Voluntarily or not, Tangeman takes early leave from state revenue job

Longtime state employee Mike Barnhill took over the revenue job today on an acting basis, the governor’s office said in a statement Monday.

Dermot ColeDecember 3, 2019 Comment

Vital questions for state about go-slow approach on PFAS regulations

The latest information about sulfolane contamination and PFAS pollution are to be included in a Wednesday open house in North Pole at which the main subject deals with connecting to the expanded North Pole water system.

Dermot ColeDecember 2, 2019 Comments

Dunleavy forgot to mention that a court order blocks his anti-union campaign

What USA Today readers did not learn from the column is that a court order has placed an indefinite hold on the Dunleavy-Clarkson anti-union crusade, a disclosure that was withheld from the propaganda piece.

Dermot ColeNovember 26, 2019 Comments

New Seattle consulting company is subcontractor to firm on no-bid state contract

Commissioner of Administration Kelly Tshibaka takes me to task over my blog post Sunday about the work that a brand new Seattle company, which registered in Alaska in October, is doing for the state.

Dermot ColeNovember 25, 2019 Comments

Dunleavy says he heard what Alaskans had to say; what he heard was sound of recall

Gov. Mike Dunleavy submitted a short video to the meeting of local government leaders in Alaska, portraying himself as a guy with great hearing. It took him a long time to start listening.

Dermot ColeNovember 25, 2019 Comment

Six-month-old Seattle company serves as subcontractor on state HR consulting venture

It’s not clear how much the state is paying Tandem Motion, why it was chosen, apparently on a sole-source contract, or what the full scope of work is. I have made two requests to the department for a copy of the contract and received no reply.

Dermot ColeNovember 24, 2019 Comments

Dunleavy backs off plan to confiscate $470 million from local governments

When he communicates to right-wing organizations both in Alaska and Outside, Gov. Mike Dunleavy strikes a combative tone and blames the budget uproar he created this year on special interests in Alaska who “want government to be big.”

Dermot ColeNovember 23, 2019 Comments

With BP-Hilcorp sale, state needs commitment on pipeline removal obligations

One giant question Alaska needs to have answered regarding the BP-Hilcorp sale is whether the eventual dismantling of the trans-Alaska pipeline will now be governed by what we’ll call the Unocal plan, which is to avoid all responsibility for the task by selling out, unloading the obligation on the remaining owners.

Dermot ColeNovember 22, 2019 Comment

Billions in future costs for pipeline removal need to be examined with Hilcorp purchase

The Big 3 owners of the trans-Alaska pipeline told the Texas Supreme Court that a ruling allowing Unocal to unload its 1.3 percent share of the pipeline without paying for future removal costs, “strongly incentivizes the remaining owners to end TAPS operations to ensure that no one else can try to walk out on their DR&R obligation for free.”

Dermot ColeNovember 21, 2019 Comments

No ifs, ands, or buts: Dunleavy administration distorts oil tax initiative summary

Attorney General Kevin Clarkson and Lt. Gov. Kevin Meyer have signed off on a distorted summary of the oil tax initiative, claiming that the word “and” means “or.”

Dermot ColeNovember 20, 2019 Comment