Klamath County Commissioner Andrew Nichols has submitted an ethics complaint against fellow Commissioner Derick DeGroot, alleging DeGroot may have used his position for personal financial gain.
In a letter sent to the Oregon Government Ethics Commission late last month, Nichols wrote that DeGroot directed county staff to provide him with nonpublic foreclosure information. In at least one case, Nichols alleged, that information led to a family member acquiring a property before transferring it to DeGroot.
The complaint also alleges DeGroot was involved in grant funding that benefited properties he or his family owns. Nichols said homes linked to DeGroot received substantial revitalization funds through the American Rescue Plan Act.
“It appears that official actions taken by Commissioner DeGroot may have resulted in direct or indirect personal financial benefit totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars to him and members of his family,” Nichols said in the complaint.
DeGroot briefly addressed what he called rumors at a board meeting earlier this month.
“It is not OK for a public official to use their position to help their family, but it is equally not OK to stop them from continuing the business they've worked hard to build over four decades by seeking the same opportunities available to everybody else in our community,” DeGroot said.
DeGroot, a mortgage broker and investor, said he recuses himself when appropriate.
“My family has also received grants, both before and since I have been in office,” he said. “I can't stop people from trying to pervert that activity into something nefarious. It’s what people do.”
Nichols' complaint alleges that Klamath County has an investigative report from an outside law firm that has not been released due to attorney-client privilege. Nichols wrote that the report documents potentially unethical behavior by DeGroot while serving as a commissioner and board member of the South Central Oregon Economic Development District.
DeGroot, who is up for re-election this May, paid a $1,000 fine in 2021 to settle an ethics complaint related to his support for a construction contract involving a business employing his son.
Nichols said that he respects the process for investigating ethics violations and that the public should reserve judgment until that is complete.
“There’s two sides to every story,” he said.
The Oregon Government Ethics Commission will conduct a preliminary review before deciding whether to open a formal investigation.
