diff --git a/__tests__/main.test.ts b/__tests__/main.test.ts
index 781fbf88..80c9d7cb 100644
--- a/__tests__/main.test.ts
+++ b/__tests__/main.test.ts
@@ -426,6 +426,7 @@ test('exempt issue labels will not be marked stale (multi issue label)', async (
 
   expect(processor.staleIssues.length).toEqual(0);
   expect(processor.closedIssues.length).toEqual(0);
+  expect(processor.removedLabelIssues.length).toEqual(0);
 });
 
 test('exempt pr labels will not be marked stale', async () => {
@@ -474,6 +475,7 @@ test('stale issues should not be closed if days is set to -1', async () => {
   await processor.processIssues(1);
 
   expect(processor.closedIssues.length).toEqual(0);
+  expect(processor.removedLabelIssues.length).toEqual(0);
 });
 
 test('stale label should be removed if a comment was added to a stale issue', async () => {
@@ -562,6 +564,7 @@ test('stale issues should not be closed until after the closed number of days',
   await processor.processIssues(1);
 
   expect(processor.closedIssues.length).toEqual(0);
+  expect(processor.removedLabelIssues.length).toEqual(0);
   expect(processor.staleIssues.length).toEqual(1);
 });
 
@@ -593,5 +596,37 @@ test('stale issues should be closed if the closed nubmer of days (additive) is a
   await processor.processIssues(1);
 
