The Alaska Support Industry Alliance, which represents most of the major oil service and related contract companies in Alaska, is polling its membership to find out what they think of the tax that Sen. Bill Wielechowski inserted into the governor’s carbon credit bill, House Bill 50.
The bill seems likely to pass the Democrat-controlled Senate, which is a body where there are actually more Republicans than Democrats, but where all but three Republicans have given over the power to the Democrats. Taxes are the result.
“Please take one minute to complete our survey and let us know if your company is an S Corp and if you oppose the attempt by some legislators to circumvent the IRS Tax Code and impose the corporate tax rate of 9.4% on some S corps in Alaska. (This is meant to target Hilcorp but could have broader scope),” the Alliance wrote to its members.
House Bill 50, the carbon credit bill, was originally, “An Act relating to carbon storage on state land; relating to the powers and duties of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission; relating to carbon storage exploration licenses; relating to carbon storage leases; relating to carbon storage operator permits; relating to enhanced oil or gas recovery; relating to long-term monitoring and maintenance of storage facilities; relating to carbon oxide sequestration tax credits; relating to the duties of the Department of Natural Resources; relating to carbon dioxide pipelines; and providing for an effective date.”
In plain language, the bill creates a framework for the Department of Natural Resources to lease State of Alaska lands for carbon storage projects, and for the Alaska Division of Oil and Gas to permit and regulate carbon storage facilities in Alaska.
Wielechowski inserted language from his earlier failed attempt in the past, SB 114 of 2022-23, which was also a tax aimed at Hilcorp.
The proposed tax could be expanded to include all private S corp. companies in a new 9.4% tax.
Critics warn that such a tax on Hilcorp, which took over operations on the North Slope when BP pulled out of Alaska, could dry up the company’s investments in the state, and the spin-off from that could leave many smaller companies without work.
A hearing in Senate Finance was set for Tuesday morning, then moved to Tuesday (May 7) afternoon at 1:30 p.m.
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Alaska’s state taxes on C Corporations are among the highest in the nation, according to the Tax Foundation. “New Jersey levies the highest top statutory corporate tax rate at 11.5 percent, followed by Minnesota (9.8 percent) and Illinois (9.50 percent). Alaska and Pennsylvania levy top statutory corporate tax rates of 9.40 percent and 8.99 percent, respectively,” the foundation says.
Although the bill is likely to pass the Senate, due to the liberal makeup of the members, Must Read Alaska has learned that Gov. Mike Dunleavy may veto his own bill if it arrives on his desk with the Hilcorp tax.
After an Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation trustee’s emails were leaked to the Alaska Landmine political blog, the corporation’s Board of Trustees scheduled a virtual special meeting at 8 a.m. on Wednesday, May 8, to discuss the security of APFC’s records systems and document management procedures for confidential information. It’s clear the corporation is unhappy that the documents have made it into the public sphere, because it raises questions about what other documents could be leaked.
Although the meeting is public, the trustees may take the entire topic into a closed-door session to discuss “vulnerabilities of procedures and systems that could cause immediate harm to the Fund.”
Last week, the Landmine revealed a series of emails between Board of Trustee Vice Chair Gabrielle “Ellie” Rubenstein and staff members that raised concerns about whether she was stepping beyond her role as a board member and getting involved in directing the day-to-day operational and investment decisions of the staff of Alaska’s sovereign wealth fund, which was established by voters of Alaska in 1976.
Rubenstein was appointed by Gov. Mike Dunleavy in 2022 and has a term of service until 2026. Among concerns in the emails revealed is that she said in one of them that Board Chairman Ethan Schutt was not going to be reappointed by Dunleavy. Such a move would put her in a good position to be elected as board chair, a powerful position for an $80 billion fund.
Because of her strong connections to the Carlyle Group, which was founded by her father, David Rubenstein, and because she runs her own global private equity firm, Manna Tree Partners, which has a value of some $563 million, some have expressed concern that Rubenstein and her father may may be trying to direct investments to companies that align with their family interests. Emails revealed that members of the staff are concerned about her pushing staff to have more meetings with Carlyle.
