Overview July 2006

Alaska Permanent Fund in July, 2006 is presumably worth $33,765,100,000.00 or almost $34 Billion. This website http://www.apfboardconfirmation.org is an effort to allow Alaskans to get the facts about how corrupt and what a bad example Alaska Permanent Fund Board really is. You as an Alaskan are supposed to own Alaska Permanent Fund. Your APF Dividend is not a gift but an entitlement of residency. Alaska Permanent Fund Board (APFB) is appointed by the Governor but not confirmed by Alaska Legislature so that is no system of checks and balances which is essential for any level of accountability. Checks and balances are what make United States and can make our great State of Alaska strong. Currently, no authority in Alaska is responsible for making certain APFB practices are based on the public interest instead of self-interest. You might think Alaska Permanent Fund (APF) has made money but that is just propaganda and deal-making among financial institutions. How much would APF be worth if we cashed it out? That is what is important. Alaskans as well as Americans should realize that Alaska Permanent Fund Board of Trustees control such a large amount of money currently as to influence the Stock Market on Wall Street, the Federal Reserve Board, and major business institutions in United States, not to mention every bank in Alaska and Alaska financial management companies.

Alaska Statue 37.13

Please read Alaska Statute 37.13 by way of background. A.S. 37.13.050 “Composition and qualification of board of trustees” must be updated by Alaska Legislature to read “(a) the Board of Trustees of the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation consists of six members appointed by the governor (and confirmed by Alaska Legislature).” Current A.S. 37.12.050 continues:”Two of the members must be heads of principal departments of state government, one of whom shall be the commissioner of revenue.” Why is appointed Alaska Attorney General allowed to be a member APFB when it is this office that should be the “watchdog?” Sec, 37,13,060 “Term of office” states “four years, and they may be reappointed.” This should be followed and possibly updated.

Mr. Eric Wohlforth has served as Chair and member, APFB for 11 years since January, 1995. Mr. Wohlforth commented on February 25, 1999 at Arco Alaska to a room full of Alaskan economists that he believes APFB should be confirmed by Alaska Legislature and have 10 year terms. Mr. Wohlforth has already exceeded his request for a ten year term by a year! Governor Frank Murkowski replaced the other five members leaving only Mr. Wohlforth on APFB in 2002. Former Governor Tony Knowles (1994-2002) replaced all six members shortly after he became Governor in December, 1994. Will Mr. Wohlforth remain on APFB no matter who is elected Governor in November, 2006?

“Individual Investment Transaction Disclosures”

A.S. 37.13.110 “Conflicts of interest” refers to A.S. 39.50.010 “Findings and purpose. “. . .to discourage public officials from acting upon a private or business interest in performance of a public duty.” This website http://www.apfboardconfirmation.org attempts to show that the practices of APFB for many years have been to make private investments in the Stock Market on Wall Street to enrich their private banks accounts based on the most solvent amount of money in the U.S. Stockbrokers are hired by APFB to advise them about the most advantageous stock investments so that APFB can “pick their brains” and make “Individual Investment Transaction Disclosures” through June, 2006 including on this website Marquez 2 pages, Brady l0 pages, Frank 11 pages, Corbus 38 pages, Wohlforth 75 pages, Burns (employee) 29 pages. Please relate APFB investments in Stock Market to APOC 2006 Financial Disclosure Statements. “Ring leader” Murkowski, Mr. Bill Hudson, and the other five APFB members have posted APOC 2006 Financial Disclosure Statements on this website. Alaska Public Offices Commission has been asked as recently as June 21, 2006 at their meeting to post on the Internet APOC 2006 Financial Disclosure Statements and has been asked previously in the last year or two without success. APFB members are paid $400 a day honorarium per A.S. 37.13.090 for going to Board or CommIITee Meetings plus per diem and travel allowance for anywhere they want to travel worldwide. Noted is that A.S. 37.13.090 allows an honorarium as well as per diem for each Board member. Board members including Governor Murkowski’s Cabinet want to make astronomical investments in Stock Market on top of that. Clearly, everyone is doing it! APFB is currently so political that their next advertised meeting is the day after Alaska Primary on August 23 in Anchorage. Please attend the meeting.