   expect(processor.closedIssues.length).toEqual(1);
+  expect(processor.removedLabelIssues.length).toEqual(0);
   expect(processor.staleIssues.length).toEqual(0);
 });
+
+test('stale issues should not be closed until after the closed number of days (long)', async () => {
+  let lastUpdate = new Date();
+  lastUpdate.setDate(lastUpdate.getDate() - 10);
+  const TestIssueList: Issue[] = [
+    generateIssue(
+      1,
+      'An issue that should be marked stale but not closed',
+      lastUpdate.toString(),
+      false
+    )
+  ];
+
+  const opts = DefaultProcessorOptions;
+  opts.daysBeforeStale = 5; // stale after 5 days
+  opts.daysBeforeClose = 20; // closes after 25 days
+
+  const processor = new IssueProcessor(
+    opts,
+    async p => (p == 1 ? TestIssueList : []),
+    async (num, dt) => [],
+    async (issue, label) => new Date().toDateString()
+  );
+
+  // process our fake issue list
+  await processor.processIssues(1);
+
+  expect(processor.closedIssues.length).toEqual(0);
+  expect(processor.removedLabelIssues.length).toEqual(0);
+  expect(processor.staleIssues.length).toEqual(1);
+});
diff --git a/dist/index.js b/dist/index.js
index 9b977dd5..9431ad2b 100644
--- a/dist/index.js
+++ b/dist/index.js
@@ -8471,20 +8471,16 @@ class IssueProcessor {
     }
     processIssues(page = 1) {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
-            if (this.operationsLeft <= 0) {
-                core.warning('Reached max number of operations to process. Exiting.');
-                return 0;
-            }
             // get the next batch of issues
             const issues = yield this.getIssues(page);
             this.operationsLeft -= 1;
             if (issues.length <= 0) {
-                core.debug('No more issues found to process. Exiting.');
+                core.info('No more issues found to process. Exiting.');
                 return this.operationsLeft;
             }
             for (const issue of issues.values()) {
                 const isPr = !!issue.pull_request;
-                core.debug(`Found issue: issue #${issue.number} - ${issue.title} last updated ${issue.updated_at} (is pr? ${isPr})`);
+                core.info(`Found issue: issue #${issue.number} - ${issue.title} last updated ${issue.updated_at} (is pr? ${isPr})`);
                 // calculate string based messages for this issue
                 const staleMessage = isPr
                     ? this.options.stalePrMessage
@@ -8495,37 +8491,41 @@ class IssueProcessor {
                 const exemptLabels = IssueProcessor.parseCommaSeparatedString(isPr ? this.options.exemptPrLabels : this.options.exemptIssueLabels);
                 const issueType = isPr ? 'pr' : 'issue';
                 if (!staleMessage) {
-                    core.debug(`Skipping ${issueType} due to empty stale message`);
+                    core.info(`Skipping ${issueType} due to empty stale message`);
                     continue;
                 }
                 if (issue.state === 'closed') {
-                    core.debug(`Skipping ${issueType} because it is closed`);
+                    core.info(`Skipping ${issueType} because it is closed`);
                     continue; // don't process closed issues
                 }
                 if (issue.locked) {
-                    core.debug(`Skipping ${issueType} because it is locked`);
+                    core.info(`Skipping ${issueType} because it is locked`);
                     continue; // don't process locked issues
                 }
                 if (exemptLabels.some((exemptLabel) => IssueProcessor.isLabeled(issue, exemptLabel))) {
-                    core.debug(`Skipping ${issueType} because it has an exempt label`);
+                    core.info(`Skipping ${issueType} because it has an exempt label`);
                     continue; // don't process exempt issues
                 }
                 // does this issue have a stale label?
                 let isStale = IssueProcessor.isLabeled(issue, staleLabel);
+                // should this issue be marked stale?
+                const shouldBeStale = !IssueProcessor.updatedSince(issue.updated_at, this.options.daysBeforeStale);
                 // determine if this issue needs to be marked stale first
-                if (!isStale &&
-                    !IssueProcessor.updatedSince(issue.updated_at, this.options.daysBeforeStale)) {
-                    core.debug(`Marking ${issueType} stale because it was last updated on ${issue.updated_at} and it does not have a stale label`);
+                if (!isStale && shouldBeStale) {
+                    core.info(`Marking ${issueType} stale because it was last updated on ${issue.updated_at} and it does not have a stale label`);
                     yield this.markStale(issue, staleMessage, staleLabel);
-                    this.operationsLeft -= 2;
                     isStale = true; // this issue is now considered stale
                 }
-                // process any issues marked stale (including the issue above, if it was marked)
+                // process the issue if it was marked stale
                 if (isStale) {
-                    core.debug(`Found a stale ${issueType}`);
+                    core.info(`Found a stale ${issueType}`);
                     yield this.processStaleIssue(issue, issueType, staleLabel);
                 }
             }
+            if (this.operationsLeft <= 0) {
+                core.warning('Reached max number of operations to process. Exiting.');
+                return 0;
+            }
             // do the next batch
             return this.processIssues(page + 1);
         });
@@ -8534,45 +8534,44 @@ class IssueProcessor {
     processStaleIssue(issue, issueType, staleLabel) {
         var _a;
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            const markedStaleOn = (yield this.getLabelCreationDate(issue, staleLabel)) || issue.updated_at;
+            core.info(`Issue #${issue.number} marked stale on: ${markedStaleOn}`);
+            const issueHasComments = yield this.hasCommentsSince(issue, markedStaleOn);
+            core.info(`Issue #${issue.number} has been commented on: ${issueHasComments}`);
