, emphasizing that disclosure laws like this one are critical to ensuring that advocacy organizations and voters can obtain information about who is funding political advertisements and help guard against corruption.
The Court disagreed, explaining that disclosure laws are “a less restrictive alternative to flat bans on certain types or quantities of speech, allowing the government to pursue the important goal of informing voters without banning anyone from speaking.”
The Washington Supreme Court joined the Washington Court of Appeals in relying on CLC’s analysis, holding that failure to promote transparency in online disclosure will only increase “political polarization and the ease of spreading misinformation, risks now heightened by the rise of artificial intelligence.”
By rejecting Meta's attempt to dismantle this critical transparency measure, the Court reaffirmed longstanding U.S. Supreme Court precedent recognizing that campaign finance disclosure laws advance First Amendment values by fostering a more informed electorate.
Congress Must Act Next
This is a win for Washington voters and transparency. As political advertising moves increasingly online and federal laws have failed to keep up — and tech platforms have failed to self-regulate — disclosure laws like Washington’s will become even more crucial to protect voters.
Congress should follow Washington's lead and pass the DISCLOSE Act to ensure transparency in political spending, including digital advertising, where vast amounts of dark money have enabled special interests to influence American elections from the shadows.
This blog was co-authored by CLC Legal Intern Alex Goldberg