Murmurs: Did the OLCC rig a huge legal weed contract?

1. A Florida software company says the state’s marijuana overlords improperly awarded a $1.7 million contract to follow the flow of legal pot from farm to bong. The company, BioTrackTHC, wants to provide the Oregon Liquor Control Commission with a seed-to-sale tracking system to prevent recreational weed from leaking onto the black market. BioTrackTHC finished second in an April competition for the contract. In a May 26 lawsuit in Marion County Circuit Court, the firm alleges the OLCC improperly awarded the contract to a competitor, Florida-based Franwell, with a last-minute and unexplained scoring change. BioTrackTHC’s lawsuit stops short of accusing the state of rigging the game, but suggests the OLCC’s actions may have been “nefarious.” OLCC officials declined to comment on the lawsuit. “What I can tell you,” says OLCC spokesman Tom Towslee, “is that we’re continuing to work to finalize the terms of the contract with Franwell.”

1. There’s widespread belief at City Hall that Gail Shibley, chief of staff to Mayor Charlie Hales, is leaving her post. Shibley, a former state legislator and director of the Oregon Health Authority’s Office of Environmental Public Health, has helped Hales weather a series of crises. Shibley was also the subject of a state civil rights complaint last year. A former employee in the mayor’s office said Shibley called him a “skank.” Hales has been under pressure from supporters to replace Shibley as he approaches a 2016 run for re-election, but he has dragged his feet, seemingly unable to announce the change more than a week after word began circulating that Shibley was out. Josh Alpert, a Hales staffer, is said to be Shibley’s probable replacement. Shibley didn’t respond to a request for comment. Hales spokesman Dana Haynes said simply, ”She’s not leaving.” 

1. Dept. of Shameless Self-Promotion: The Society of Professional Journalists last weekend handed out awards for stories published in 2014, and Oregon’s top journalism prize, the Bruce Baer Award, went to WW’s Nigel Jaquiss for “First Lady Inc.” (Oct. 8). The story and Jaquiss’ follow-up work revealed alleged influence peddling by former Gov. John Kitzhaber and first lady Cylvia Hayes, and led to Kitzhaber’s resignation in February. WW also won six first-place awards among other Pacific Northwest alternative weeklies. Jaquiss won in investigative reporting for “First Lady Inc.” Aaron Mesh won two awards: personalities reporting for “Breaking Bread” (Jan. 8), a profile of Dave’s Killer Bread co-founder Dave Dahl; and government and political reporting for “Talkin’ Bull” (April 23), on the fight over Portland’s water. Elizabeth Armstrong Moore won in two categories, health reporting and environment and science reporting, for “Splice of Life” (Sept. 17), a profile of Oregon Health & Science University geneticist Shoukhrat Mitalipov. Cambria Roth and Brent Walth won in business reporting for “Wipeout!” (May 21), about a Portland State University student who claimed his professor stole his surfboard business.

WWeek 2015