Oregon officials twice neglected to deliver key documents when The Oregonian/OregonLive sought to learn about a state-licensed day care operating in the home of a Portland marijuana entrepreneur.

The search started July 10 with a public records request to the state Office of Child Care. It asked for documents including anything submitted by Step by Step's employees, operators or owners.

Agency officials provided records between July 15 and Aug. 2.

But missing from the documents were forms that Step by Step's top employees, Bre Murphy and Shai King, each submitted when they closed the business June 20.

The agency turned over the forms only after The Oregonian/OregonLive questioned if all records had been provided. The documents revealed that Murphy and King both felt they were "unable to insure the safety of the children due to multiple concerns."

The Office of Child Care apologized for the oversight.

Asked if any other documents had been withheld, the agency said all records had been released to the best of the legal administrator's knowledge.

But another key document remained in the state's file drawer.

King and Murphy had emailed the Office of Child Care on June 21 to provide details about the concerns they said led them to quit.

The Oregonian/OregonLive found out about the email because the Office of Child Care made a passing reference to it in a written response to questions from the newsroom Aug 11. At the time, the agency said it had already turned over the email. It hadn't.

When asked, officials handed over the email on Aug. 25, apologizing once again for the oversight.

The document shed further light on what Step by Step's employees alleged. The email said they found "marijuana residue and crumbs" at the day care's Alameda location and said they had reason to believe large quantities of marijuana were stored in the home. (The owner of Step by Step denied both allegations to The Oregonian/OregonLive.)

Dawn Woods, director of the Office of Child Care, declined to discuss what caused the oversights. But Woods said she addressed the issue with staff and reviewed internal processes.

Woods said the Office of Child Care takes public records requests seriously.

-- Brad Schmidt

503-294-7628

@_brad_schmidt