On Thursday, the Permanent Fund issued a statement about the concerns, saying the fund “acknowledges recent media reports concerning internal communications regarding potential conflicts of interest. We take these concerns seriously and were addressing the issue through established protocols prior to coverage by the media.”
But this aspect of the conflict-of-interest concern is not on the agenda for Wednesday’s meeting. Only the security of documents is on the agenda.
In response to the leaked document report, Ellie Rubenstein issued a statement saying she follows all ethics rules and disclosure requirements:
“Serving on the Board of Trustees for the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation is a great honor. This position has allowed me to serve my home state by bringing private sector investment expertise and perspectives to the Permanent Fund Corporation. Introducing and connecting Permanent Fund Staff to investment firms so that they can explore opportunities is an appropriate and valuable role and is common practice among state pension boards, endowments, and sovereign wealth funds. In this role, I have always followed the Permanent Fund Board’s ethics rules and disclosure requirements, and I was unaware of these concerns about my service on the Board. That someone leaked internal messages containing confidential information to the media is disturbing; it is a breach of policy and trust, and it distracts from the important work the Permanent Fund Trustees and Staff are doing for the State of Alaska.”
In 2007, a conflict-of-interest matter involving then-board Chairman Carl Brady was addressed in a memo from then-Assistant Attorney General Judy Bockman, who stated, “Each trustee must identify actual and potential conflicts orally at the board’s public meetings in advance of participating in deliberations or taking any official action on a matter. Violations of the Ethics Act may occur when a public officer takes official action that may affect the officer’s own personal or financial interests or those of an immediate family member. The definition of ‘official action’ means more than ‘vote.’ Under the recently passed amendments to the Ethics Act, the new definition reads: ‘[A]dvice, participation, or assistance, including, for example, a recommendation, decision, approval, disapproval, vote, or other similar action, including inaction.”
Which will it be: One-party rule in Anchorage, or a balance of power?
The Anchorage mayoral race is down to the final seven days. Some voters are reporting to Must Read Alaska that they have not yet received their ballots in the mail. The Anchorage Assembly has the ballots printed and mailed from Washington State; they were reportedly in the mail from Washington on April 30.
(If you have not received your ballot and are a registered voter in Anchorage, leave a message on this article in the comment section below. Must Read Alaska is seeking to determine the extent of this problem.)
The runoff election ends May 14 — that is the deadline to have your ballot postmarked, in a drop box in Anchorage, or voted in person at one of the in-person voting locations noted below.
When your ballot does arrive, it’s a quick decision: Mayor Dave Bronson or former Assembly Chairwoman Suzanne LaFrance.
Bronson is supported by the business community and Republicans, although the Alaska Republican Party has not endorsed in this race.
LaFrance is supported by the AFL-CIO, NEA-Alaska, the Alaska Center [for the Environment], the Alaska Democratic Party and the dark-money 907 Initiative. Also, she is supported by Assembly Chairman Chris Constant and the leftists who control the Anchorage Assembly. The two finalist candidates were 473 votes apart in the April 2 election for mayor, when 10 names were on the ballot.
Anchorage runs mail-in elections but you can also vote the old-school way, by showing up in person. Election centers open Tuesday, May 7. If your ballot doesn’t arrive in the mail, voting in person is your only reasonable option. Although you have until 5 p.m. May 7 to request your ballot be mailed to a temporary address (if you happen to be out of town), it’s not certain you’ll receive your ballot in time.
The Application to vote at a temporary address will be posted on the Voter Information pagearound December 1 of each year. Or call the Voter Hotline at 907-243-VOTE (8683) for more information.
Locate a secure drop box for your ballot, if you don’t wish to mail yours in via the U.S. Post Office. The runoff election has nine drop boxes far fewer drop boxes than the 15 drop boxes that the regular election had:
U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin led the entire Senate Republican conference in calling on President Joe Biden to withdraw his support for two international agreements that are pending approval at this month’s World Health Assembly. The agreements grant vast authority to the World Health Organization over health decisions, something that constitutionalists are concerned could weaken United States sovereignty.
Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan and Sen. Lisa Murkowski both signed the letter, as did all Republican senators. While the rest of the senators’ names were in alphabetical order, Sen. Murkowski and Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, the most liberal Republicans in the Senate, were tacked on after Sen. Todd Young’s name, perhaps an indication of a reluctance on their part to challenge Biden.