+            const issueHasUpdate = IssueProcessor.updatedSince(issue.updated_at, this.options.daysBeforeClose + ((_a = this.options.daysBeforeStale) !== null && _a !== void 0 ? _a : 0));
+            core.info(`Issue #${issue.number} has been updated: ${issueHasUpdate}`);
+            // should we un-stale this issue?
+            if (this.options.removeStaleWhenUpdated && issueHasComments) {
+                core.info(`Issue #${issue.number} is no longer stale. Removing stale label.`);
+                yield this.removeLabel(issue, staleLabel);
+            }
+            // now start closing logic
             if (this.options.daysBeforeClose < 0) {
                 return; // nothing to do because we aren't closing stale issues
             }
-            const markedStaleOn = yield this.getLabelCreationDate(issue, staleLabel);
-            const issueHasComments = yield this.isIssueStillStale(issue, markedStaleOn || issue.updated_at);
-            const issueHasUpdate = IssueProcessor.updatedSince(issue.updated_at, this.options.daysBeforeClose + ((_a = this.options.daysBeforeStale) !== null && _a !== void 0 ? _a : 0));
-            if (markedStaleOn) {
-                core.debug(`Issue #${issue.number} marked stale on: ${markedStaleOn}`);
-            }
-            else {
-                core.debug(`Issue #${issue.number} is not marked stale, but last update of ${issue.updated_at} is older than ${this.options.daysBeforeStale} days`);
-            }
-            core.debug(`Issue #${issue.number} has been updated: ${issueHasUpdate}`);
-            core.debug(`Issue #${issue.number} has been commented on: ${issueHasComments}`);
             if (!issueHasComments && !issueHasUpdate) {
-                core.debug(`Closing ${issueType} because it was last updated on ${issue.updated_at}`);
+                core.info(`Closing ${issueType} because it was last updated on ${issue.updated_at}`);
                 yield this.closeIssue(issue);
             }
             else {
-                if (this.options.removeStaleWhenUpdated) {
-                    yield this.removeLabel(issue, staleLabel);
-                }
-                core.debug(`Ignoring stale ${issueType} because it was updated recently`);
+                core.info(`Stale ${issueType} is not old enough to close yet (hasComments? ${issueHasComments}, hasUpdate? ${issueHasUpdate}`);
             }
         });
     }
     // checks to see if a given issue is still stale (has had activity on it)
-    isIssueStillStale(issue, sinceDate) {
+    hasCommentsSince(issue, sinceDate) {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
-            core.debug(`Checking for comments on issue #${issue.number} since ${sinceDate} to see if it is still stale`);
+            core.info(`Checking for comments on issue #${issue.number} since ${sinceDate}`);
             if (!sinceDate) {
-                return true; // if no date was provided then the issue was marked stale a long time ago
+                return true;
             }
-            this.operationsLeft -= 1;
-            // find any comments since the stale label
+            // find any comments since the date
             const comments = yield this.listIssueComments(issue.number, sinceDate);
-            // if there are any user comments returned, and they were not by this bot, the issue is not stale anymore
-            return (comments.filter(comment => comment.user.type === 'User' &&
-                comment.user.login !== github.context.actor).length > 0);
+            const filteredComments = comments.filter(comment => comment.user.type === 'User' &&
+                comment.user.login !== github.context.actor);
+            core.info(`Comments not made by ${github.context.actor} or another bot: ${filteredComments.length}`);
+            // if there are any user comments returned
+            return filteredComments.length > 0;
         });
     }
     // grab comments for an issue since a given date
@@ -8605,7 +8604,7 @@ class IssueProcessor {
     // Mark an issue as stale with a comment and a label
     markStale(issue, staleMessage, staleLabel) {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
-            core.debug(`Marking issue #${issue.number} - ${issue.title} as stale`);
+            core.info(`Marking issue #${issue.number} - ${issue.title} as stale`);
             this.staleIssues.push(issue);
             this.operationsLeft -= 2;
             if (this.options.debugOnly) {
@@ -8628,7 +8627,7 @@ class IssueProcessor {
     // Close an issue based on staleness
     closeIssue(issue) {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
-            core.debug(`Closing issue #${issue.number} - ${issue.title} for being stale`);
+            core.info(`Closing issue #${issue.number} - ${issue.title} for being stale`);
             this.closedIssues.push(issue);
             this.operationsLeft -= 1;
             if (this.options.debugOnly) {
@@ -8645,7 +8644,7 @@ class IssueProcessor {
     // Remove a label from an issue
     removeLabel(issue, label) {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
-            core.debug(`Removing label ${label} from issue #${issue.number} - ${issue.title}`);
+            core.info(`Removing label ${label} from issue #${issue.number} - ${issue.title}`);
             this.removedLabelIssues.push(issue);
             this.operationsLeft -= 1;
             if (this.options.debugOnly) {
@@ -8663,7 +8662,7 @@ class IssueProcessor {
     ///see https://developer.github.com/v3/activity/events/
     getLabelCreationDate(issue, label) {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
-            core.debug(`Checking for label ${label} on issue #${issue.number}`);
+            core.info(`Checking for label ${label} on issue #${issue.number}`);
             this.operationsLeft -= 1;
             const options = this.client.issues.listEvents.endpoint.merge({
                 owner: github.context.repo.owner,
diff --git a/src/IssueProcessor.ts b/src/IssueProcessor.ts
index 38a8eac2..f54e96f6 100644
--- a/src/IssueProcessor.ts
+++ b/src/IssueProcessor.ts
@@ -97,24 +97,19 @@ export class IssueProcessor {
   }
 
