One of state Rep. Greg Smith’s many jobs has landed him in hot water, again.

On Tuesday, the Oregon Government Ethics Commission voted to extend an investigation into whether the Heppner Republican violated ethics laws when he applied for a federal grant that raised his salary as the executive director of the Columbia Development Authority, an agency that oversees an industrial park development near Hermiston.

Staff for the commission allege that Smith applied for the grant without filling out a conflict of interest form or receiving approval from the authority’s board. State investigator Casey Fenstermaker said the complexity of the case and the federal shutdown meant she’ll need more time to determine Smith’s potential involvement with the grant.

“He has indicated that he did not participate in the drafting of the 2024 grant application,” Fenstermaker said at an ethics commission meeting. “However, accounts from CDA employees indicate that he was involved in various ways in the development of that.”

Ethics commissioners granted Fenstermaker another 30 days to complete her investigation.

Neither Smith nor his attorney, Amanda Gamblin, attended the meeting. Smith did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Gamblin told commissioners previously that Smith was unaware that the grant application presented a potential conflict of interest and that he was several degrees removed from the grant.

Elected in 2000, Smith is the longest serving member of the Oregon House, representing a district that stretches from western Umatilla County to the Warm Springs Reservation north of Madras. He cultivated a reputation in Salem as a bipartisan dealmaker focused on bringing in state money for his district.

But Smith has been mired in several ethical controversies in recent years.

The Malheur Enterprise investigated the connections between his work as a legislator and his economic development consulting business, Gregory Smith & Co., leading to Smith dropping or losing multiple contracts across the state.

The ethics commission has two open investigations into Smith, both dealing with his job at the Columbia Development Authority. The second probe centers on how he was compensated for authority work while also representing House District 57 in Salem.

Smith is also among a group of former Morrow County politicians and government officials who are being sued by the Oregon Attorney General’s Office. The state alleges that Smith helped facilitate an artificially low-priced sale of a nonprofit broadband company to a group of local officials who allegedly knew the value of the company was about to skyrocket due to a data center boom.

In a motion for summary judgment, the attorneys for Smith and the other defendants argued the sale was meant to ensure the company stayed in local hands rather than a larger competitor. Smith, the attorneys wrote, was chosen to help complete the deal because he was “knowledgeable” and had a “complimentary” background.

A judge will hold a hearing on the summary judgment motion in February.

Smith’s ethical and legal troubles have not appeared to affect his standing back home. The conservative tilt of HD-57 means Smith rarely faces a Democratic opponent. He beat back a Republican primary challenger in 2024 with 75% of the vote.

Former Morrow County Commissioner Jim Doherty recently filed to run against Smith in the May 2026 Republican primary. Doherty’s campaign website doesn’t reference Smith directly, but it does have a policy section on “clean government.” Doherty has promised to “fight for term limits, complete financial transparency, and an end to career politicians using public office for private profit,” his website states.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2025/12/10/eastern-oregon-greg-smith-ethics-investigation/