The letter highlights the WHO’s abysmal Covid-19 response and argues that the president should focus on badly needed reforms rather than plowing ahead with international treaties and regulations that would substantially increase WHO authority, shred intellectual property rights, and infringe freedom of speech.
“Some of the over 300 proposals for amendments made by member states would substantially increase the WHO’s health emergency powers and constitute intolerable infringements upon U.S. sovereignty,” the letter said.
The failure of the WHO’s pandemic response was“as total as it was predictable and did lasting harm to our country,” the letter said, adding that senators “are deeply concerned that your [the Biden] administration continues to support these initiatives and strongly urge you [President Biden] to change course.”
If Biden ignores the senators’ warning to back off from the agreement, “we state in the strongest possible terms that we consider any such agreement to be a treaty requiring the concurrence of two-thirds of the Senate under Article II Section 2 of the Constitution.”
The pandemic agreement being negotiated by 194 member states of the WHO has at least three general aspects, including creating a “more equitable global response” to pandemics, enhancing cooperation between countries, and strengthening national health systems.
The Biden Administration supports agreement conceptually, and has been active in negotiations. WHO member states scheduled a vote on the final version of the agreement during the World Health Assembly meeting, which starts on May 27 in Geneva, Switzerland.
Dr. Ashley Bloomfield of New Zealand, who heads up the working group on the proposed agreement, said, “The work to bolster our global defenses against public health emergencies and risks, through agreeing a stronger set of International Health Regulations, reflects both the risks our highly interconnected world faces today, and the recognition and readiness of countries to ensure their citizens are better protected.”
Working Group Co-Chair Dr. Abdullah Assiri said the proposed amendments to the International Health Regulations are readily implementable and recognize the importance of equity in ensuring effective global response.
“The COVID-19 pandemic showed the world that viruses of pandemic potential do not respect national borders,” Assiri said. “Amending the International Health Regulations reflects the critical need to bolster our collective defenses against current and future public health risks so people’s health, societies and economies can be better protected, all whilst firmly respecting and adhering to the principle of national sovereignty,” he said.
Anchorage Police have made an arrest in connection with the vandalism of Bronson for Mayor campaign signs this year.
On April 25, detectives charged 27-year-old Amanda M. Pineda with Criminal Mischief III, Improper use of Plates, and Filing a False Police Report. Pineda has been given a court date of May 17, and is out of jail on supervised release. Charges include a Class C Felony.
On March 12, Anchorage Police Department received a report that approximately 30 “Bronson for Mayor” campaign signs had been vandalized with words associated with anti-Israel, pro-Hamas sentiments such as “Genocide” and “Free Palestine.” Through the subsequent investigation conducted by detectives, it was apparent a citizen had not only witnessed some of the vandalism, but had captured a photo of a Toyota RAV4 being driven by the suspect; the license plate was also recorded.
At some point after the vandalism had taken place, and after the license plate was revealed on social media and on Must Read Alaska, the owner of the suspect plate reported that license plate as stolen to APD.
It was later discovered the plate had not been stolen. The plate, which was registered to a Dodge owned by the suspect, had actually been removed from the Dodge and placed onto the RAV4 which was also owned by the Pineda. An old out-of-state license plate was then mounted onto the Dodge.
Over 50% of the vandalized signs were sprayed with anti-Israel, pro-Hamas words, such as “Genocide” and “Free Palestine.” Mayor Bronson is a strong supporter of the right of Israel to exist peacefully.
Other signs label Bronson as the “worst” mayor and with associated vulgarities.
Pineda has a social media history that indicates she has a leftist political point of view. Her social media history has since been scrubbed.
Must Read Alaska had the name of Pineda in March, but did not publish it then, as she was only a person of interest.
In March, the Bronson campaign said of the vandalism, “These acts of destruction not only damage private property, but undermine the democratic values that Anchorage voters expect and deserve. The vandalism, which targeted signs across Anchorage and made multiple pro-Hamas comments, is not just an attack on Dave Bronson’s campaign but an affront to the principles of free speech and fair play essential to any election. At a time when political discourse can become heated, all parties and their supporters must recommit to conducting themselves with respect and focusing on issues important to citizens.”
