The Sunset Empire Transportation District Board has selected Debbie Boothe-Schmidt to serve as interim executive director.

The decision comes after Craig Johnston, the transit district’s executive director, announced he would be stepping down. Johnston was hired in November 2023 to help the district navigate financial difficulties after a financial collapse in the spring of 2023 led to the temporary suspension of bus service and other operations.

On Dec. 5, Johnston recommended Boothe-Schmidt, the transit district’s board chair, to temporarily fill his place.

“The person I’ve been closest to since I’ve been here on a weekly basis has been Debbie,” he said. “When I went to all the city councils, when I went to all of the county council, Debbie was right there with me. She’s up to date on everything that’s going on in the district right now. She’s been there with me when I met with ODOT (Oregon Department of Transportation) discussing various things — she’s always been there. She knows where the district’s at.”

Boothe-Schmidt has served on the transit district’s board for more than five years — the majority of which she’s spent as board chair. For the next three months, she will remain on the board but will temporarily step away from her position as chair, recusing herself from voting as necessary.

Rebecca Read will serve as interim chair.

“It is a good fit to have Debbie serve us because she understands the district,” Read said. “She’s been at the ready for as long as I’ve been on the board. She has always been very resourceful. She was part of the go team that got us out of our mess last year, and I agree that she would help us get through this short period of time, and there … are things that need to be dealt with in order to keep this on course.”

Boothe-Schmidt and other elected transit district board members had expressed surprise when Jeff Hazen, the former executive director, revealed that the district was about to run out of money in 2023. The board denied Hazen severance after he resigned, saying he would have been terminated for financial malfeasance.

A state audit and a compliance review conducted after the transit district’s financial collapse found that the board lacked oversight over financial matters and was “insufficiently aware” of financial problems. Boothe-Schmidt said earlier this year that board members are taking more responsibility for financial oversight.

Boothe-Schmidt said Dec. 5 that she feels prepared to take on the new role. Her duties as interim executive director begin Dec. 31.

“I do feel comfortable going into this, mainly because we have such a good staff, and they’re doing so well right now,” she said. “I’m proud of all of them.”

At the meeting Dec. 5, commissioners approved a contract with the Special Districts Association of Oregon to help recruit a new executive director. The recruitment timeline is fluid, but the hope is to fill the role by mid-March.