Audit ordered of Alaska public natural gas corporation
Originally published Wednesday, September 30, 2009 at 11:42 a.m.
Updated Wednesday, September 30, 2009 at 12:06 p.m.
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Stumble It!JUNEAU, Alaska - A legislative committee has ordered an audit of the state-funded Alaska Natural Gas Development Authority.
Rep. Mark Neuman, R-Big Lake, said he requested the audit of the public corporation because energy is one of the biggest issues the state is facing.
The Legislative Budget and Audit Committee ordered the audit in an Anchorage meeting on Monday.
"One of the most important issues we're facing is energy and deliverability of that energy," Neuman said. "We're trying to make sure we're getting the most information we can."
The authority was created by voters through an initiative in 2002. It is charged with getting North Slope natural gas to market and to Alaskan communities, or looking at liquefied natural gas or other options. The corporation has an independent board of directors and is funded by the state.
The office of Gov. Sean Parnell and staff within other departments are all looking at gas development issues, as well as the independent Alaska Gasline Port Authority.
Rep. Mike Hawker, R-Anchorage, supports an audit. He said he wanted to know how much money has been appropriated, where it's been spent and how the Natural Gas Development Authority's actions fit into other efforts in the state.
Executive director Harold Heinze was traveling, but Kirsten Sikora, the authority's administrative officer, said it welcomed the audit.
"We're looking forward to working together to solve the state's energy crisis," she said.
One of the authority's efforts is to find ways to develop the North Slopes natural gas as propane for use in Alaska, especially rural Alaska.
The work on the audit will likely begin next March.
Community Discussion
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Now if they could audit the Port Authority....
You better believe they should audit the Port Authority. That is if they can find their books. Maybe instead of Parnell looking at the Port Authority, he should be investigating the Port Authority. email Parnell and demand that the Port Authority is audited as well as ANGDA.
Sorry to disappoint the conspiracy theorists but AGPA has annual audits as required by Alaska law.
Somebody should audit Fairbanks Natural Gas...
Gee PAF...how do you know so much....cause you have said many times on here that you have nothing to do with the Port Authority.
So PAF...how much has AGPA receieved from the FNSB since its inception?
Hello...are you still there....hello....
Any government agency, office, bureau, official should be audited every year like the ANGDA. School's also since they operate on the public dime.
O- This info is all public. It is very easy to pick up the phone and begin the process of obtaining these records from the borough clerk. Or review the borough budgets which are kept by the reference librarians at the Noel Wein Library. I've done this- so can you. Repeat- this is all public information- as it should be.
The public records show that AGPA does NOT get annual funding from the FNSB, unlike FEDCO or FCVB. AGPA has received two, only two, grants from the borough in ten years. The grants show community investment in the voter's mandate so that AGPA can then raise non- taxpayer funds from the private sector.
The total investment in the voter mandate has been less than 500 K- which is less than what Fairbanks OVERPAYS for energy in a SINGLE day. That is a darn good investment.
Again, no good deed in Fairbanks goes unpunished.
The total investment in the voter mandate has been less than 500 K- which is less than what Fairbanks OVERPAYS for energy in a SINGLE day. That is a darn good investment.
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Lets see. The voters "invested" $500K and got nothing. Good investment? Bernie Maddoff investors did better.
Hmm. March? And this is called for by republicans? Not that I would doubt that they hold the voters interests dearest to their hearts but this sounds like a stalling tactic of the sort commonly used to benefit business interests that are taking place out of the public eye. Not that republicans would ever do such a thing.
Or they're trying to avoid stalling later, if they want to start a new project a recent audit could prevent opposition stalling.
Put Alaska First, the borough gave Whitaker $300,000 as a special "gift" for the Port Authority. Then Whitaker had emergency spending power for energy and according to the assembly, despite asking for how he spent money during that period, he still hasn't provided the information. Put Alaska First and all the other names you have gone through supporting the Port Authority , do you honestly think when you go on Michael Dukes you don't sound like you write? Again people e mail Parnell and ask for a State audit of the Port Authority, if they have nothing to hide they should be requesting one themselves.
Whitaker's budget have a habit of not being overly specific on certain appropriations....
March Audit is NOT a stalling tactic. The Auditor type Accounting firms are already booked full with current audits. They book 6 months or so in advance. Probably just a scheduling thing. No reason to get all huffy. There is absolutely NOTHING a company could do to sufficiently alter their books to avoid Audit detection. If there is anything wrong to be found, it will be found in all due time.
