Juneau Daily News Online

Friday,  January 11, 2002

Hammond will co-chair Ulmer campaign for Governor
Former Republican Governor Jay Hammond talked about his decision to agree to co-chair Democratic Lieutenant Governor Fran Ulmer's gubernatorial election campaign while a guest on KINY's Capital Chat this morning. Hammond will share the duties with former Alaska Federation of Natives President Janie Leask, who is registered as nonpartisan.

Hammond referred to a newspaper article he penned for the Anchorage newspaper several months ago. In it, he wrote that he concluded a long time ago that endorsements from "old, has been politicians had as much substance as "chicken lip soup."

Hammond added he determined to curtail endorsements except for three candidates he promised he would endorse if they ever chose to run. They include former State Senator Clem Tillon, Juneau Representative Bill Hudson, and Ulmer.

Hammond hasn't heard from Senator Frank Murkowski who is seeking the Republican gubernatorial nomination. He says he thinks and believes many Alaskans feel Murkowski could do a lot more for their interest by remaining in Washington, D. C. He says he's heard from some Republicans who say they understand he's fulfilling a commitment and promise to endorse Ulmer, but suggested he doesn't have to be too "high profile."

Hammond was governor from 1974 to 1982. During that time, Ulmer served as his legislative assistant and later as his director of policy development and planning.

Hammond addresses legislative move initiative on Capital Chat
"It's a delusion to think that somehow the capital in your backyard is going to improve the quality of government." So said former Governor Jay Hammond on KINY's Capital Chat this morning in reference to the initiative to move legislative sessions from Juneau to the Mat-Su Borough.

He said if the move was made to that area, residents there and their particular philosophical views would probably dominate even more than they already dominate in Juneau now. He added he's not sure that's what the general public wants.

The argument that lawmakers could be better scrutinized in another location doesn't impress Hammond. "It wouldn't make a nickel's worth of never mind in my view," he said.

Donley calls for hiring freeze and list of contingency cuts
Senate Finance Committee Co-Chair Dave Donley is calling on Governor Knowles to immediately institute a partial hiring freeze and to instruct departments to prepare contingency budgets that identify areas of possible spending reductions.

The Anchorage lawmaker says he believes a freeze on non-essential state positions is a common sense step toward dealing with the growth of the fiscal gap.

Donley complains that the Governor has not requested departments to prepare contingency plans. He's also grousing about the Governor's proposed budget which calls for an increase of over $200 Million.

Knowles Press Secretary Bob King says in criticizing the administration's plan, Donley forgets most of the increases he's referring to were items that were approved by the Legislature.

King says the Governor has a better plan than Donley's idea of cutting the state's way out of the projected one billion dollar deficit. King says the Governor's plan, which will be presented in his address to lawmakers next Wednesday night, will responsibly meet the needs of the state and still balance the budget.

In a letter to Knowles, Donley said that Senate Finance will be requesting the administration to come up with contingency reductions during its budget hearings.

Pull tab operator bucking smoking ordinance will seek change or go to court
A Juneau pull tab operator, who says he's turned his operation into a private club to get around the city's new smoking ordinance, has discussed the issue with the City Attorney. David Sanden, general manager of the Hidden Treasures pull tab operation talked with John Corso Thursday afternoon.

Sanden says he's still not sure what the legal definition of a "private club" is. Corso says the ordinance specifically identifies pull tab parlors as directly subject to the ordinance. However, Corso says the term "private club" does not appear in the ordinance, so there's no reason to provide a definition for it.

And, Corso says, Sanden should consider consulting his own attorney rather than seeking legal advice from the City Attorney who also serves as City Prosecutor.

After the ordinance went into effect January 1st, Sanden permitted smoking in his pull tab parlor for two days, then banned it after being told by city officials that he was not in compliance with the new law.

Sanden says the courts are one option, but he also wants to talk with the Juneau Tobacco Prevention Network to try to jointly work out an amendment that would allow smoking in his Mendenhall Mall business.

Corso says the city can accommodate either course of action. He says a policy change is something the Assembly can address and is probably the best way to resolve problems with the law. But in the event a judicial solution is needed, Corso adds that the city can pursue that course as well.