   async processIssues(page: number = 1): Promise<number> {
-    if (this.operationsLeft <= 0) {
-      core.warning('Reached max number of operations to process. Exiting.');
-      return 0;
-    }
-
     // get the next batch of issues
     const issues: Issue[] = await this.getIssues(page);
     this.operationsLeft -= 1;
 
     if (issues.length <= 0) {
-      core.debug('No more issues found to process. Exiting.');
+      core.info('No more issues found to process. Exiting.');
       return this.operationsLeft;
     }
 
     for (const issue of issues.values()) {
       const isPr = !!issue.pull_request;
 
-      core.debug(
+      core.info(
         `Found issue: issue #${issue.number} - ${issue.title} last updated ${issue.updated_at} (is pr? ${isPr})`
       );
 
@@ -131,17 +126,17 @@ export class IssueProcessor {
       const issueType: string = isPr ? 'pr' : 'issue';
 
       if (!staleMessage) {
-        core.debug(`Skipping ${issueType} due to empty stale message`);
+        core.info(`Skipping ${issueType} due to empty stale message`);
         continue;
       }
 
       if (issue.state === 'closed') {
-        core.debug(`Skipping ${issueType} because it is closed`);
+        core.info(`Skipping ${issueType} because it is closed`);
         continue; // don't process closed issues
       }
 
       if (issue.locked) {
-        core.debug(`Skipping ${issueType} because it is locked`);
+        core.info(`Skipping ${issueType} because it is locked`);
         continue; // don't process locked issues
       }
 
@@ -150,36 +145,40 @@ export class IssueProcessor {
           IssueProcessor.isLabeled(issue, exemptLabel)
         )
       ) {
-        core.debug(`Skipping ${issueType} because it has an exempt label`);
+        core.info(`Skipping ${issueType} because it has an exempt label`);
         continue; // don't process exempt issues
       }
 
       // does this issue have a stale label?
       let isStale = IssueProcessor.isLabeled(issue, staleLabel);
 
+      // should this issue be marked stale?
+      const shouldBeStale = !IssueProcessor.updatedSince(
+        issue.updated_at,
+        this.options.daysBeforeStale
+      );
+
       // determine if this issue needs to be marked stale first
-      if (
-        !isStale &&
-        !IssueProcessor.updatedSince(
-          issue.updated_at,
-          this.options.daysBeforeStale
-        )
-      ) {
-        core.debug(
+      if (!isStale && shouldBeStale) {
+        core.info(
           `Marking ${issueType} stale because it was last updated on ${issue.updated_at} and it does not have a stale label`
         );
         await this.markStale(issue, staleMessage, staleLabel);
-        this.operationsLeft -= 2;
         isStale = true; // this issue is now considered stale
       }
 
-      // process any issues marked stale (including the issue above, if it was marked)
+      // process the issue if it was marked stale
       if (isStale) {
-        core.debug(`Found a stale ${issueType}`);
+        core.info(`Found a stale ${issueType}`);
         await this.processStaleIssue(issue, issueType, staleLabel);
       }
     }
 
+    if (this.operationsLeft <= 0) {
+      core.warning('Reached max number of operations to process. Exiting.');
+      return 0;
+    }
+
     // do the next batch
     return this.processIssues(page + 1);
   }
@@ -190,74 +189,77 @@ export class IssueProcessor {
     issueType: string,
     staleLabel: string
   ) {
-    if (this.options.daysBeforeClose < 0) {
-      return; // nothing to do because we aren't closing stale issues
-    }
+    const markedStaleOn: string =
+      (await this.getLabelCreationDate(issue, staleLabel)) || issue.updated_at;
+    core.info(`Issue #${issue.number} marked stale on: ${markedStaleOn}`);
 
-    const markedStaleOn: string | undefined = await this.getLabelCreationDate(
+    const issueHasComments: boolean = await this.hasCommentsSince(
       issue,
-      staleLabel
+      markedStaleOn
     );
-    const issueHasComments: boolean = await this.isIssueStillStale(
-      issue,
-      markedStaleOn || issue.updated_at
+    core.info(
+      `Issue #${issue.number} has been commented on: ${issueHasComments}`
     );
+
     const issueHasUpdate: boolean = IssueProcessor.updatedSince(
       issue.updated_at,
       this.options.daysBeforeClose + (this.options.daysBeforeStale ?? 0)
     );
+    core.info(`Issue #${issue.number} has been updated: ${issueHasUpdate}`);
 