The Anchorage Police never notified the Bronson campaign that the suspected perpetrator had been arrested.
Rep. Mary Peltola has more in common with pro-Hamas agitators across the country than Alaskans may know. Like Joe Biden, her campaign for reelection gets contributions from some of the same people who are funding these campus protest groups.
In the complex world of nonprofit foundation and political funding, it’s hard to always see the connection. But it breaks down to a triangulation of interests:
“Donor A donates to Foundation B, which supports a political agenda, and Donor A also donates to Candidate C, as well as Political Action Committee D, which also donates to Candidate C.” A small group of mega-donors often playing a supersized role funding these overlapping interests.
For example, Susan Pritzker, a wealthy Chicago heiress of the Hyatt Hotels family, donated both to Rep. Peltola’s campaign for Congress, and to Fair Shot PAC, which then donated to Peltola’s campaign.
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Pritzker is also a backdoor donor to radical pro-Hamas groups; she and her family support at least two major foundations that have been funneling money to campus agitators through their grant making programs.
“Pro-Palestianian protesters are backed by a surprising source: Biden’s biggest donors,” reported Politico over the weekend, in a story that shows the connection between the sources of pro-Hamas protester funding and the funders of Democrats, focusing the story on the president. “Some of the most outspoken groups against Biden and Israel get funding from foundations attached to some of the biggest names in Democratic circles.”
While Politico analyzed the intersection of Democrat donors and the groups trying to make sure Israel loses its war on terror, Must Read Alaska analyzed the juncture between anti-Israel group and Rep. Peltola donors.
“The donors include some of the biggest names in Democratic circles: Gates, Soros, Rockefeller and Pritzker,” Politico wrote, specifically mentioning Jewish Voice for Peace and IfNotNow.
“Both are supported by the Tides Foundation, which is seeded by Democratic megadonor George Soros as well as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and it in turn supports numerous small nonprofits that work for social change,” Politico reported.
The Tides Foundation, with its focus on “diversity, equity, and inclusion,” is connected to the Arabella Advisors dark money liberal group that has shown a strong interest in controlling the politics of Alaska. Arabella Advisors’ influence in Alaska is written about frequently here at Must Read Alaska.
Tides has given nearly $500,000 over the past five yearsto Jewish Voice for Peace, which describes itself as anti-Zionist.
NGO Monitor describes Jewish Voice for Peace as a “U.S.-based political organization, which refers to itself as the ‘Jewish wing’ of the Palestinian solidarity movement. JVP provides the façade of Jewish support for BDS [Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions] and other forms of demonization, including on university campuses and in churches, while also seeking to “drive a wedge” within the American Jewish community and generate polarization over Israel.”
NGO Monitor also says Jewish Voice for Peace is nontransparent about its funding sources: “Limited financial information is available through public IRS documents, which report total income of $3,959,130 in FY2021 (July 2021-June 2022; latest available), $2,882,791 in FY2020, and $3,332,837 in FY2019.” But it is known that the Tides Foundation, whose main funders are the Pritzkers, is a money funnel for this anti-Israel group.
“It protests on campuses across the country, and its statement immediately following the Oct. 7 attackssaid that ‘the source of all this violence’ was ‘Israeli apartheid and occupation — and United States complicity in that oppression.’”
The Tides Foundation also supports the Adalah Justice Project, a frequent partner with the Jewish Voice for Peace and a group at the center of the Columbia University protests, where commencement ceremonies have been canceled this week. Tides Foundation supports Palestine Legal, a legal defense fund that is offers legal assistance to “students mobilizing against genocide,” Politico analysts discovered.
Other Pritzker family members era who have donated to Rep. Peltola include Daniel Pritzker, one of the 13 heirs to the family fortune. In his memo note on his contribution, he wrote “Democracy Summer 2024.” Forbes lists his net worth at $2.6 billion.
Susan Pritzker is also the primary funder of theLibra Foundation, whose ties to the pro-Hamas demonstrations is now clear, thanks to Politico reporting.
“Black Organizing for Leadership and Dignity, another group backed by the Libra Foundation, promotes pro-Palestinian demonstrations on its website,” Politico reported.