APFB members currently do have a right under State of Alaska law to make investments in the Stock Market per A.S. 37.13.110(b). Why are APFB allowed to do this? The answer is we Alaskans have allowed APFB to get away with these corrupt practices. We must establish a system of checks and balances in our Alaska State Government. We live in the only state in U.S. that does not have a law school or any elected attorney. There are only buzzwords like Attorney General, Prosecuting Attorney, District Attorney, Administrative Law Judge, etc. Those in power want to make certain that Alaskans do not figure out that APFB should not have a right to enrich their private bank accounts “off” our Alaska Permanent Fund. If Alaska Legislature enacts legislation to confirm APFB, these issues will be discussed publicly during the confirmation process. Confirmation would create respect for public office for the first time in Alaska. Alaska Legislature should create accountability for A.S. 37.13.050, A.S. 37.13.110(b), and A.S. 37.13.060 all of which are a mockery currently. The issues of terms of office, “Individual Investment Transaction Disclosures,” whether APFB should include appointed Alaska Attorney General, etc. will be addressed publicly if confirmation takes place.

APFB currently does not practice American law. It is impossible to get a transcript of the minutes of APFB Meetings. Minutes create a record of accountability. When the meetings are held, packets are mailed to anyone who would like to get one but they are not paginated and are clamped together as separate pages like “gobbly-gook.” At most APFB Meetings Outside experts are represented and local citizens are not hired by the Board. The primary example is Mr. Michael O’Leary, Executive Vice-President, Callan Associates, Denver, Colorado who comes to Alaska several times a month to advise municipalities, Anchorage Police & Fire Retirement Board, and other groups which all “feed off” Alaska Permanent Fund. What a joke! Is what APFB doing “insider trading?” Probably, but unless APFB investments in Stock Market can be connected to the same investment the staff of Alaska Permanent Fund are making, it cannot be proven. Why does APFB not hire local Alaskans for investment advice? The answer is Alaskans would quickly figure out how corrupt and un-American the practices of APFB are.

History of Alaska Permanent Fund

Alaska Permanent Fund was created by voter referendum in November, 1976 in order that the substantial money from oil development in Alaska be saved for future generations of Alaskans. The intent of the voter that year was to avoid squandering money and to create a legacy when Alaska natural resources would not produce the kind of astronomical wealth unknown in Alaska previously. Alaska Permanent Fund has been labeled Alaska’s “rainy day account” or an endowment, neither of which are true based on current practices. The money from the very solvent Alaska Permanent Fund is the result of litigation in the 1970s for the oil flowing down Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS). TAPS current ownership is British Petroleum 46.93%, Conoco-Phillips 28.29%, Exxon Mobil 20.34%, Unocal 1.36%, and Kock Alaska 3.08%. Alaska has given too much to the multi-national oil companies. It is time for Alaskans to put our state back in Alaskans hands. It is appropriate that Alaska Legislature, our elected officials, be given that responsibility.

Investment Companies Feeding Off Alaska Permanent Fund

Some of the documents at http://www.apfboardconfirmation.org include a smattering of the investment companies that are in business based on Alaska Permanent Fund just like all the local banks are. There was a paid advertisement in Anchorage Daily News of February 24, 2002 as regards $1,774,117,000.00 Alaska Permanent Capital Company currently owned by Evan Rose. Alaska Permanent Capital Company today has assets of “almost $2 Billion.” The company was founded by Mr. Dave Rose after he had been Executive Director, APFB 1982-1990. Mr. Rose was never on APFB so how was he allowed to control that kind of money when he left his paid position as employee to APFB?

