Edward Martin, Jr: A Common-Sense Legislative Checklist Alaska Cannot Ignore 

By Edward Martin, Jr.

For years, Alaskans have been told that corruption, unequal treatment, and statutory non-enforcement are “complex,” “political,” or “out of our control.” They are not. The Alaska Constitution already provides the answers. What has been missing is the will to obey it. 

If the Legislature is serious about restoring public trust, the following common-sense reforms are not optional— they are constitutionally required: 

• Restore the People’s Grand Jury Power 
  The Constitution says the power of grand juries shall never be suspended. Citizens must be able to submit lawful presentments without executive or judicial gatekeepers deciding what the people are allowed to question. 

• Enforce Public Official Bonding Laws 
  When statutes require officials to be bonded, those bonds must exist before authority is exercised. No bond means no lawful assumption of risk, no indemnification, and no public protection. 

• End Judicial Secrecy and Self-Policing 
  Judicial independence does not mean immunity from transparency. Oversight bodies must allow public participation, publish meaningful findings, and prohibit conflicts of interest within the system. 

• Reassert Separation of Powers 
  No branch of government should investigate, excuse, or shield itself. Structural conflicts, especially between executive enforcement and judicial oversight, must be prohibited by law. 

• Fix Public Records Enforcement 
  Records belong to the people. Delays, blanket privilege claims, and constructive denials are not lawful governance. They are obstruction. The law must have teeth. 

• Clarify Fiduciary Duties Over Public Funds 
  Trustees and officers managing public assets must be held to enforceable fiduciary standards, backed by bonding and personal accountability. Public money is not discretionary power. 

• Stop Court Rules from Nullifying Rights 
  Procedure cannot be used to erase constitutional guarantees. Court rules must serve rights, not suspend them. 

• Protect Citizens and Whistleblowers 
  Alaskans who lawfully report wrongdoing must not face retaliation through licensing, permitting, or selective enforcement. Truth-telling should not require courage.

• Require Equal Tax Assessment in Unorganized Boroughs 
  Uniform taxation means uniform standards. If the State acts as the borough, it must meet the same assessment, appeal, and transparency rules it imposes elsewhere. 

This is not radical reform. It is constitutional maintenance. None of these proposals invent new rights. They restore existing ones. None target individuals. They correct systems. And none require rewriting the Constitution, only obeying it. 

The real question before the Legislature is simple: Will Alaska be governed by law or by convenience? 

That answer will not come from press releases or promises. It will come from whether these common-sense reforms are enacted or quietly ignored once again. 

Ed Martin, Jr. is a retired 50+ year IUOE, General Contractor and long-time Alaskan with a strong belief in the National and State Constitutions and the inherent rights of citizens. He devotes his retirement to investigating Constitutional violation(s) in hopes of protecting the eternal rights of liberty. “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” — 2 Corinthians 3:17.