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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

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Washington Case Upsets Malek

Republican Luke Malek, who is running for the Coeur d'Alene House seat being vacated by retiring Rep. Marge Chadderdon, is upset by the way a Washington state inspetor is treating a Hayden painter who advertised on CraigsList. In part, he wrote the following to Washington AG Rob McKenna:

Apparently, things in Washington State are worse than you thought. The citizen I am writing on behalf of has fallen victim to a predatory revenue enhancement scheme under your own office. Mr. Keiser instructed his son to put an advertisement on Craigslist from his home in Hayden. He was soliciting painting jobs for his business. His son posted in the relevant area, which, by Craigslist’s nomenclature is “Spokane/Coeur d’Alene.” Armed with RCW 18.27.200(1)(a), an inspector from your state replied asking Mr. Keiser to do work. She never identified herself as from Washington. She subsequently cited Mr. Keiser and fined him for advertising in Washington. His intent was never to advertise in Washington, and when he brought this up the inspector, Mary-Jo Boies, she explained that she had an imperative to keep people like Mr. Keiser from taking work from Washington contractors, and that Craigslist’s demarcations were not her responsibility to clarify. Full letter here.

Thoughts?



D.F. Oliveria
D.F. (Dave) Oliveria joined The Spokesman-Review in 1984. He currently is a columnist and compiles the Huckleberries Online blog and writes about North Idaho in his Huckleberries column.

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