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Wash. Attorney General sues Google, Facebook over political ads data

Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson targeted Facebook Inc. and Google Inc. in lawsuits over political advertising data.

In lawsuits filed in King County Superior Court, the Attorney General's Office alleged that the companies did not obtain or maintain all the information required of campaign advertisers, according to a June 4 news release. The state is seeking penalties and injunctive relief.

Washington state campaign finance laws require commercial advertisers that sell political advertising to maintain information about those who purchase advertising. The advertisers are also required to make that information available to the public.

"Washington's political advertising disclosure laws apply to everyone, whether you are a small-town newspaper or a large corporation," Ferguson said in a prepared statement. "Washingtonians have a right to know who's paying for the political advertising they see."

In April, the Attorney General's Office received citizen action notices alleging that Facebook and Google had not provided any of the legally required information on political ads running on their platforms that were associated with several Washington state campaigns.

Google is a unit of Alphabet Inc.