Hidden Treasures' three-page membership application requires members to acknowledge that they'll, most likely, be breathing some secondhand tobacco smoke. Membership dues cost one dollar a year, plus one dollar per visit.

The ordinance bans smoking stores, offices and most other public places.

On-line dividend application process proving popular
The state feels confident it will reach its goal of one-hundred thousand on line filed Permanent Fund Dividend applications this year.

That word today from Paul Dick, the chief of operations for the Permanent Fund Dividend Division., who says they have received 15,000 since Monday. About 50 thousand applied on-line last year. He says they received about 5,000 applications on the first day.

This year the procedure was improved. In the past, applicants had to down load a file to complete the process.

In addition, Dick says they're getting a lot of applications in the mail, although those numbers have not been tallied yet. The application deadline for this year's dividend is April 1st.

Ketchikan gas price probe concludes no wrong doing
The Alaska attorney general's office says a three-month investigation indicates Ketchikan gasoline stations did not illegally increase prices after the terrorist attacks September 11th. Gas prices in Ketchikan following the attacks rose as high as two dollars, 29 cents per gallon for regular unleaded gasoline.

Coast Guard implements "Sea Marshal" program to foil terrorism
Armed members of the U. S. Coast Guard boarded a tanker in Alaska waters yesterday. Its part of a new "Sea Marshal" program to counter terrorist threats.

The tanker Polar Eagle was on its way to the Cook Inlet port of Nikiski to pick up natural gas for shipment to the Lower 48. The Coast Guard members searched the ship and escorted it to port.

Commander Mark Hamilton says some vessels will be chosen at random and others will be selected for boarding. He says the random nature of the searches will help foil potential terrorists. Hamilton says its possible that a hijacked tanker could be used as a weapon of mass destruction.

He says the Coast Guard will review the program in a few months to see if it is feasible to continue.

Vehicle destroyed by fire
Capital City Fire and Rescue was called to a car fire in a parking lot adjacent to David Street off of Douglas Highway shortly after one yesterday afternoon.

Captain Dave Boddy says firefighters found a small passenger vehicle totally involved in flames when they arrived. The blaze was extinguished using a hose line off an fire-engine in about five minutes.

Boddy says it appears the fire originated under the hood in the engine compartment, but the exact cause of the fire is under investigation.

No one was injured in the blaze. The car was a totally destroyed.

Spruce bark beetle battle on the Kenai might employ satellite technology
The Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly is considering a 271-thousand dollar federal grant to employ satellite imagery and high altitude photographs in the battle against spruce bark beetles. The grant would be used to monitor a 60-square-mile forested test area between Kenai and Nikiski.

Air Force base boosts Alaskan economy
With a boost from new construction spending, Elmendorf Air Force Base outside Anchorage poured two thirds of a billion dollars into the Alaska economy in the last fiscal year. Military officials say Elmendorf's economic impact grew by more than 80  million dollars last year to a total of 664 (M) million.

Anchorage factory ships salmon to Sam's
Sam's Club outlets across the country yesterday began selling jalapeno-spiced salmon tenders produced in Anchorage. Officials with the Alaska Seafood International plant in Anchorage say they've shipped 300-thousand pounds of processed seafood nuggets.]

Duke and Boozer get back to winning form
The second-ranked Duke Blue Devils returned to their usual self last night in their first game since ending a 22-game winning streak.

Juneau's Carlos Boozer and Mike Dunleavy each finished with 23 points and the Blue Devils forced 18 turnovers in the first half of a 104-to-79 thrashing of Georgia Tech.

Jason Williams was 3-for-5 from the line after going 0-for-6 in Sunday's one-point loss at Florida State.

Alaskan musher leading Oregon race
Four-time Iditarod champion Doug Swingley of Montana is holding onto a strong lead in the AttaBoy 300 Sled Dog Race in Oregon. Four other Alaskans are among the twenty five mushers who remain in the stage race which wraps up Sunday. Libby Riddles, the first woman to win the Iditarod, is serving as race marshal for the inaugural run of the AttaBoy 300.

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