Public Transparency

As the rainy season begins, two statewide elected officials made conflicting statements last week about the shortage of roofs over Oregonians’ heads.

David Penilton, a co-owner of America’s Hub World Tours, a small tour operator that offers tour guides and buses in Oregon, has been awarded a two-year contract worth up to $200,000 from Travel Oregon to help with promotional groups the agency brings to the state, OJP has learned. 

The Port of Arlington plays an important economic development role in Gilliam County, the state’s third smallest by population.

Newly released records show Police Chief Jeff Profio had submitted a 90-day retirement notice effective November 26, 2025 — a detail not disclosed in the city’s earlier announcement that described his resignation and retirement.

State officials have confirmed that the Prineville daycare where an infant died last month was operating without a valid child care license and is now the subject of an open investigation.

The Oregon Government Ethics Commission is preparing to sign a proposed stipulated final order imposing a $1,000 civil penalty on Crook County High School Principal Jake Huffman, resolving a months-long state investigation into his private wrestling academy’s use of district facilities without paying required rental fees.

Crook County Library Director Sarah Beeler has abruptly resigned, leaving trustees and staff with unanswered questions about the circumstances of her departure, according to details uncovered from a September public meeting.

The Ochoco West Water & Sanitary Authority (OWWSA) is facing intensifying scrutiny after revelations involving both its former and current managers involving ethics and nepotism issues, and its former manager’s alleged misuse of district funds and other controversies that led to his quiet 2024 resignation.

Crook County has begun rolling out new transparency initiatives after mounting scrutiny over its handling of public records and compliance with Oregon’s open government laws.

At a recent public meeting about the financial health of OPERF, the $100 billion Oregon Public Employees Retirement System Fund, an activist criticized the Oregon State Treasury for losing money when it recently sold $4.5 billion in private equity holdings from the fund.