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State Treasurer Tobias Read's office has asked the Oregon Department of Justice whether the Oregon's second-ranking elected official, Secretary of State Dennis Richardson, can legally delegate his position on the State Land Board.
Late Monday afternoon, as WW first reported, Richardson informed his land board colleagues, Read and Gov. Kate Brown, both Democrats, that he'd be unable to attend the Land Board meeting scheduled for 10 am Tuesday in Salem, due to his ongoing treatment for brain cancer.
In an email to his colleagues and Division of State Lands Director Vicki Walker, Richardson, a Republican, said that until further notice, he was delegating his position on the Land Board to his deputy, Leslie Cummings.
"Under Section 5, Article VIII of the Oregon Constitution and ORS 177.040, my Deputy Secretary of State will attend Land Board meetings and vote on my behalf for the duration of my cancer treatment," Richardson wrote.
The Land Board oversees 780,000 acres of public property, as well as the bottoms and banks of the state's navigable rivers. Its three members are often called upon to decide weighty issues, such as the aborted 2017 sale of the Elliott State Forest.
Right after receiving Richardson's email Monday afternoon, Dmitri Palamteer, the chief of staff for Treasurer Read, sent a quick email to Matt DeVore, the Oregon DOJ lawyer who advises the Land Board. WW obtained the email through a public records request.
Palmateer noted that while various statutes appear to assign various duties to the secretary of state's office, the Oregon constitution may be interpreted to assign certain other duties, such as sitting on the Land Board, solely to the individual, i.e. Richardson, who is the secretary of state.
"I was wondering if there might be a limit on [Richardson's] ability to delegate his constitutionally assigned role as a Land Board member to a non-elected official?" Palmateer wrote to DeVore late Monday. "I'm wondering if there is a difference between being able to delegate his authority to the deputy to duties that are clearly assigned to the secretary of state (such as oversight of elections, corporations division etc…) versus roles that are assigned to him by the Constitution?"
At the Oct. 16 Land Board meeting, Cummings did occupy the spot reserved for Richardson—but Brown, who chairs the board, moved to defer any decisions on agenda items until December, effectively punting until DOJ provides an opinion.
DOJ spokeswoman Kristina Edmunson declined to share her agency's response to Treasury's query, saying it is protected by attorney-client privilege. (Palmateer says his agency will make the response public when it is received.)
Richardson's chief of staff, Deb Royal, told WW in a statement that Richardson's office is functioning fine while he battles brain cancer.
"Since the treatment the secretary is undergoing is very fatiguing, at this time, he is delegating personal appearances to his deputy and focusing on agency management, the election, cyber security, and audits," Royal said.
Chris Pair, a spokesman for Brown, says in the event that Richardson's health causes him to step down from elected office, Brown will appoint a Republican to replace him but only a Republican who commits to not seeking election to the office. (When Brown appointed Jeanne Atkins as her own replacement as secretary of state in 2015, Atkins made such a pledge.)
"My thoughts are with Secretary Richardson, his family, and staff as they face this challenging time," Brown added in a statement. "I'm heartened by his reputation for perseverance and know he will tackle cancer with the same determination he brings to his work."