Power of O, Putak1st et al: Any organization public or private or a combination of both needs to submit monthly, quarterly & annual audits to thoes who fund them! Nothing to hide, no problem saying how you've spent the money. Any refusal throws Red Flags all over the field that
things aren't being done the proper way! Notice, I said submit, not beg for months to only get a year or year and a half old annual audits that
may or not be certified. Volunteer all the information asked for rather than fight to keep it hidden from the public. All these oil development operations that have taken public & private funds need to comply with
these requests!
Too bad we couldn't get Audits of local Federal Offices like US Fish and Wildlife. I'd like to see where THEIR operational budget is spent. Especially since it has an effect on the local economy regardless of where you stand on the various controversies. Having worked with them in the past, I'd even testify under oath of the shennanigans that go on there with their spending of American Tax-payers hard earned cash. Talk about a boondoggle hidden behind environmental causes, all so some rich kids can go tramping in the wilderness. All of course under the premise of monitoring and protecting the Wilderness.
Stay on topic now. No one is "talking" about U.S. Dept of Fin & Fur!
Only the quasi public gas line projects are under discussion & their lack of financial info to the public.
Traction.
Let's just boil this down to the nuts and bolts: ANGDA is getting traction with the movers and shakers in Alaska (including Lynden, Crowley Maritime and others in the know) about how to get propane and natural gas distributed state-wide in a timely fashion on the large scale.
Suddenly, in spite of this progress which might seem to be a great thing otherwise, representatives such as Mr Neumann step up to question ANGDA based upon nothing but as near as I can tell, a perceived threat to Enstar's planned monopoly of instate gas distribution.
I'll admit to speculation on my part but it is informed speculation.
Enstar's political contributions to legislators need immediate airing.
This and any other connection, family or otherwise, needs public scrutiny ASAP.
Remember, Ben Stevens was collecting $70,000 per year as an appointed member of Sempra, Enstar's parent company's board while serving as president of the Alaska State Senate. "He forgot" when questioned.
Yesterday's news? I don't think so.
There is a very seamy side to this out-of-nowhere questioning of ANGDA's integrity.
Speak up Mark Neumann, you ain't on Gavel to Gavel on this one.
Others are watching.
Enquiring minds want to know.....
there are pipelines running all over this state. they go from haines to fairbanks, from cook inlet to beluga they run into anchorage like spokes on a wheel...there are over 4000 miles of pipelines on the north slope from 6 to 60 inches in diameter plus so many sea water injection and artifical gas lift pipelines they lost count 20 years ago. they are giving gas away in barrow and the one that really blows you away is that pump station four, 200 miles north of fairbanks has been running its turbines off of natural gas for thirty years and it only took six weeks to build that gasline.....so what the big deal about getting a 12 inch line run into fairbanks....i guess if you ask joe usibelli he would tell you a bunch of lies, but the truth is there are too many people making too much money off of coal and heating oil to let a little gas line get into their pockets...i guess the real truth is that the people of the tanana valley are chumps. that pretty much sums it up.
ANGDA was created by the voters in 2002 to do 2 things. Build a NG pipeline to Valdez and develop in-state use of our NG and gas liquids. The date for completion of the Valdez line was to be 2007. Gov. Murkowski refused ANGDA funding, fighting to diminish and ignore this mandate of the people. Gov. Palin cut ANGDA's funding and acted to dlminish this mandate of the people. Now, Gov. Parnell acts to do the same. Yet, ANGDA has made progress on a plan to move gas liquids to market in-state--primarily propane.
Since 2002, every legislator and 3 governors have ignored the will of the people in the creation of ANGDA.
Ask yourself what Alaska would have had if a 2bcf pipeline had been built to Valdez and the natural gas sent to market overseas at a premium price? We would have had a spur line to Palmer to relieve the Cook Inlet situation, we would have had an LNG conversion facility at Valdez, the gas liquids to build industry and to use in-state along with the jobs and infrastructure to base future expansion upon. All to the benefit of Alaskans, and not Canada. This was all to have been done by 2007.
Ask your legislators why this was not done? We mandated that this be done.
Our governors and our legislators have ignored our will.
ANGDA gets audited every year and they have passed with flying colors. This effort by Neuman is generated by whom for what? Rep. Neuman, who contributed to your campaign--Enstar, perhaps?
Ladies and gentleman, reread the ANGDA initiative. It is on the Div. of Elections website. Should make you very angry, as these folks called the ball back in 2002.
We have been played for fools.
Throw the bums out, ALL OF THEM, including Parnell.
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