Ethics Commission Votes to Examine Former Home Forward CEO Over Journey Spending

The Oregon Government Ethics Commission voted unanimously Aug. 14 to proceed with an investigation into the journey spending of former Home Forward CEO Ivory Mathews, who resigned in June.

Mathews resigned from her place this spring after WW reported she’d spent greater than $100,000 on journey within the three previous years, together with dozens of journeys to housing conferences and networking occasions throughout the nation. Receipts revealed Mathews would generally prolong her journeys previous the convention dates, blurring private trip with work-related journey. One such journey was to Hawaii in 2024.

Meanwhile, her company sat on greater than 900 vacant housing models and was flailing financially. Tenants throughout Home Forward buildings complained of persistent safety, security and cleanliness issues.

Home Forward is the town of Portland’s housing authority, offering flats to round 7,000 low-income individuals throughout the metro space and distributing housing vouchers to round 12,000.

The ethics fee voted 8–0 to analyze Mathews’ journey spending after employees investigator Silas Patterson decided in a preliminary overview that “there appears to be a substantial objective basis to believe that Mathews may have violated the use of office and conflict of interest provisions.”

The Oregonian first reported the fee’s determination to analyze.

Mathews’ conduct, Patterson acknowledged, could also be a violation of ORS 244.040, which prohibits a public official from utilizing their place for personal monetary achieve or “avoidance of financial detriment.” She might have additionally failed to stick to guidelines a few battle of curiosity if she approved her personal journey bills, the investigator stated.

“Home Forward’s travel policy requires authorization for any expenses incurred by the agency. If Mathews were authorizing her own travel, she would have been met with a conflict of interest on each occasion,” Patterson stated. “It does not appear that Mathews complied with conflict of interest disclosure requirements set forth in [Oregon Revised Statutes.]”

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