The Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission held another chance to purchase rare liquor lottery in June. Six employees face ethics charges for previously setting aside such bottles for their own purposes. (OLCC)

Steve Marks, the former director of the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission, used his position to benefit himself. The Oregon Ethics Commission made a decision Friday on a financial penalty.

The decision was: $1,500. The maximum possible penalty was $5,000. The initial fine proposed in May was $500. Is $1,500 the right amount?

Marks told the commission he directed a single bottle of rare Pappy Van Winkle 23 bourbon to himself for purchase. He bought it for $329.99.

For some, getting hold of rare liquors is a passion. The state holds lotteries to give all Oregonians a shot at buying those selections, if they can’t find it at a local store. They can be resold for thousands of dollars. Marks said he kept his purchase.

In Oregon’s liquor lottery, the odds of winning a chance to purchase that particular Pappy Van Winkle bourbon was more than 1 in 5,000. Marks made the odds for himself 1 in 1.

The agency reprimanded six employees for the practice of setting aside liquor over a period of years. Gov. Tina Kotek asked Marks to resign in 2023 after the diversions came to light. Marks resigned. He served as director for about 10 years and was making about $223,000 when he resigned. The other employees left or were fired. They, too, face ethics penalties.

There is no doubt Marks violated state ethics rules by using his government positions to benefit himself. He lost his job. He stained his life. He stained his agency. Did he need to pay an ethics penalty?

No fine is the absolute right amount of monetary redress for what he did. There’s no substitute for leaders within government setting the right example of behavior and accountability. While a fine may feel appropriate, setting the appropriate level of fine is always going to be fundamentally unsatisfying.