Here’s a comment from Andy, who’s wondering why Fairbanks is so intent on LNG when there’s a gargantuan coal deposit right down the road. I know next to nothing about this, and don’t have time today to dig into it. Anybody have thoughts?

Energy is energy, it comes in all sorts of forms. The easiest and cheapest is low cost electricity, which can run everything, including vehicles…The most economical electrical power is obtained from nuclear, which we all know is a no starter. The next in line is coal. We have clean coal technology that produces EPA-approved emissions. Given the fact that Alaska is blessed with a gargantuan amount of low sulfur, high BTU coal, it is a shame that the interior cannot benefit from this. The Healy plant, capable of 175 megawatts ( I think), would produce electricity to power 175,000 homes. That’s a big chunk of Fairbanks.

Take the big bucks going to LNG, and you could get Healy up and running, and build another plant as well. Tie these two plants to a common statewide grid and voila, problem solved. Alaskan coal would be a stable, predictable fuel cost, and provide cheap electricity for generations. Why we continue to pump money into oddball energy schemes is bizarre.

Walker et al need to get serious about an energy plan and stop pussyfooting around with these fantasies. Clean coal technology for those on the grid, and LNG for the bush via barges, makes sense. The plethora of electrical fiefdoms needs to be addressed as well. An energy policy may help that problem as well, and don’t forget to drop the crazy renewable mandate.

• Gov. Bill Walker told the Greater Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce yesterday that he isn’t expecting oil to rebound and that fact will be reflected in budgets going forward, according to the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner.

• In really bad news, Bloomberg announced that Moody’s Investor Service has downgraded Alaska’s outlook credit rating to negative since the price of crude is so strongly attached to Alaska’s revenue.

• The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports that the AIDEA board is considering an extension for the challenged LNG trucking project, which has people wondering if it’s going to happen at all.

• The Anchorage Assembly finished the coup that it began last week! Alaska Commons reports that Patrick Flynn was voted out as chair and was replaced by Dick Traini with the ever-enviable Elvi Gray-Jackson as vice chair.

• In other Anchorage Assembly news, Suzanna Caldwell covered last night’s meeting where Assemblywoman Amy Demboski’s proposed ban on commercial marijuana was killed 9-2, which likely really bummed the Mat-Su Valley out.

• The end of the 113th Congress is official. While many people have remarked on this event with rather-err- colorful words, the Washington Post gathered quotes from senators who were on their way out the door. One of them, Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine from Virginia, even quoted Wittgenstein.

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Gov. Bill Walker spoke to the Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday, where according to Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reporter Matt Buxton, he said this:

Can you be specific on energy? Walker: Can you give me two weeks? … We’re going to bring it down very fast, this winter. #akleg #akgov

— Matt Buxton (@FDNMPolitics) December 16, 2014

If there is one bright spot in the tumbling price of oil, it’s that low oil prices will bring down the cost of heating fuel in Fairbanks. So, in this area at least, Walker doesn’t really have to do much.

However, he will have to do a lot if he’s serious about this: Continue reading →

Speaking of AIDEA, the board on Tuesday approved a $17.65 million dividend to the state, which will go into the general fund. Since its inception, the state agency, charged with providing project financing, has returned $373.5 million to the state in dividends. Also, according to an AIDEA board member, the agency plans to reduce its budget by 10 percent this coming year.

Here’s the press release:

The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) Board on Tuesday approved a dividend of $17,650,000 to the state general fund for Fiscal Year 2016. The dividend represents 50% of AIDEA’s FY2014 Revolving Fund net income for dividend computation purposes of $35.3 million.

“We are pleased to announce this dividend to the State of Alaska,” said AIDEA Board Chairman Dana Pruhs. “Our dividend is another great example of AIDEA’s valuable contribution to Alaska’s economy.”

Since the dividend program’s inception, AIDEA has declared more than $373.5 million to the state, including the $17.6 million approved Tuesday.

The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority is a public corporation of the state. AIDEA’s purpose is to promote, develop and advance the general prosperity and economic welfare of the people of Alaska.

The idea of building the 200 mile road that would connect the Ambler mining district to the Dalton Highway has been around since the 1960s. And like many projects in the state, the idea made yet another appearance when oil prices began to spike. The road would provide access to copper, zinc, lead and silver deposits that stretch for about 75 miles between the Brooks Range and the upper Kobuk River.

Gov. Bill Walker recently cut out the $8 or so million that had been allocated to AIDEA, which took over the project from DOT, to continue with the environmental impact statement application. So far, the state agency has spent about $3 million on studies, engineering and community outreach. It has about $5 million left. All told, it will need about $10 million to pay the third-party contractor to finish the EIS application, which is expected to be completed yet this year. It’s important to note, however, that as envisioned, the road, which would cost as much as $300 million, is expected to be paid for by the mining industry, much like the road leading to the Red Dog Mine. The upkeep will be paid for by mining-industry tolls.

AIDEA spokesperson Karsten Rodvik wanted to emphasize that AIDEA is looking forward to working with the governor and is awaiting his direction.

