State claims no one else in Alaska would take $441,000 no-bid Penney deal

Tom Boutin, the head of AIDEA, said $8,000 a month for four years is such a piddling amount that no one else in Alaska would accept that in a no-bid state contract. There is no reason to believe that claim.

Dermot ColeFebruary 5, 2020 Comments

State uses deception to claim public support for attack on apprenticeships

Somebody in the state labor department, headed by Commissioner Tamika Ledbetter, needs to be held accountable for this deception—about 175 public comments submitted in opposition to proposed state regs were falsely labeled as “unclear.”

Dermot ColeFebruary 4, 2020 Comments

Dunleavy administration has no excuses for dodging Penney contract questions

If Gov. Mike Dunleavy ever wants to get past the questions about why Bob Penney’s grandson received a four-year deal worth up to $441,000, the first step is to have his staff start answering and stop stonewalling.

Dermot ColeFebruary 3, 2020 Comments

Alaska lawyers could be losing Clarkson's anti-union crusade at half the price

I suspect that Attorney General Kevin Clarkson wants to elevate his personal reputation among the nation’s right-wing legal establishment and earn points with organizations that might help fund his crusade, join it in the years ahead or even take it over. Alaska shouldn’t be paying the bill.

Dermot ColeFebruary 3, 2020 Comment

State paid $81,277 to move administration commissioner and family to Alaska

His office may be officially in Juneau, but Lt. Gov. Kevin Meyer is among the state’s frequent-flying commuters from Anchorage. Meyer charged nearly $15,000 for transportation and meals for trips to Juneau in 2019.

Dermot ColeFebruary 1, 2020 Comments

State officials won't say who ordered $441,000 contract with grandson of Dunleavy donor

The stonewalling on the Clark Penney no-bid contract from the Dunleavy administration continues. Legislators are asking the right questions, however.

Dermot ColeJanuary 31, 2020 Comments

Tammie Wilson's new state job and the bureaucratic shell game

Tammie Wilson’s new job, created by revising an existing opening, will be part of a proposed new unit that doesn’t exist yet, raising constitutional questions about the ban on ex-legislators moving immediately into the executive branch.

Dermot ColeJanuary 30, 2020 Comments

Alaska Supreme Court has power to act quickly on Dunleavy recall

The recall appeal to the Alaska Supreme Court doesn’t have to be a drawn-out process, though the attorney general and the Dunleavy support group will try to make it so.

Dermot ColeJanuary 29, 2020 Comments

Alaska needs a governor, not a General or a Wizard

Gov. Mike Dunleavy did not say how much the new Alaska General would cost or why the lieutenants of the Dunleavy administration are not already identifying careless and fraudulent spending. No-bid contracts with relatives of donors come to mind.

Dermot ColeJanuary 28, 2020 Comments

Dunleavy's suggestion for a lottery shows he's not serious about a fiscal plan

If the state pays the dividend Gov. Mike Dunleavy wants, we’ll see a deficit of close to $2 billion. Something has to give. And Dunleavy is happy to be a bystander. That was the message from his State of the State speech.

Dermot ColeJanuary 27, 2020 Comments