“Several other groups involved in pro-Palestinian protests are backed by a foundation funded by Susan and Nick Pritzker, heir to the Hyatt Hotel empire — and supporters of Biden and numerous Democratic campaigns,including $6,600 to the Biden Victory Fund a few months ago and more than $300,000 during the 2020 campaign,” Politico wrote.
The Pritzkers are not the only ones funding Biden, Peltola, and civil unrest in America, however.
Billionaire George Soros, who is Jewish and of Hungarian origins, has given money to both anti-Israel groups and to groups that are working directly to reelect Peltola with the pop-up group called “Vote Alaska Before Party,” which reserved $4 million in TV ads for Alaska this fall to ensure that Peltola gets elected again. Must Read Alaska wrote about that group in April.
Both Jennifer and Jonathan Soros (son of George Soros) have also maxed out to Peltola’s campaign.
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While Soros, Pritzkers, and Rockefellers are names linked in the Politico story about their support of pro-Hamas groups, their names also appear on the list of donors of the House Majority PAC, which is the Democratic Party’s political action committee, which benefits Peltola’s political fortunes, as well as those of other House Democrats.
While Alaskans are enjoying the late-arriving spring, with longer days and warmer weather, state Sen. Bill Wielechowski is spending his final days of this legislative session crafting a darker future for Alaskans by putting a chill on Alaska’s economy.
Sen. Wielechowski hates the oil and gas industry, even though one of every six private-sector jobs is tied to it. The revenues and royalties pay for the state government he helps oversee, and the same sources directly impact the Permanent Fund, and through it, the annual dividends each of us receive in October.
So, when the senator sees an opportunity to attack the industry, he does at every turn. His most recent tactic was to hijack legislation with a harmful amendment to HB 50. Should he get his way, Alaska will face threats of cold, dark winter nights, rolling blackouts and brownouts. At the extreme, we lose a corporate partner whose investment in Alaska makes living, working and playing in the Last Frontier better.
His amendment is attempting to target only Hilcorp; changing its tax structure, and forcing them to pay hundreds of millions of dollars more to the State each year. Would any company agree to this, or would they just divert money that would otherwise be invested in new developments, technologies and projects to pay new tax bills?
There are fiscal reasons why we have a two-tiered tax structure. Punishing smaller, privately-owned businesses – forcing them to be taxed like corporations who raise revenue and issue debt on different scales – will drive them away from this state. Guaranteed. One hundred percent.
Will this punitive legislation be used to target other businesses? Is anyone’s tax structure solid, or do we have to wait for Juneau to finish the session?
We do not know, and this uncertainty is a huge red flag for any business that might want to operate in Alaska.
Sen. Wielechowski has tried this before, but clearer heads in the Alaska Legislature prevailed and stopped his shenanigans. However, this time, he attached his mischief to a piece of legislation that Gov. Mike Dunleavy has called crucial to widening Alaska’s revenue stream, as HB 50 would set in motion the possibility of carbon capture and storage programs, among other things.
It’s the sort of last-minute parliamentary trick that makes people dislike government, and make business shy away from investing in our state. It’s unserious and petty, and people or businesses looking to invest billions have little time for the unserious and petty.
Should the Senate pass HB 50, and the House and/or a conference committee let the amendment stand, it would be interesting to see if the governor would veto the bill and risk Hilcorp pulling its investments and redirecting them to the increased tax burden it would face.
Looking at this with a wider lens, why would any company look to Alaska to enter, expand or invest their dollars in, if by doing so, they subject themselves to treatment from the Legislature like Hilcorp would receive from Sen. Wielechowski’s amendment? Why would they want to be penalized for helping grow our state’s economy and improve our energy future? Why would they want to be the next company to incur the wrath of the Legislature’s anti-business agenda?
Passing HB 50 with this amendment sets both bad policy and precedent. Alaska needs Hilcorp, just like we need ConocoPhillips, Santos and all our other producers who fund our state, our first responders, our schools, and employ a bulk of our citizens. Alaska should be saying “thank you” to each of them for their investments, rather than attack them and bemoan their presence. Their activities bring us heat, electricity, economic stability and yes, those annual Permanent Fund dividend checks we all enjoy every October.
