Monthly Archives: July 2014

State finally putting some pressure on Xerox for botched Medicaid system

Alaska has begun to finally put some pressure on Xerox Corp. to live up to its contractual obligations to build an online Medicaid Management System that actually works. The state has said that it’s entering into “mediation” with Xerox over the botched rollout, one that has caused no end of problems for hundreds of medical professionals across the state, some of whom have said they’re on the verge of bankruptcy or shutting down because of the lack of payment from the state since the faulty system went on line.

The total contract was for $146 million, including the costs of continuing to run the system for a certain number of years. The system alone, according to news accounts, was $36 million, of which Xerox has been paid $12 million. Most of that money is being paid from federal funds.

The billing system was supposed to be completed in 2010. Continue reading →

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Verdict is in: More people insured under ObamaCare

On the Dan Fagan/Glen Biegel show on Friday, GOP Senate candidate Dan Sullivan said repeatedly that ObamaCare had resulted in a higher rate of uninsured in this country. However, the verdict is in and it’s clear that his claim is simply not true. It remains to be seen whether Sullivan is too partisan and too stuck on the narrative to be able to admit that he’s wrong. From Politico: 

A survey by the Commonwealth Fund found that 9.5 million fewer adults are uninsured now than at the beginning of the Obamacare enrollment season. The Urban Institute’s Health Reform Monitoring Survey found a similar drop, with 8 million adults gaining coverage. And Gallup-Healthways survey reported that the uninsured rate has fallen to 13.4 percent of adults, the lowest level since it began tracking health coverage in 2008… In recent months, other surveys in the Gallup series have consistently found the same downward trend, and a RAND survey in April estimated that the law extended health coverage to 9.3 million Americans.

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Tweet of the day: Mayoral candidate Coffey on the case in Government Hill

Mayoral candidate Dan Coffey is apparently working on Gov. Sean Parnell to stop the razing of the houses in Government Hill. If he can convince the governor, he’ll gain lots of street cred with the residents of Government Hill.

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Quote of the day: Keithley on Alaska’s oil patch

From a Brad Keithley Facebook post on where Alaska has fallen short on managing its oil patch:

There are success stories also where government owns the lands, but no disrespect intended, Alaska is not one of those and has done a horrible job at managing the lands. Basically we have lived off of the two large lighter oil discoveries at Prudhoe and Kuparuk (and a few satellites along the way) for decades and never had to do much else to manage the lands better. Now that those are producing at much lower levels, we don’t have a good strategy in place — as the owner of the lands — for further development. Given our position, the two best corollaries to look to are how the US has managed the Gulf of Mexico and Norway. The US has been successful in the GOM by only charging royalties and no severance taxes. The resulting low costs have encouraged investment and development, despite the higher cost and risk environment. Norway has gone about it differently by eliminating lease bonus payments, royalty and engaging in co-investment. As a result, even though it has imposed higher costs Norway actually has reduced risk and created alignment in a way that has enabled it to drive investment and activity in a way Alaska hasn’t….But of course …. no one wants to listen to that. The existing players on the Slope are satisfied with the current (largely non-competitive) arrangement where they set the pace of development and most of the Alaska players don’t have a clue (and don’t bother to take the time to learn about) alternative approaches, and as a result just rely on the current industry to continue to identify the terms for development.

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Mayoral candidate Coffey joins opposition to razing Government Hill properties

Anchorage mayoral candidate Dan Coffey has entered the fight to stop properties in the Government Hill neighborhood of Anchorage from being razed in preparation for a potential bridge that would span from the neighborhood. Coffey is adding his voice the voices of a handful of state Democratic officials and community activists, including Rep. Les Gara and Sen. Johnny Ellis, in calling for a halt of the demolition.

On Thursday, Coffey emailed Gov. Sean Parnell’s administration, urging them to hold off on the demolition until funding sources needed to build the bridge are secure. He plans to continue to communicate with the administration about the project.

“It makes no sense what so ever to tear down those properties when there is a housing crisis in the community,” Coffey said. He’s made affordable housing one of the big issues in his nascent campaign. Continue reading →

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Bipartisan sportsman bill dies in U.S. Senate, a.k.a. ‘Camp Gridlock’

A bipartisan bill that would have opened up more public lands for hunting and fishing got trapped in partisan muck on Thursday as Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid lost Republican support for the bill by not allowing it to be amended, which has become a pattern for Reid.

The Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act was sponsored by 26 Republicans and 20 Democrats and had the support of the National Rifle Association, Safari Club International, the American Sportfishing Association, Ducks Unlimited, the National Wildlife Federation, and Trout Unlimited.

Because Reid refused to allow amendments, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, one of the prime sponsors of the bill, voted to allow it be filibustered, which basically killed it. Continue reading →

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Begich raises $1.25 million in 2nd quarter, his biggest fundraising haul yet

U.S. Sen. Mark Begich had his personal best fundraising quarter, raising more than $1.25 million from April until the end of June. According to his campaign, 700 new Alaska donors gave this cycle, bringing the total Alaskan donor-count to more than 5,000, the campaign said. Official FEC reports aren’t due until July 15. The last two quarters, Begich was outraised by GOP contender, Dan Sullivan. In the last quarter, Begich brought in $1.05 million and had $2.8 million in the bank, while Sullivan raised $1.3 million and had just under $2 million on hand. No word yet on what the other candidates have raised, nor how much Begich has on hand.