-    if (markedStaleOn) {
-      core.debug(`Issue #${issue.number} marked stale on: ${markedStaleOn}`);
-    } else {
-      core.debug(
-        `Issue #${issue.number} is not marked stale, but last update of ${issue.updated_at} is older than ${this.options.daysBeforeStale} days`
+    // should we un-stale this issue?
+    if (this.options.removeStaleWhenUpdated && issueHasComments) {
+      core.info(
+        `Issue #${issue.number} is no longer stale. Removing stale label.`
       );
+      await this.removeLabel(issue, staleLabel);
+    }
+
+    // now start closing logic
+    if (this.options.daysBeforeClose < 0) {
+      return; // nothing to do because we aren't closing stale issues
     }
-    core.debug(`Issue #${issue.number} has been updated: ${issueHasUpdate}`);
-    core.debug(
-      `Issue #${issue.number} has been commented on: ${issueHasComments}`
-    );
 
     if (!issueHasComments && !issueHasUpdate) {
-      core.debug(
+      core.info(
         `Closing ${issueType} because it was last updated on ${issue.updated_at}`
       );
       await this.closeIssue(issue);
     } else {
-      if (this.options.removeStaleWhenUpdated) {
-        await this.removeLabel(issue, staleLabel);
-      }
-      core.debug(`Ignoring stale ${issueType} because it was updated recently`);
+      core.info(
+        `Stale ${issueType} is not old enough to close yet (hasComments? ${issueHasComments}, hasUpdate? ${issueHasUpdate}`
+      );
     }
   }
 
   // checks to see if a given issue is still stale (has had activity on it)
-  private async isIssueStillStale(
+  private async hasCommentsSince(
     issue: Issue,
     sinceDate: string
   ): Promise<boolean> {
-    core.debug(
-      `Checking for comments on issue #${issue.number} since ${sinceDate} to see if it is still stale`
+    core.info(
+      `Checking for comments on issue #${issue.number} since ${sinceDate}`
     );
 
     if (!sinceDate) {
-      return true; // if no date was provided then the issue was marked stale a long time ago
+      return true;
     }
 
-    this.operationsLeft -= 1;
-
-    // find any comments since the stale label
+    // find any comments since the date
     const comments = await this.listIssueComments(issue.number, sinceDate);
 
-    // if there are any user comments returned, and they were not by this bot, the issue is not stale anymore
-    return (
-      comments.filter(
-        comment =>
-          comment.user.type === 'User' &&
-          comment.user.login !== github.context.actor
-      ).length > 0
+    const filteredComments = comments.filter(
+      comment =>
+        comment.user.type === 'User' &&
+        comment.user.login !== github.context.actor
     );
+
+    core.info(
+      `Comments not made by ${github.context.actor} or another bot: ${filteredComments.length}`
+    );
+
+    // if there are any user comments returned
+    return filteredComments.length > 0;
   }
 
   // grab comments for an issue since a given date
@@ -296,7 +298,7 @@ export class IssueProcessor {
     staleMessage: string,
     staleLabel: string
   ): Promise<void> {
-    core.debug(`Marking issue #${issue.number} - ${issue.title} as stale`);
+    core.info(`Marking issue #${issue.number} - ${issue.title} as stale`);
 
     this.staleIssues.push(issue);
 
@@ -323,7 +325,7 @@ export class IssueProcessor {
 
   // Close an issue based on staleness
   private async closeIssue(issue: Issue): Promise<void> {
-    core.debug(
+    core.info(
       `Closing issue #${issue.number} - ${issue.title} for being stale`
     );
 
@@ -345,7 +347,7 @@ export class IssueProcessor {
 
   // Remove a label from an issue
   private async removeLabel(issue: Issue, label: string): Promise<void> {
-    core.debug(
+    core.info(
       `Removing label ${label} from issue #${issue.number} - ${issue.title}`
     );
 
@@ -371,7 +373,7 @@ export class IssueProcessor {
     issue: Issue,
     label: string
   ): Promise<string | undefined> {
-    core.debug(`Checking for label ${label} on issue #${issue.number}`);
+    core.info(`Checking for label ${label} on issue #${issue.number}`);
 
     this.operationsLeft -= 1;