StanCOG dismisses executive director under investigation

Stanislaus Council of Governments Executive Director Rosa De Leon Park, who in June was placed on leave pending an audit of past spending and a review of her alleged verbal mistreatment of staff, has been fired.

In a report out of closed session Wednesday, StanCOG staff said the executive director’s employment was terminated by a 9-0 vote. The decision took affect immediately.

Stanislaus County Supervisor Mani Grewal, who was appointed to serve on the newly formed StanCOG Ad Hoc Committee investigating potential waste and abuse of taxpayer funds, also announced the decision.

“We didn’t need to put her on paid leave or have a drawn-out six-figure investigation to know this behavior was wrong,” Grewal said in a statement. “The facts were clear, the conduct was indefensible, and taxpayers were owed immediate action. Dismissing the executive director was the right decision, and it saved both time and taxpayer money. Accountability shouldn’t be delayed when public trust is at stake.”

The Stanislaus County Civil Grand Jury issued a report June 25 accusing De Leon Park of lavish spending on travel and rude treatment of her staff.

StanCOG oversees transportation funding for the county government and its nine cities. The agency’s policy board held a special closed-door meeting Wednesday, attended by 10 of the 16 board members to discuss the disciplinary action.

Chairman Buck Condit, county Supervisors Terry Withrow and Grewal, Casey Graham, Charlie Goeken, Rachel Hernandez, Modesto Mayor Sue Zwahlen, Modesto Councilman David Wright and Kayleigh Gilbert participated in the decision. George Carr of Hughson left the meeting early for a previously scheduled appointment.

The civil grand jury report shook up the regional transportation agency that, among other duties, oversees Measure L transportation tax funds.

The investigation partly focused on De Leon Park’s spending of more than $100,000 on rental cars, which she used almost nonstop for more than three years. More than half of the car rentals, billed to taxpayers, were luxury vehicles including BMWs, Mercedes Benz and Jeep Grand Cherokees, the grand jury found.

Other spending included first-class airline flights and use of luxury hotels, including Ritz-Carlton stays while traveling to Washington, D.C., Chicago and Atlanta. According to the report, De Leon Park stayed at the luxury hotels instead of the less costly hotels that hosted conferences she attended. Total charges at Ritz-Carlton hotels from 2020 to 2024 were $33,072, the report said.

The jury also reviewed the executive director’s use of her government-issued credit card over a seven-month period, revealing 62 transactions with no receipts, including 19 missing receipts in one month. There were no receipts for 15% of purchases, totaling $10,000, the report said.

De Leon Park has not commented to the media for previous articles about the report. An attempt to reach her Wednesday afternoon for comment on this story were unsuccessful.

The investigation also raised questions about excessive pay for De Leon Park and never got to the bottom of how a dramatic increase in vacation time was approved or when. The jury found that De Leon Park, as of June 2023, was allowed nine weeks of paid vacation per year, the unused portion of which could be converted to cash twice a year. Witnesses told the grand jury that De Leon Park rarely went on vacation.

The report says the jury asked the StanCOG administrative services director for figures on vacation cashouts for the executive director, but the information wasn’t provided. Her unused paid vacation could be cashed for $27,864 every six months, the report said, but a StanCOG staff member never provided figures on vacation cashouts for the executive director.

The grand jury said De Leon Park’s total compensation was worth $484,156 in 2022, including base salary of $246,553, $71,447 in other pay and $166,156 in benefits. That was $138,000 higher than the compensation for the Sacramento Council of Government’s top executive, who oversees 31 agencies compared to StanCOG’S 17 and has an annual budget that’s twice as large.

StanCOG board members also were concerned about testimony to the grand jury about De Leon Park’s alleged treatment of employees. Former employees said De Leon Park yelled at staff members in the hallway, humiliated some at meetings and made hostile comments, the report said.

The StanCOG issued a news release stating the executive director was terminated for cause and she will not be entitled to severance. De Leon Park has been on paid administrative leave since June 30.

“This was a difficult but necessary decision,” Buck Condit, StanCOG’s policy board chairman, said in the news release “We are focused on moving forward with transparency and stability while the ongoing workplace investigation and forensic audit continue. Our goal is to ensure StanCOG remains a trusted and effective agency for the region.”

Elisabeth Hahn is serving as interim executive director as the board considers new leadership for the agency.

This story was originally published August 6, 2025 at 4:07 PM.