Here’s the release from Begich’s campaign: Continue reading →

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Put Alaska First goes after Sullivan again for HB 77

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: If the only thing Alaskans were voting on in the Senate race were television ads, Democrats and Mark Begich would win hands down. Below is the latest attack ad against GOP Senate candidate Dan Sullivan from Put Alaska First, the pro-Begich super-PAC, featuring Dillingham fisherman and lawyer Joe Faith. Once again, the ad goes after Sullivan for his role in HB 77, a controversial bill that gave unprecedented powers to the DNR commissioner to issue permits. At the time of its drafting, Sullivan was the DNR commissioner. Those who helped draft the bill, including Sullivan, said that it cut through red-tape that was impeding development. The public came out in droves to testify against it and the bill died in the Senate. This is the fourth ad Put Alaska First has made featuring HB 77. The first featured a moose hunter—the claims of which were a ‘stretch’—and the second featured well-known former Democratic lawmaker Sam Cotten. Beth Northlund, the executive director of Anchorage Park Foundation, played a lead role in the third ad. The issue is custom-made for good attack ads. If Sullivan or any anti-Begich super-PAC has found a similiar issue to use against Begich, they’re keeping it a secret.

 

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Hawker under fire from opponent over Anchorage LIO furniture vote

The Alaska Legislative Council on Wednesday voted to authorize $500,000 to furnish the new Anchorage Legislative Office building. The expenditure, proposed by Committee Chair Rep. Mike Hawker, passed the committee 10-2. Reps. Bill Stoltze and Max Gruenberg voted against the measure.

Hawker came under fire for his vote by his Democratic opponent Sam Combs, who called it an “appalling example of fiscal mismanagement.”

“How on earth can he justify spending a half million on furniture–a 500% increase–while the state is in deficit spending and Anchorage teachers are being laid off,” Combs, an architect, said. Continue reading →

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Begich cosponsors anti-Hobby Lobby bill

U.S. Sen. Mark Begich co-sponsored a bill that takes a direct shot at the Supreme Court’s recent decision to allow corporations such as Hobby Lobby, which brought the case, to opt out of the ObamaCare birth control mandate for religious reasons.

Begich’s bill makes it illegal for any company to deny its workers specific health benefits, including birth control, as required to be covered by federal law.

“Because of the Hobby Lobby case, more than 60,000 Alaska women could be denied access to birth control and reproductive care,” Begich said. “This bill will make sure that these types of health care decisions stay between a woman and her doctor – not her boss.” Continue reading →

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Loose Lips: Drop outs. A girl and her chainsaw. Who’s been sleeping at Treadwell’s house?

18955141_mA cautionary tale for federal primary contenders, courtesy of Politico: “Eric Cantor’s stunning primary defeat is leaving his campaign in a financial bind…Under federal law, Cantor would also have to repay any funds meant for the general election spent during his unsuccessful primary campaign battle against fellow Republican Dave Brat. Since he lost and has no general election in November, Cantor would be required to return those general-election contributions to the donors.”

In federal elections, donors are allowed to give up to $5200 to a candidate: $2600 for the primary and $2600 for the general. GOP candidate Dan Sullivan has quite a few $5200 donations, but his are said to be segregated. Just in case he doesn’t win, let’s hope Treadwell’s $5200 donations are likewise segregated. BTW: State candidates aren’t going to have this problem. Alaska law doesn’t have the primary-general donation distinction. Donors can only give candidates $500 per calendar year. Continue reading →

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New ad from GOP Senate candidate Sullivan focuses on guns and hunting

Here’s the latest ad from GOP Senate candidate Dan Sullivan. It’s not very subtle, but probably effective in helping to establish his Second Amendment creds, which have been under fire recently over the “Stand Your Ground” bill that was passed last legislative session. The woman featured is Elaina Spraker, an icon in the largely male-dominated hunting world. She’s married to former Board of Game member Ted Spraker, a well-known, outspoken hunting rights advocate in the Kenai.

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Lt. gov. candidate Bob Williams goes up on air

The ad below from Wasilla teacher and lieutenant governor candidate Bob Williams will begin airing statewide on KTUU Channel 2 beginning Wednesday. Williams and Alaska state Sen. Hollis French are both running for the seat in the Democratic primary. Whoever wins will join gubernatorial candidate Byron Mallott to run in the general. Williams, a first time candidate, doesn’t have the name recognition that French does, but he’s worked tirelessly to try to change that. The ad, much like the candidate, has a homegrown, compellingly earnest quality. To my knowledge, it’s the first one released by a lieutenant governor candidate.

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Little talked about governor hopeful J.R. Myers also has music video

A few weeks ago, I wrote a piece about candidates making music videos for their campaigns. I said that as far as I knew, Forrest Dunbar, the Democrat running for Rep. Don Young’s seat, was the first candidate of this season to use a music video as a campaign tool. I was wrong. Alaska Constitution Party candidate J.R. Myers, a counselor from Haines, was the first, as he reminded me in a comment on the music video post. Neither Myers nor his party get a lot of media attention, as third party candidates tend not to. But he’s interesting, in a greeny, lefty, tea partesque, pro-development kind of way. He’s a pro-life Christian with a deep environmental streak, and aside from Gov. Sean Parnell, Myers is the only gubernatorial candidate that I know of who is against repealing the oil tax legislation. “Alaska needs to present a stable and disciplined fiscal environment,” he said recently.  “We have had enough economic chaos and reckless spending. We need to stabilize the tax structure.” Go figure. And then there’s this video: 

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