A no-bid contract between the Portland Police Bureau and one of its former employees will end early. 

During a May 16 phone call, Portland Police Chief Bob Day said that after questions from the Mercury about the scope of work and expenses related to a contract with Ferraris Investigations and Consulting, the contract will be canceled as a cost savings measure.

The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) began working with Ferraris Investigations last year to help the Bureau with organizational planning and the development of a succession plan amid a high number of retirements and staff turnover. The firm is run by Jim Ferraris, the former chief of the Woodburn Police Department and a former assistant chief with PPB.

The contract, which was a sole-source contract awarded to Ferraris without a typical competitive bidding process, had a cap of $150,000 for the consulting and plan development work. It raised questions about potential cronyism, given Ferraris and Chief Day previously worked together at PPB. 

“I recognize the appearance of that,” Day told the Mercury, but said his office worked closely with the city’s procurement office to comply with city contracting rules. “I was in a position with this role that I needed to move on this quickly, and didn’t feel like I had the capacity or time to do as comprehensive of a search or approach.”

Chief Day said a succession plan–which helps guide the Bureau in planning for staff retirements, turnover, and advancements–was one of the recommendations in the city’s settlement agreement with the US Department of Justice.

PPB confirmed that $42,390 has been paid out toward the contract as of May. About 20 percent of that was travel expenses. Records obtained by Marc Poris of Portland Copwatch and shared with the Mercury show Ferraris, who lives in Central Oregon, took first-class flights from Redmond to Portland at least twice, and rented SUVs to get around the city on his trips to Portland, including a Mercedes. Ferraris’s contract includes a $75 hourly travel fee.

The city allows for sole source contracts, but the Ferraris contract expenses likely conflict with the city’s sustainable procurement policy, which asks city offices to consider the “human health, environmental, social, and economic impacts of products and services” in its contracts.

Air travel is among the least environmentally friendly travel options, as are SUVs. 

The contract between PPB and Ferraris Investigations prohibits luxury travel accommodations in its list of expenses eligible for reimbursement, noting airfare should be the “lowest coach fare available” and rental vehicles should be chosen based on the most economical option. The invoices indicate Ferraris billed at the city’s standard reimbursable rate for travel accommodations, and paid the difference for the extra costs himself. 

A spokesperson from the city’s finance office says typically, the city relies on each bureau or department to monitor their own third-party contracts for compliance with city rules. 

Poris said he stumbled on the contract while looking over budget documents outlining a ten-fold increase in TASER provider Axon’s annual costs. That led him to browse the city’s vendor checkbook where he noticed payments to Ferraris Investigations.

“I recognized the name and learned that Chief Day awarded Ferraris a sole source contract for "Succession Planning, Organization Development, and Crime Reduction,” Poris told the Mercury.

A city database shows most of the consulting work was paid for with general fund money, except for a $5,800 payment in March, which came from PPB’s federal forfeiture fund. Federal forfeiture money comes from the sale of seized assets and property. It’s generally used by police agencies to recoup costs associated with forfeiture operations. 

Overall, the contract expenses are a small fraction of PPB’s roughly $317 million budget. PPB will be relatively unscathed in the 2025-26 budget, despite a $2 million reduction in the Bureau’s overtime budget and an amendment approved by city councilors that diverts $2 million of PPB’s proposed general fund allocation to the city's parks bureau. 

Still, Day said he’s looking for ways to scale back spending as much as possible, given the city’s dire fiscal situation. City leaders are expected to adopt an $8.5 billion budget later this month that includes cuts to several city departments in an effort to close a $93 million shortfall. 

“Your conversation really sparked me to really [think] holistically to look for over a million in savings,” Day said. “We’re looking at those [contracts] and others that might be a cost savings, in conjunction with the OT (overtime) reduction and limitations on travel and limitations on general spending.”

Day said ending the Ferraris contract isn’t a waste of resources, noting the Bureau “already received a significant amount of work from Ferraris.”

