Two residents have filed a complaint with the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office against a group opposed to a May ballot measure that would make vacation rentals illegal in nearly all unincorporated parts of Clatsop County.

The complaint alleges that in the process of opposing Measure 4-221, Marie Gwydir-Moore and Everyone For The North Oregon Coast, a group formed last year to support the rights of vacation rental owners, have violated multiple state campaign finance laws and regulations. 

The ballot measure seeks to overturn an ordinance approved by the county Board of Commissioners last summer that recognized vacation rentals as an outright use in 16 unincorporated zones in the development code.

The complaint filed last week by Cheryl Conway, an Astoria resident, and Bebe Michel, a Gearhart resident, alleges the group failed to file a statement of organization for their political action committee; failed to report transactions in a timely manner in accordance with campaign finance reporting laws; and accepted anonymous contributions to their effort to oppose the measure in violation of the state’s election law.

Ben Morris, a spokesman for the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office, confirmed the complaint was received and told The Astorian that investigators in the state’s election division will first conduct a fact-finding procedure to review the information and determine whether or not to open an investigation. The process usually takes several weeks.

Morris told KMUN that since the complaint is tied to a ballot measure in the May election, it does move higher up the priority list.

The state mailed a notice to Gwydir-Moore informing her of the complaint on Wednesday.

“For several years now, I have been following the attempts to reform Oregon campaign finance to keep dark money out of politics,” Conway said in an email. “I am especially disheartened to find that individuals who don’t even live in our community would break campaign law in order to influence the local (short-term rental) ballot issue. Regardless of how I may choose to vote on this issue, I think it’s important that everyone plays by the rules as codified in Oregon law.”

Conway is active with the Clatsop County Democrats, and Michel is also politically engaged and has a history of contributing to Democratic campaigns.

While the measure is nonpartisan, it has been endorsed by Clatsop County Democrats, which in a resolution approved in late February said vacation rentals have negative consequences on the rental housing market and on adjacent property owners through higher traffic, noise and demands on water, sewer or septic systems. 

Gwydir-Moore, a vacation rental owner and leader of Everyone For The North Oregon Coast, said she does not believe the group has violated any laws or regulations. 

“This is a clear tactic to play whatever political game they’re going to play,” she said, adding that if a mistake was made, the group will own up to it.

“We’ve been so transparent with everybody,” Gwydir-Moore said. “There’s no smoking gun here.”

She added that the group’s members are offended that the county Democratic Party has chosen a side. “Because we’re all Democrats,” she said. 

“This has always been about the people,” Gwydir-Moore added. “This has always been about (the unincorporated vacation rental) owners and what this is going to do to the community.”

Earlier this month, Everyone For The North Oregon Coast filed a lawsuit in Circuit Court asking a judge to remove the referendum from the May ballot.

The suit argues that the referendum is unlawful because North Coast Neighbors United, the group behind the referendum, failed to go through the proper channels to appeal land use decisions.