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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 21, 2018)
A8 State Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, February 21, 2018 Ethics commission to pursue Kitzhaber for 10 violations By Paris Achen Capital Bureau DO YOU LIVE ON HILLCREST DRIVE? The first two NEW customers to sign up For our Fiber-optic broadband services will Receive a free Echo Dot! CALL TO PLACE YOUR ORDER! • Guaranteed speed packages – no buffering • Affordable packages for residential & business Fiber fast speeds to meet your needs! BUNDLES ARE PACKED WITH: • Reliable landline telephone service • Unlimited local & long distance calling • Call Waiting & Caller ID • Fiber Fast Internet WE COMBINE BIG CITY TECHNOLOGY WITH SMALL TOWN VALUES! Friendly customer service Trust | Affordability Family | Friends Community | Education One Telephone Drive, Mt. Vernon 541-932-4411 155 West Main Street, John Day Your total communications people since 1914! 41622 The Oregon Ethics Com- mission has found that former Gov. John Kitzhaber violated state ethics law 10 times. The commission unani- mously voted to pursue 10 out of 11 alleged violations by the former governor who resigned in February 2015 amid an in- fluence-peddling scandal. “In 26 years of elected of- fice, he had all kinds of expe- rience in facing these issues,” said Commissioner Charles Starr. “It’s just unfortunate that he has come to this. I am convinced he is an honorable man, and he didn’t purpose to do this, but the outcome was quite obvious.” Before the vote, Kitzhaber addressed the commission and apologized to his family, friends, former employees and the people of Oregon for his missteps, but he vig- orously denied that he ever intentionally used his office to profit himself or first lady Cylvia Hayes’s environmen- tal consulting business. “I have withstood the scru- tiny of eight elections and 26 years in public office, and this is the first time that my integrity has ever been ques- tioned,” Kitzhaber said. “To arrive at the conclusion that somehow, at the end of my long career in public service I would suddenly stumble on a streak of corruption, is simply untrue, and there is no evi- dence to support it. I have cer- tainly made my share of mis- takes, but using my office for the purpose of obtaining finan- cial gain or avoiding financial detriment is not one of them.” The “preliminary findings” of violation were based on a report by state ethics investiga- tors released earlier this week and prompted a period during which Kitzhaber may appeal the findings to an administra- tive law judge. He faces up to $50,000 in fines for the violations. The commission won’t issue fines until an appeals process is completed and they vote on a “final order” of violations. Until that point, negotiations for a settlement agreement can continue. The commission Friday dismissed one proposed viola- tion of misuse of office related to using a staffer to pet sit for the First Couple when they left for personal trips. Kitzhaber said he had known the staffer for 15 years and that she had volunteered to care for the pets without pay. Kitzhaber violated law pro- hibiting use of his office for personal financial gain when he took actions that benefited his fiancée, Hayes’s environ- Capital Bureau/Paris Achen Former Gov. John Kitzhaber testified Friday before the Oregon Government Ethics Commission. The commission found Kitzhaber violated ethics laws 10 times during his tenure as governor. mental consulting firm, 3E Strategies, investigators wrote in the 135-page report released Feb. 14. The former governor in- cluded Hayes’s income from the firm in his household in- come in 2011-13 on statements of economic interest, investi- gators said. He also failed to publicly disclose his potential conflicts of interest and actual conflicts in several instances, as re- quired by state law, they said. Kitzhaber was “personally responsible to ensure that he did not engage in any policy decisions, discussions, speech- es, meetings, directives to staff or official actions that would further the financial interest of 3E Strategies,” investigators wrote. However, Kitzhaber attend- ed meetings for which Hayes was either being paid or was seeking contracts with envi- ronmental advocacy groups and promoted and advanced her business, they wrote. For instance, he gave a speech in May 2013 at a planning retreat at the governor’s residence, Mahonia Hall, to discuss tran- sitioning Oregon to a differ- ent economic measurement formula that factors in envi- ronmental health. Hayes was being paid by public policy organization Demos for facil- itating the meeting. Kitzhaber asked that Hayes be included in correspondence, meetings and policymaking on environmental matters for which she was seeking fund- ing and being paid. For example, he gave her access to the closed-door Pacific Coast Collaborative Leaders Forum in Vancouver, British Columbia, in March 2012, while she was being paid a $118,000 fellowship with the Clean Economy Development Center. “I believe Gov. Kitzhaber was not thinking, ‘Hmm, how can I get money?’ … I don’t think he was thinking, ‘Hmm, how can I get Cylvia Hayes money,’” said Commissioner Richard Burke. But under state law, it’s ir- relevant whether the violations took place on purpose or by accident, Burke said. Kitzhaber and Hayes also used staff resources to book personal travel and help Hayes with her business activities, according to the report. Final- ly, Kitzhaber violated a state prohibition on public officials accepting gifts worth $50 or more apiece when he accepted Premier Platinum status from United Airlines, which was valued at more than $4,000, the report showed. Kitzhaber testified Friday that he was unaware he had received platinum status from the airline. He resigned under pres- sure by state lawmakers Feb. 18, 2015, a little more than a month into his fourth term as governor, as federal and state investigations into his con- duct intensified. In November, the com- mission rejected the proposed agreement with Kitzhaber that would have required him to pay $1,000 to settle the case. At that time, Kitzhaber ad- mitted he violated state ethics laws on four occasions and said he did so unintentionally. He said he did not disclose a conflict of interest related to Hayes’ paid consulting con- tracts based on the advice of his attorney at the time. News of the proposed set- tlement earlier that month spawned criticism that the penalty was too lenient on Kitzhaber’s lack of account- ability during his role as the state’s highest elected official. Friday’s decision will send a message to public officials, and they will take more care, Burke said. The commission in Janu- ary found that Hayes violat- ed state ethics laws 22 times while she served as first lady. The commission has yet to issue a final order and assess fines in her case.
