Value Village launches lawsuit
The company that operates 300 Value Village, Savers and other thrift stores in the U.S., Canada and Australia is suing Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson, saying his office has violated the company’s rights by demanding $3.2 million to settle a three-year investigation.
TVI Inc., of Bellevue, said in the lawsuit filed in federal court Monday that it’s trying to head off an anticipated complaint from the attorney general’s office.
The for-profit company, which is represented by the prominent Seattle law firm of Davis Wright Tremaine, said Ferguson’s demand for payment does not appear to be connected to any alleged legal violations.
TVI also said the attorney general’s office insisted that it disclose to how much of the sale price of items in its stores goes to charities, something the company said would violate its free-speech rights and is precluded by Supreme Court precedent.
Brionna Aho, a spokeswoman at the attorney general’s office, had no immediate comment but noted the company did pay $1.8 million to six Minnesota charities and agreed to overhaul its donation and disclosure practices in a 2015 settlement with that state’s attorney general.
Ferguson, a Democrat, has garnered national attention for challenging the Trump administration on several fronts, including the travel ban and ban on transgender people joining the military. But he has also made consumer issues a priority, suing to hold opioid makers accountable for the national addiction crisis and agrochemical giant Monsanto liable over pervasive pollution from PCBs.
TVI said it operates 20 stores in Washington state. It pays charities such as Northwest Center, which supports developmentally disabled people, and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Puget Sound to collect items — clothes, furniture, electronics, other household items — which it then sells for a profit at the stores. The money the charities make providing the goods is a key part of their revenue stream.
In its complaint, the company said the attorney general’s office launched its investigation three years ago. TVI answered all of the investigators’ questions, provided 15,000 pages of documents, and sought to meet with them to address any concerns, the company said.