ODOT Whistleblower may have his day in court

By Lucy Brackett,

KATU TV aired a show earlier this month about a Bend man once employed by ODOT who called upon his project managers to comply with highway and bridge construction specifications. Ray Perry’s job? Assistant quality assurance coordinator for ODOT. Perry covered area four, which runs from the CA border to Washington state’s border, and runs west from Burns to the the top of the Cascades.

Starting ten years ago, Perry relayed to his bosses that the construction processes were not in compliance with contract specifications. This step was part of Perry’s job, but the project manager just ignored it. For the last four years, Perry has been slogging through the court system as he has been attempting to get federal attention to the problem, but that has resulted in nothing but inaction by ODOT. And now his job is gone as of this spring.
Perry recently filed a TORT for civil action against the state. He is waiting for a response from ODOT’s lawyers. Currently, politicians from around the state are looking into the matter, and it appears that ODOT just wants the whole matter to go away.

It would be interesting to get Perry’s input on Deschutes County roads and other roads throughout Oregon, in light of the fact that he had been with ODOT for twenty-five years at the time of his firing. Wouldn’t it be insightful to get his take on the multi-million dollar Bend Parkway and its condition after less than ten years of use? That’s a report that many commuters would like to see on this heavily traveled state highway; a road that seems to be always in need of repairs.

For those of you who are interested in the state of Oregon’s bridges and highways, stay tuned to this site. Questions and comments are encouraged and appreciated.