Rick Whitbeck is the Alaska State Director for Power The Future, a national nonprofit organization that advocates for American energy jobs and fights back against economy-killing and family-destroying environmental extremism. Contact him at [email protected] and follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @PTFAlaska
In this episode of The Must Read Alaska Show, host John Quick sits down with Guy Benson to delve into the impact of Joe Biden’s economic and energy policies on the nation and specifically on Alaska.
From examining the repercussions of flawed economic strategies to discussing the implications of energy decisions on a state known for its resource abundance, Quick and Benson explore critical issues facing both the nation and the Last Frontier.
They also ponder the state of the American Dream in light of recent developments. Additionally, Benson shares insights into the events he’s participating in during his visit to Alaska this week. Tune in for a thought-provoking discussion on the current state of affairs and the path forward.
Benson is a columnist, commentator, political pundit, contributor to Fox News, political editor of Townhall.com, and a conservative talk radio host. This week, the 39-year-old conservative is in Alaska to meet with Alaskans and talk about economic policies of the Biden Administration and how they are impacting the lives of Americans. He’s visiting along with Will Burger, senior policy advisor for Americans for Prosperity and former senior policy advisor for the U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Committee.
Check out the Alaska events featuring Benson and Burger this week:
Given the ongoing discussion about renewables forced by the Alaska Center (for the Environment) and Renewable Energy Alaska Project (REAP), I thought it useful to explore or remind readers of previous energy proposals briefly considered and discarded on our way (however unwillingly) to a “net-zero” future.
On the generation side, there are a pair of recent hydro proposals. One takes water from Lake Chakachamna across Cook Inlet. The other is a dam across the Snow River above Kenai Lake. Either or both would provide constant, reliable, renewable, carbon free electricity to the Railbelt.
The proposal for power at Chakachamna is similar to that of Eklutna Power Station: Drill a tunnel that taps the main lake, pipe water 12 miles through the mountains, and use it to run a power station. TDX Power applied for a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission license in 2006. The proposed power station is 330 MW, about a third of total Railbelt generation needs today. The cost as of 2008 was $1.7 billion. This has been studied since at least 1983.
Note that the original reason for dams was flood control. The Snow River regularly floodsas glacial lakes release. The most recent of these was 2023. While these don’t impact Moose Pass, they certainly do at Cooper Landing, occasionally flooding parts of Primrose and Quartz Creek and boat docks on Kenai Lake and the upper Kenai River.
Chugach, among others, took a close look at possible geothermal at Mount Spurr. Several exploratory wells drilled by Ormat Technologies between 2008 – 2015 found volcanic heat but did not find suitable geology to support geothermal generation. The company dropped its leases in 2015. There has been renewed interest over the last couple of years.
Finally, we have the Big Dog in the discussion, the ever-popular Watana Dam, capable of powering all of the Railbelt for the next half century by itself.
Why haven’t any of these come to pass? For some reason, we here in Alaska have gotten really good at the NIMBY (Not in My Backyard) and BANANA (Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anything) game. There is always environmental opposition, generally based on some perceived threat to fish populations. Yet nobody is ever able to point out specific numbers of fish at risk, much less discuss any mitigation strategy. But the arm waving and whining are heart rending and make for good media coverage.
If we want to keep the lights on here in the Railbelt, at least considering some of the possibilities listed above should be the first item in the discussion. I am fully aware that this is not going to be a fact-based, reasonable, rational discussion. Rather, it is a persuasion based one, and persuasion needs to be the first tool used in any discussion, getting the attention of the inattentive.
Environmental grift is well paying grift these days, with environmentalists making a very nice living opposing hydro, coal, natural gas, oil, nuclear and even geothermal, all in favor of the very most environmentally unfriendly, largest footprint, most expensive, least reliable solutions, Big Wind and Big Solar.
Maybe someone ought to ask the Alaska Center (for the Environment) and REAP why that is so. Perhaps like the Homelessness Industrial Complex, they are too busy banking their donations to explain.
Alex Gimarc lives in Anchorage since retiring from the military in 1997. His interests include science and technology, environment, energy, economics, military affairs, fishing and disabilities policies. His weekly column “Interesting Items” is a summary of news stories with substantive Alaska-themed topics. He was a small business owner and Information Technology professional.
