On a tie vote, the Oregon Government Ethics Commission decided Friday morning to not pursue an investigation into whether Gov. Tina Kotek violated any ethics laws by elevating her wife’s role in her office.

The nine-member commission voted 4-4 with one member absent to proceed with the investigation, meaning the investigation will be dismissed.

Commission members generally agreed that a preliminary investigation produced no substantial evidence that Kotek or her wife, Aimee Kotek Wilson, violated any Oregon ethics laws. The commission conducted the preliminary investigation after receiving multiple complaints.

“I am persuaded that this is something worth dismissing because I haven’t seen any actual violation yet, based on the director’s report, that is within our purview,” said David Fiskum, vice chair of the commission, who was appointed by former Democratic Gov. Kate Brown.

It is unknown if Kotek will move forward to create the office. Earlier this year, Kotek said she was seeking advice from the ethics commission after strong public backlash to her announcement that she was considering creating an office for her wife. Kotek said the position would be unpaid and Kotek Wilson would not directly oversee any employees. That announcement came shortly after it was publicly revealed that three of her top staff members had departed her office due to rising concerns of Kotek Wilson’s role in her administration.

The ethics commission previously said it couldn’t provide Kotek guidance until it concluded investigating the complaints related to Kotek. Commissioners and commission staff did not say during Friday’s meeting who filed the complaints.

“The governor is grateful for the commission’s thorough deliberations on this matter,” Elisabeth Shepard, spokesperson for Kotek, said in a statement. “The First Lady is a volunteer and public official with relevant professional experience that can provide tremendous value in furthering the governor’s priorities. The governor now looks forward to receiving formal guidance from the commission on the questions her office submitted regarding the role of a First Spouse.”

The four commissioners who voted to move forward with an investigation were all appointed by Republican state lawmakers. Similarly, the four commissioners who voted to dismiss the investigation were appointed by Democratic lawmakers and the governor. The sole commissioner not present at the vote was appointed by the Senate Democratic Caucus.

The Republican-appointed commissioners said they wanted to proceed with an investigation to be as thorough as possible.

“This commission should not be used as a political tool,” said Chair Shawn Lindsay, who voted to move forward with the investigation. “The gaping hole that I see here is that we only have the available information ... and we have not independently verified some of these facts or investigated those facts.”

Commission Executive Director Susan Myers presented the preliminary report, which found that Kotek and her wife had not committed any ethical violations because Kotek Wilson would work as a volunteer and would not benefit financially from the position in any way. Myers also said creating the office would not violate an anti-nepotism statute because Kotek Wilson is already classified as a public official as Kotek’s spouse.

The commissioners who voted to conduct an investigation said they wanted to hear from the three aides who reportedly left Kotek’s office over Kotek Wilson’s growing role in her wife’s administration. Those staffers, former Chief of Staff Andrea Cooper, former special adviser Abby Tibbs and former Deputy Chief of Staff Lindsey O’Brien, all raised concerns to Kotek that she was moving too quickly to give her wife a greater say in decision making, public records showed.

“I do think we owe it to the citizens of Oregon to absolutely look at everything and make sure that we are as thorough as possible,” Commissioner Jonathan Thompson said. “While I am on the fence, I’m leaning toward making sure that we as a commission do everything we can to make sure that all the questions are answered.”

The Democratic-appointed commissioners disagreed, saying that the preliminary investigation found no evidence that Cooper, Tibbs or O’Brien would provide any proof of legal wrongdoing.

Myers said the preliminary investigation involved reviewing media reports, public records and testimony from Kotek, Kotek Wilson and her attorney. She told the commission that although the three staffers might have had valid concerns about inappropriate behavior, their written communications did not signal any evidence that Kotek or her wife violated any ethics laws.

For example, Cooper in January asked another staffer to make sure that Kotek Wilson would sign a conflict of interest form disclosing any potential conflicts of interest. In May, Willamette Week reported that she still hadn’t.

However, Myers said “all those emails appear to suggest that some of those staff members may not understand what constitutes a statutory conflict of interest or how such conflict of interest must be disclosed as described. Those conflict of interest disclosure forms are not required by the ethics commission.”

— Carlos Fuentes covers state politics and government. Reach him at 503-221-5386 or cfuentes@oregonian.com.

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