In addition to the Ferraris contract, PPB is also ending its contract with the August Wilson Red Door Project–another organization Chief Day has personal ties to. The nonprofit arts organization uses theater to foster dialogue and try to bridge divides between the public and law enforcement. Day previously worked for the Red Door Project as its director of strategic initiatives. Records show $25,000 was paid toward that contract, half of which came from the federal forfeiture fund.

Day says ending both contracts early felt prudent, but it may not be enough to assuage his toughest critics.

“Chief Day has made other questionable personnel decisions, such as allowing Detective Erik Kammerer to participate in the retire-rehire program and hiring Robert King as his Chief of Staff.  King also draws a full pension and paycheck like Kammerer and Day,” Poris says. 

He and Portland Copwatch keep detailed tabs on PPB’s activities. Poris and fellow police watchdogs suggest the Ferraris consulting contract was more of a boon to Ferraris than the Bureau. The Ferraris contract was unrelated to any misconduct investigation, but Poris says it’s part of a series of executive decisions from the chief that he finds problematic. “Chief Day overruled the unanimous Police Review Board decision to fire Sgt. Jeff McDaniel for lying to investigators, and he also chose to disregard the Internal Affairs Investigation into Manny Clark's killing that found all three of Officer Christopher Sathoff's shots out of policy.

“I think it makes sense to scrutinize Chief Day's decision process. Is he more concerned with rewarding his friends or with holding officers accountable such that we can someday have a Police Bureau that is free from racism, corruption, and brutality?”

Who is Jim Ferraris?

Ferraris worked for PPB for 27 years before taking a job at the Salem Police Department. In 2015, he became chief of the Woodburn Police Department and retired in 2021. Prior media coverage notes Ferraris worked in law enforcement for more than 40 years and spent the last few years of his career focused on community-centered policing.

On his company’s website, he touts years of experience working on employee misconduct investigations, as well as investigating officer-involved shootings and other law enforcement personnel-related matters. Recently, he was hired by the Wasco County Sheriff’s Office to independently investigate a misconduct allegation against two probation officers accused of racist banter at work.

He’s a member of the Oregon Criminal Justice Truth Project, a collective of retired district attorneys (and a few law-adjacent retirees) doing political advocacy work. Their current efforts include mobilizing Multnomah County residents to push for more law enforcement funding in the upcoming budget, and rallying against Oregon's Public Defense Commission for perceived malfeasance. 

Ferraris is also outspoken on social media about his personal political views. He was a staunch opponent of Measure 110 and advocated for its repeal, which recriminalized all quantities of drugs. He maintains a hardline stance on cannabis use, insisting police shouldn’t be able to use it while off duty. Last year, he lambasted former US Rep. Earl Blumenauer and 4th District Congresswoman Val Hoyle on social media for “the harm they are causing as elected officials promoting marijuana.”

He’s no fan of the ACLU, and was an ardent supporter of Multnomah County District Attorney Nathan Vasquez during the DA’s election campaign, urging voters to “send Mike Schmidt packing.” Schmidt was Vasquez's predecessor.

Most recently, he made his feelings about US Rep. Maxine Dexter known, via a social media thread criticizing her for traveling to El Salvador, where Kilmar Abrego Garcia was wrongfully deported. Dexter represents Oregon’s 3rd District in Congress. 

“The absurdity of fear mongering continues…,” Ferraris commented. Oddly, Ferraris has changed his handle on X (formerly Twitter) multiple times in the past two weeks, and recently made his posts private. 

City employees aren’t restricted from political speech online or in personal time, and neither are city contractors, but the highly politicized online presence and rhetoric against sitting elected officials by someone hired to help make structural changes within the Police Bureau is notable. 

Day said he sought out Ferraris because the retired chief is “held in high regard” and offered a unique, insider perspective, having grown up and worked in Portland.

“And I also know from speaking with other city jurisdictions that had utilized him, they were pleased with his skillset and his holistic view of policing,” Day added.

Ferraris did not respond to the Mercury’s requests for comment.