Alaska has a history as being a state awash with political and financial corruption, Republican VP runner and Governor of Alaska Sarah Palin is in the thick of it.
Sarah Palin could soon find herself in the middle of another damaging scandal, this time involving the apparent deliberate favouring of a contractor, TransCanda corp, in a multi-billion dollar gas pipeline from the Governors state to the lower 48.
Among the findings, the investigation found that Sarah Palin broke rules which legally bound her not to speak directly to any potential bidders. It also found that the leader of the Alaskan state bid had lobbied for the winning bidder in the past. The terms of bidding for the pipeline contract was also found to be anti-competitive, the winning company was granted subsidies by the State of Alaska despite the bid terms originally not requiring such a intervention by the Governor of Alaska.
More of the report from AP:
Despite Palin's boast of a smart and fair bidding process, the AP found that her team crafted terms that favored only a few independent pipeline companies and ultimately benefited the winner, TransCanada Corp.
In interviews and a review of records, the AP found:
_Instead of creating a process that would attract many potential builders, Palin slanted the terms away from an important group _ the global energy giants that own the rights to the gas.
Despite promises and legal guidance not to talk directly with potential bidders, Palin had meetings or phone calls with nearly every major candidate, including TransCanada.
_The leader of Palin's pipeline team had been a partner at a lobbying firm where she worked on behalf of a TransCanada subsidiary. Also, that woman's former business partner at the lobbying firm was TransCanada's lead private lobbyist on the pipeline deal, interacting with legislators in the weeks before the vote to grant TransCanada the contract. Plus, a former TransCanada executive served as an outside consultant to Palin's pipeline team.
_Under a different set of rules four years earlier, TransCanada had offered to build the pipeline without a state subsidy; under Palin, the company could receive a maximum $500 million.
Sarah Palin could soon find herself in the middle of another damaging scandal, this time involving the apparent deliberate favouring of a contractor, TransCanda corp, in a multi-billion dollar gas pipeline from the Governors state to the lower 48.
Among the findings, the investigation found that Sarah Palin broke rules which legally bound her not to speak directly to any potential bidders. It also found that the leader of the Alaskan state bid had lobbied for the winning bidder in the past. The terms of bidding for the pipeline contract was also found to be anti-competitive, the winning company was granted subsidies by the State of Alaska despite the bid terms originally not requiring such a intervention by the Governor of Alaska.
More of the report from AP:
Despite Palin's boast of a smart and fair bidding process, the AP found that her team crafted terms that favored only a few independent pipeline companies and ultimately benefited the winner, TransCanada Corp.
In interviews and a review of records, the AP found:
_Instead of creating a process that would attract many potential builders, Palin slanted the terms away from an important group _ the global energy giants that own the rights to the gas.
Despite promises and legal guidance not to talk directly with potential bidders, Palin had meetings or phone calls with nearly every major candidate, including TransCanada.
_The leader of Palin's pipeline team had been a partner at a lobbying firm where she worked on behalf of a TransCanada subsidiary. Also, that woman's former business partner at the lobbying firm was TransCanada's lead private lobbyist on the pipeline deal, interacting with legislators in the weeks before the vote to grant TransCanada the contract. Plus, a former TransCanada executive served as an outside consultant to Palin's pipeline team.
_Under a different set of rules four years earlier, TransCanada had offered to build the pipeline without a state subsidy; under Palin, the company could receive a maximum $500 million.