Anyway, that’s what I learned today, and that there’s a rabbit hole in the middle of that road, which I fell down today when I was trying to fact check Lynn Willis’ comment about the project, which also got him into the LNG trucking project, which I didn’t even touch. This is what Willis had to say about the two: Continue reading →

Here’s President Obama announcing his decision to invoke executive action to make Bristol Bay off limits to oil and gas leasing. It’s being hailed as a big victory by environmentalists and local groups. Sen. Mark Begich also weighed in: “I stand with the majority of Alaskans who agree that protecting Bristol Bay’s salmon fishery is a top priority.” To me the action seemed largely symbolic. No one seems to have any immediate plans to develop oil and gas in the area. It does, however, call to attention the value of the world-class fishery in Bristol Bay.

• Gov. Bill Walker’s dramatic spending cuts to the capital budget were yesterday’s story du jour. Read about those cuts here, here, and here. And keep in mind that those cuts to the capital budget were akin to sweeping off chicken feed compared to what’s coming in the operating budget.

• Jeb Bush announced on Facebook that he is “actively” exploring a 2016 presidential bid. The Hill has the FB message, and writes about why he shouldn’t be discounted as a serious presidential candidate, even if he’s from Florida.

• A two-day power meeting with the stakeholders to discuss Ambler Road begins today in Fairbanks. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner has the meeting’s details, back story, and the possible future of the 200-mile road. One thing is certain, the Juneau Empire reports that a study conducted by the Wilderness Society, the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Park Service found little impact of Ambler Road on the caribou population.

• Texas might be known for hearting God, high-school football and BBQ (not necessarily in that order), but their love for fracking seems to Politico as a relationship in decline.

• Fairbanks  Daily News-Miner reports that Fort Greely will be receiving $50 million in federal funds for their ground-based missile defense system.

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Some people, it seems, are always getting invited to balls. I look on Facebook, at yet another woman dressed in sequins, and another man in a tux, and I think, what do they have that I don’t? (A pleasant personality? Big bucks?) Anyway, there are some balls coming up—inaugural balls—that we all might be able to attend. They are balls for the people, of the people. While I haven’t seen any official announcements, I’ve heard that Lindsey Hobson and Mandy Mallott, daughters of the governor and lite governor respectively, will be co-chairing the inaugural committee. The first ball is scheduled to be held in the governor’s hometown, Valdez, on January 3. The other dates appear to be in Juneau on January 10, Fairbanks on January 24, and Anchorage on January 31. More details as I get them.

Karly Meyer, daughter of Senate president Kevin Meyer, graduated from college this spring and served as the volunteer coordinator for the Parnell for Governor Campaign. She has now joined PS Strategies, a local PR/advertising firm, which was founded and is owned by Mary Ann Pruitt, wife of Rep. Lance Pruitt, and radio talk show host David Stieren.

The Department of Health and Social Services announced the appointments of Dr. Jay Butler and John Sherwood to the department’s senior management team. Dr. Butler will serve the dual roles of Chief Medical Officer and Director of the Division of Public Health. He most recently worked at ANTHC. Sherwood is a 25 year DHSS employee and will now be a deputy commissioner. The press release also incorrectly indicated that the appointments were subject to legislative confirmation. They aren’t.

The two key people working to improve the Aetna insurance contract for state workers and retirees was DOA Deputy Commissioner Mike Barnhill and the state’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Ward Hurlburt. Both have been released from state service by the Walker administration. So, who knows what’s going on, what the issues are and who, if anyone, is handling the contract? Continue reading →

Facing a fiscal crisis due to the plunge in oil prices, Gov. Bill Walker submitted a draft of the stripped down capital budget, which is more than $113 less than what former Gov. Sean Parnell proposed. Among the projects that were cut are the Susitna-Watana Dam, the Ambler Mine Road Project, the Knik Arm Bridge Crossing, among others.

The budget is very much a work in progress. The administration said it wants the public to weigh in on the process, and will be setting up a system where they can share ideas. It’s a torturous project, and the capital budget is the easy part. Where things are going to get particularly tricky is the operating budget.

Here are screen grabs of Parnell’s and Walker’s capital budgets based on departments, which sets the situation in relief: Continue reading →

From a pamphlet entitled “Question and Answers on Female Slaves and their Freedom” that was handed out by ISIL to the residents of n Mosul, the Iraqi city now under control of ISIL. Thousands of “non-believers” have been taken as slaves in the Middle East by the militant Islamic group:

If she was a virgin, he (the owner) can have intercourse with her immediately after the ownership is fulfilled. If she was not a virgin, her uterus must be purified (wait for her period to be sure she is not pregnant.)…It is permissible to have intercourse with the female slave who hasn’t reached puberty if she is fit for intercourse. However, if she is not fit for intercourse, he (the owner ) can only enjoy her without intercourse.

Read one translation here.

Senate Majority committee assignments for the upcoming 114th Congress were released today. The assignments are subject to ratification by the Republican Conference as well as the full Senate. New committee chairs will be selected by a vote of the members of each respective panel and then ratified by the Republican Conference. According to Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s office, Murkowski and Sen.-elect Dan Sullivan coordinated their efforts.

