By Bethany Barnes and Gordon Friedman

Oregon's secretary of state announced Monday he will audit Portland Public Schools, an unusual move prompted by his concerns over the district's decision to sue a parent and reporter to keep records secret.

Dennis Richardson said Portland residents have complained loudly to him about the district's high-profile problems. Oregon's largest school district has had such a rough go of it, the search firm for the new superintendent told the school board the next leader would need to address a "great deal of hurt and pain."

"We're going to give the district an opportunity to show that the criticism is unfair," Richardson said.

Richardson specifically cited the district's decision to sue public records requesters as one reason why it deserves an audit.

Portland Public Schools officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

That lawsuit didn't play well with some factions of the community. The Lincoln High newspaper called it "a breach of trust."

The reporter and parent asked for records of employees on paid leave, information that the district has released before. Reporter Beth Slovic at the Portland Tribune, who is being sued, has reported that the district put one worker on paid leave for years.

The lawsuit drew national scrutiny this past weekend when The Associated Press used the district as an example in a story about how governments have sued records requesters.

There are signs that the school board, which this summer picked up three new board members, wants change.

A $4 million contract with law firm Miller Nash Graham & Dunn, the district's longtime go-to defender, didn't sail through approval at last week's school board meeting. Instead, it was pulled last minute.

Brim-Edwards said she yanked the item because board members wanted to discuss it further.

School board member Mike Rosen has called for the district needed to take a hard look at its legal counsel, both internally and externally.

Kim Sordyl, the parent the district is suing, is a close ally of Richardson. She campaigned for him and he designated her to represent him as a non-voting member of the Oregon Board of Education.

Known for withering criticism of the district, Sordyl is a polarizing figure in the parent community, where she draws supporters and haters alike. Fear of her has become a force within the district. Attempts to quell her social media critiques haven't worked.

"I've been seeking audits of Portland Public Schools spending for a long time so I'm really happy to see he's going to take this on," she said Monday. Sordyl said she spoke to Richardson some time ago about an audit of the district, but it had been awhile since they had talked about the idea so she was "pleasantly surprised" by the news.

Richardson wrote in an Oregonian/OregonLive column in 2016 that he felt the state should dig into school districts.

"The Audits Division has the responsibility to 'follow the money' in our public schools," he wrote, going on to specifically call out Portland Public Schools as ripe for an audit.

Kip Memmott, the secretary's audits director, testified to a panel of lawmakers Monday that Portland Public Schools will undergo special scrutiny because it receives "the lion's share" of money doled out by the state Department of Education.

Portland schools receive less than 6 percent of the statewide pot of state tax revenues for K-12 schools.

The district's property-tax payers cover most of the school system's expenses. This school year, Portland Public Schools is receiving $230 million in state funding and paying most of its $600 million budget using local property taxes.

It's unusual for the secretary of state, a state-level executive branch official, to audit a school district, which is not a state agency. Richardson said he's unsure if such an audit has been completed before and added that he has full confidence his audits team has authority to evaluate Portland Public Schools' performance.

— Bethany Barnes and Gordon Friedman

Got a tip about Portland Public Schools? Email Bethany: bbarnes@oregonian.com

Reach Friedman at:

503-221-8209; @GordonRFriedman