BOARDMAN — Federal grant funding for the Port of Morrow to operate the Columbia Development Authority is coming to a fast halt.

The Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation, under the U.S. Department of Defense, sent a notice Friday, Feb. 21, to the port asking for “voluntary termination” of its almost $1 million grant award, which the port uses to fund the CDA.

The OLDCC in January began reviewing the grant award and asked the port to submit documentation addressing four subjects: to show CDA Executive Director Greg Smith was not receiving federal funds while performing his legislative duties as the state representative for House District 57; an explanation of internal time-keeping controls for Smith; an explanation of why the CDA budget contained salary increases for Smith and CDA staff that the board had not approved; and the salaries for the individuals in the grant award.

The OLDCC received the port’s response on Jan. 30 but found the information lacking, and the office was considering to “involuntarily terminate” the grant for noncompliance.

Smith said the OLDCC cited two reasons for ending the grant. One has to do with pay raises the grant would have funded and which the CDA board approved and later rescinded. And the other stems from Smith’s work as a state representative.

The CDA for nearly a decade has employed Smith. The federal grant application inaccurately said the CDA board had approved a large salary increase of $66,000 for Smith and $47,000 for another employee. Still, the board did approve the grant application, with the inaccuracy, at the time.

The Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation found the CDA’s 2024 budget justification submission “did not accurately represent the CDA Board’s involvement in the salary increases.” The port’s grant application, therefore, contained “untrue and inaccurate” statements.

Smith, of Heppner, has been a Republican in the Oregon House of Representatives since winning his first election in 2000. He said the OLDCC for the past decade has known he is a lawmaker but now it and the Base Realignment and Closure takes exception to having a state representative also serving in the capacity as an executive director of an organization benefitting from the grant.

“It is what it is,” Smith said.

He said the OLDCC has known he was a state representative, but recent changeover in the office has brought in new personnel and attitudes.

The port has 10 business days from the date of the letter to request ending the grant, otherwise the OLDCC will.

Smith said he was notifying the CDA board members and sending them copies of the notice. The East Oregonian also received a copy.

Smith said the grant is for $890,000 a year. He said the next step is to ensure the CDA has funds, so he has prepared a request for the board to approve the sale of 100 acres of industrial land for $65,000 per acre, for a total of $6.5 million.

The CDA Board is holding a budget meeting Feb. 25 at the Port of Morrow in Boardman.