“The senators worked together to push for the range of committee assignments they felt would best serve Alaska, taking into consideration Senator Murkowski’s seniority on her current committees,” Murkowski’s spokesperson Matt Felling said.

Here are the committee assignments for Murkowski and Sullivan:

Sen.-elect Dan Sullivan:

• Commerce, Science and Transportation
• Environment and Public Works
• Veterans’ Affairs
• Armed Services

Sen. Lisa Murkowski:

• Appropriations
• Energy and Natural Resources
• Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
• Indian Affairs

• Gov. Bill Walker will be submitting a new capital budget today at 1 p.m., which will include about $100 million of capital cuts from the budget that former Gov. Sean Parnell submitted. It’s not Walker’s final budget, but a start.

• Ready your smelling salts; The Telegraph reports that OPEC is prepared to lower oil prices to $40 a barrel to further destroy Russian and U.S. shale competition while continuing to pump oil as business as usual. Kind of makes Bloomberg’s announcement of $55 a barrel for this week feel luxurious.

• In Alaska Space Industry News, Lockheed Martin won the bid to reconfigure the Kodiak Launch Complex to launch bigger rockets, per the AP, which reports that the facility is sitting on a $25 million state appropriation. In 2012, the Alaska Aerospace Corp. told the Legislature that it needs $100 million in addition to the $25 million to launch those larger rockets.

• Alaska Commons has the details on Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission’s (AOGCC) new rules for fracking in the Last Frontier.

• Politico Magazine wonders if cheap oil will be the final nail in Keystone’s coffin.

• Per CNN: “Uber has crashed into its latest public relations disaster after attempting to charge passengers inflated prices to leave central Sydney as a hostage crisis unfolded in the city.” After social media caught wind, the company began to offer free and reduced fares.

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Rep. Don Young has never been Alaska’s arch conservative, tea party favorite. He’s too supportive of labor, too supportive of congressional leadership, and despite what some in Alaska might think of him, he doesn’t play the fire-breathing Republican game very well. And his vote for the recent spending bill—despite all the goodies for Alaska in it–has again, and already, set him up as a target amongst some right-leaning Alaskans.

The $1 trillion-plus funding bill was passed late Thursday. It didn’t strip funding for Homeland Security, nor for ObamaCare, as some on the right had called for. However, it avoided a government shutdown, and did cut agency funding some, but not enough for fiscal hawks.

In a release defending his vote, Young said that he didn’t approve of such large spending bills, as opposed to individual appropriations. But it was the only choice Congress had given Democratic control of the Senate. Too, he said, the bill “takes a number of serious steps to stand up for fiscal responsibility, reduce the size of the federal government, defend the homeland and protect our men and women in uniform, and target much needed reforms for growing federal agencies like the EPA and IRS,” (See Young’s full press release below, along with details of funding for various programs in the bill.)

Mike Coons, the former head of the Conservative Patriots Group, Continue reading →

• The Dispatch reports that Gov. Bill Walker says he will keep his campaign promise by asking departments to cut 5 percent from their budgets.

• Does the Kodiak Launch Complex have any intention of going away? Nope.  It wants to get bigger. The AP is reporting that the Alaska Aerospace Corp. is expected to announce expansion plans. Do those plans include asking the state for the $100 or so million it said it would need in 2012 for such an expansion?

• Up in Fairbanks, Matt Buxton was on hand to cover the Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly where two issues that seem to contradict themselves passed. First, they endorsed the state air pollution measure that will tighten air pollution regulations and then they voted for permanent registration for older vehicles and trailers.

• The New York Times reports that the House passed the $1.1 trillion spending bill yesterday and has been moved to the Senate where it is scheduled to be voted on today so the country doesn’t face another shut-down. The vote was tight due mostly to considerable bipartisan anger over a provision to roll back financial regulations on Big Banks.

• OPEC is dead, so sayeth the Telegraph.

• Begich’s complete farewell speech, uninterrupted.

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Alaska memories are short. So for those who weren’t around, let me tell you all about the love caucus. Actually, scratch. That would take too long. This is what you need to know: it involved soon-to-be House Majority Leader Charisse Millett, and then Rep. Kyle Johansen, both of whom fell on their swivel sticks for love and got kicked out of the majority. Was the VP commiserating this week? Was Millett recruiting? Where’d she get that necklace? Was Biden a good Eskimo kisser? Maybe we can all ask her when she gets back from one of several of her recent junkets.

As I mentioned in my last column, that junket is in D.C., where a group of legislators and staffers are visiting for the National Council of State Legislators forum. Registration fees are between $425 and $500 per person and that doesn’t include airfare, hotel or meals. That junket followed another junket in Alabama. Outgoing Rep. Eric Feige, who was beat in the primary, hopped on that one, because what’s another free trip among friends? Maybe someone in power, like, I don’t know, a governor, should call for an end to all non-essential travel. And maybe for morale, mandate Eskimo kissing for those in opposite parties while he’s at it.

The governor isn’t traveling far for a dinner with Hollywood. Continue reading →