There is a letter wrIITen by Mr. Bob Gillam, McKinley Capital Management Company, on February 27, 2002 after the advertisement of Alaska Permanent Capital Company appeared in Anchorage Daily News stating that McKinley Capital Management Company “has assets under management that are approximately double that reported (by) Alaska Permanent Capital Management Company. This meant McKinley Capital had asset of about $4 Billion in 2002. Mr. Gillam ran advertisements in Anchorage Daily News in June, 2006 that stated:”McKinley Capital manages over $10 Billion in assets for clients worldwide (and) employs over 70 staff members.” Mr. David Gottstein, Co-Chair with Governor Walter Hickel of Backbone to create accountability regarding Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline owns Dynamic Capital Management Company which in 2002 had assets of about $40,000,000. The assets have probably risen like those of the other companies. How have these companies been able to exist off APFB which is not confirmed by Alaska Legislature?

Bonded Indebtedness Collusion

Please analyze the issue of bonded indebtedness which is only to make a few Alaska Bond Counsels especially Mr. Eric Wohlforth and Company wealthy. There is a chart of Wohlforth Johnson Brecht Cartledge & Brookings on this website which shows how many State of Alaska agencies have this law firm as their Counsels. On the site are a few articles published in Anchorage Daily News which regard bonded indebtedness. Alaska is a monopoly of interest without fair Alaska law licensing. Why do we need school bonds, road bonds, park bonds, municipal government projects bonds, private-public partnerships bonds, etc. when there is $34,000,000,000.00 in Alaska Permanent Fund? Alaska is still the state that receives the highest per capita federal funding ($12,885 per person in 2004), and State of Alaska coffers are at an all time high with the increase in gasoline prices. Bonded indebtedness is a scam.

We read all the time in our local media which is about 95% owned in many states of Lower 48 that Alaska bond ratings are A+ or excellent. Why? The answer is the Outside interests control everything that goes on in Alaska. Because there are bonds, we as Alaskans are being made fools of by Outside financial institutions. All we have as Alaskans are bonds to pay beck instead of owning our own public buildings, roads, public works projects, etc.

Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend

The latest mockery is that Alaskans have to wait for a five year average of profits/losses in order to receive Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend which has gotten smaller and smaller each year. Additionally, Ted Stevens announced on August 21, 1002 in front of a room full of Alaska Realtors at Marriott in Anchorage that if Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline is built Alaskans “will have to forego at least Permanent Fund Dividends for about 10 to 12 years.” Stevens also stated on August 21, 2002:”The producers have the right to produce that gas under State and federal law.” Alaskans are not even considered in the decision-making about Alaska Permanent Fund issues especially the Dividend and we are not in charge of our own resources. This would improve substantially if Alaska Legislature would confirm APFB. It would create public accountability.

Under Governor Murkowski, Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend has been cut in half or one-third even though Alaska Permanent Fund value has increased each year he has been Governor since 2002 and Alaska coffers are bursting with increased gasoline prices. The ruse is that a very large Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend bureaucracy has been established to monitor check distribution and there are extensive State of Alaska court cases about qualifications to obtain the Dividend at the same time, APFB has been allowed to make astronomical “Individual Investment Transaction Disclosures.” Long time Alaska residents explain that they have been investigated if they leave State of Alaska because it is required that they only be out of state for 90 days throughout the year in order to receive the Dividend. Can we Alaskans figure out how much APF Dividend office is spending on investigating average Alaskans as we do not even notice how corrupt APFB has become?

Conclusion

Alaskans must ask the critical questions about Alaska Permanent Fund. This is the time for answers from the candidates during Gubernatorial Campaign. Our Alaska Permanent Fund Confirmation organization will be sending out a questionnaire to all candidates in the next week or so. The results will be discussed at our meetings and summaries posted on our website here. The corrupt practices of APFB have gotten more flagrant over the years. If the practices of APFB are allowed to continue, Alaska Permanent Fund should be taxed as it is currently only a “political slush fund for the Governor.” Let’s debate these issues as Alaskans who own Alaska Permanent Fund during Gubernatorial Campaign before the Primary Election Tuesday, August 22, 2006, and General Election Tuesday, November 7, 2006.