Another Scandal Out of Alaska

A possible new scandal is breaking in Alaska. This time it involves Alaska Republican Vic Kohring.

You may or may not remember that at the end of August, Kohring was one of 6 legislators whose offices raided as part of an investigation into influence peddling. This time around Kohring is accused of... influence peddling.

Alaska Daily News explains it all:

Last year, state Rep. Vic Kohring sat down with the mayor of the Fairbanks North Star Borough, Jim Whitaker, to talk about changing a state law to increase a tax break for an Anchorage-based developer.

Kohring, a Wasilla Republican, wasn't there to represent a constituent. He was on the payroll of the developer, Marc Marlow, for whom he had been working since November 2004.

Kohring runs "Vic Kohring Enterprises". The problem is, Marlow is his only customer. Marlow paid him $38,100 last year alone.

Not a bad tradeoff for a tax-break that:

exempted all but $10,000 a year in property taxes for 10 years and deferred normal property taxes for the five years after that.

But thats not all:

Kohring has worked on a half-dozen projects for Marlow since being hired by him in 2004. Several of the projects, including a proposed electrical generating plant in the Mat-Su, are subject to government approvals.

Kohring also contacted Municpal-Attorney Fred Boness on the issue.

Boness said he doesn't recall Kohring disclosing he was on Marlow's payroll.

..snip...

Boness said he told Marlow the mechanism wouldn't work

Kohring then approached Ramras, R-Fairbanks, and asked him to sponsor the legislation. The Polaris is in Ramras' district.

Why not just sponsor the bill yourself? Ramras recalled asking him.

He couldn't, because he had taken consulting fees from Marlow, Ramras said that Kohring told him.

Marlow battled radio host Dan Fagan on the issue:

Fagan: "So that legislation did not in any way save you any money?"

Marlow: "Absolutely not one dime. All that legislation did is set up a situation in Fairbanks wherein the Polaris building could be renovated like the McKinley (the old MacKay) building was ..."

But as the 10-minute duel ran its course, Marlow admitted that he needed the legislation to even consider buying the building.

Marlow of course is a victim:

"Some people don't like Muslims either or black people or homosexuals, but it doesn't make them right," Marlow said. Asked what that had to do with his situation with Kohring, Marlow said "There's all kinds of different prejudices or people's different reasons for not liking one thing or another."