County Administrator Danny Jordan, back right, talks about a price difference for increasing the number of elected positions during a Jackson County Board of Commissioners meeting in Medford Thursday.

The Oregon Secretary of State on Wednesday found no evidence to support Jackson County for All’s request for an investigation of elections law violations by county officials.

“Initial review of your complaint does not yield sufficient evidence to open an investigation and the elections division declines to investigate at this time,” stated Stephanie Darcy, compliance specialist with the secretary of state.

Darcy sent her March 13 email response to Denise Krause, Jackson County for All’s chief petitioner.

Last week, Jackson County for All qualified three ballot measures for the May 21 primary that ask voters to increase the number of commissioners from three to five, make commissioner positions nonpartisan and reduce commissioner salaries.

Darcy said the materials Krause sent “do not demonstrate a public employee has been directed to engage in political advocacy.”

She said it is not a violation of Oregon law for public employees to prepare neutral, factual information, including impartial information, on how the measure would affect a public agency.

In an email Wednesday sent to local media, County Administrator Danny Jordan said, “Thank you for your interest in reporting the Secretary of State’s decision to decline to open an investigation given the baseless allegations made by Ms. Krause.”

The allegations began when Krause sent a Feb. 27 cease and desist letter to county officials that was followed by a Feb. 29 request for investigation sent to the secretary of state.

Krause alleged the county “coerced, commanded and/or required public employees to take actions which violate ORS (Oregon Revised Statute) 260.523.”

On March 4, Madison Simmons, senior assistant county council, sent a letter to Jordan stating, “There are no major issues or potential violations as alleged by the letter with regard to the county, the Board of Commissioners, or the named or unnamed employees of Jackson County.”

Simmons found that the cease and desist letter lacked sufficient information to back up the allegations.

“Thus, without JCFA providing any more specific allegations, I conclude that there is no evidence I was able to find that commissioners, the county, Mr. Jordan, or any other named or unnamed county employees ‘coerced, commanded and/or required public employees to take actions which violate ORS 260.432,’” Simmons wrote.

One of the main issues Krause raised was a Feb. 15 commissioner meeting where Jordan went over budget numbers and said that he estimates the expansion to five commissioners would add hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs — starting at $212,619 per year — to the county’s bottom line.

According to a copy of the budget, on top of ongoing increased costs are one-time construction costs ranging from $380,000 to $480,000, putting first-year costs between $592,619 and $692,619.

Jackson County for All later held a town hall that claimed the county’s numbers were “artificially inflated” and provided its own estimate of $45,480.98.

Darcy, in her email to Krause, said, “You have pointed out the numbers used in the (county) budget were not exact; however, this fact was acknowledged by the administrator and there was no indication a public employee was directed to create financials using false information.”

Krause responded to Darcy in a follow-up email sent Wednesday by saying she was “disappointed in your preliminary analysis.”

She took issue with a government employee’s ability to convert speculation and “guesstimates” into what Darcy referred to as “neutral, factual information.”

Krause, who plans to continue to seek an investigation, stated, “We do intend to proceed on your recommendation to submit further analysis of fact vs. argumentative speculation.”

Last Tuesday, Krause, a Democrat, announced her candidacy in the May primary for the county commissioner seat being vacated by Republican Dave Dotterrer, who chose not to run for reelection.