Secretary of State of Washington

The Secretary of State of Washington is one of the elected constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Washington. The duties of the office are specified in Article III, Section 17 of the Washington State Constitution and Chapter 43.07 of the Revised Code of Washington.

The current Secretary of State is Sam Reed.

Duties

Washington's Secretary of State has a broader range of duties than many other State Secretaries of State.

Political/Executive

The Secretary of State is the keeper of the Seal of Washington, and is responsible for regulating its use, affixing it to commissions, pardons, and other documents to which the signature of the Governor is required, and filing and attesting to official acts of the Legislature and Governor. [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/office/office.aspx About the Office of Secretary of State of Washington] ] [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/seal/ The Washington State Seal] ]

The Secretary also administers elections, voter registrations, and ballot initiatives. [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/elections/ Washington Secretary of State Elections & Voting page] ] Lobbying and campaign finance matters are regulated by the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission. [ [http://www.pdc.wa.gov/default.aspx Washington State Public Disclosure Commission homepage] ]

Economic

The Corporations Division of the Office of the Secretary of State [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/corps/ Washington Secretary of State Corporations Division page] ] is responsible for registering limited partnerships, limited liability partnerships, corporations, and limited liability companies. [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/corps/registration_structures.aspx Comparison of business structures, from the Office of the Washington Secretary of State] ] This division is also responsible for registration of domestic partnerships. [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/corps/domesticpartnerships/ Washington Secretary of State, Domestic Partnerships information] ] He is not, however, responsible for Uniform Commercial Code matters, as these are administered by the Washington Department of Licensing. [ [http://www.dol.wa.gov/business/UCC/ Washington Department of Licensing, UCC page] ] The Secretary is one of the officials in charge of promoting international trade in the State of Washington. [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/itrade/ Washington Secretary of State, International Trade page] ]

Other

* The Secretary administers the state's Address Confidentiality Program [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/acp/ Washington State Address Confidentiality Program] ] , which protects the privacy of victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking and stalking.
* As the primary record keeper of the State of Washington, the Secretary is also in charge of the State Library [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/library/ Washington State Library] ] , State Archives [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/archives/ Washington State Archives] ] , and various other historical & genealogical records. [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/history/ Washington Secretary of State, State History page] ]
* The Secretary also regulates charities and charitable trusts [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/charities/ Washington Secretary of State, Charities & Trusts Division] ]
* The Secretary is the Chairman of the Washington State Productivity Board, which seeks to improve government efficiency and customer service, and eliminate waste. [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/productivityboard/ Washington State Productivity Board homepage] ]
* The Secretary is an "ex officio" non-voting member of the committees for the Washington State Medals of Valor and Merit. [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/medals/valor_laws.aspx Laws Regarding the Washington State Medal of Valor] ] [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/medals/merit_laws.aspx Laws Regarding the Washington State Medal of Merit] ]
* The Secretary is responsible for regulating the use of the Washington State Flag. [ [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/flag/ Washington Secretary of State, State Flag page] ]

ee also

*The Washington Medal of Merit

References

External links

* [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/ Official homepage of the Washington Secretary of State]
* [http://www.secstate.wa.gov/office/secretary_history.aspx List of previous Washington Secretaries of State]