Portland Public Schools Lead Investigation Could Cost $50,000

Portland law firm Stoll Berne will look at procedures as well as PPS "personnel breakdowns."

The full political and financial costs from Portland Public Schools' lead scandal are not yet known.

But there is a price tag for the outside lawyers hired to investigate the district's procedures as well as its "personnel breakdowns."

Lawyers at the Portland firm Stoll Berne will bill the district upwards of $243 an hour for a contract currently capped at $50,000.

The work the lawyers do will be shielded from public inquiry by attorney-client privilege.

School Board Chairman Tom Koehler, however, has vowed to publish the results of the investigation, which is expected to be completed within 30 days.

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