Allowing non-resident on AGDC board

Since a non-resident appointed to the Alaska Gasline Development Corp. board has become an issue, House Speaker Mike Chenault, R-Kenai, has introduced a bill to amend AGDC statutes to allow for an out-of-state resident to be named to the corporation’s board. AGDC board members are named by the governor and approved by the Legislature.

In a sponsor statement for House Bill 383 Chenault said statutes for AGDC, approved in House Bill 4 last session, “articulated board requirements, without specifically stating whether members had to be Alaskans or not, with the understanding that by not specifying, appointments could be U.S. citizens as stated in the Alaska Constitution. Legal guidance at the time, plus testimony, was that House Bill 4 language allowed both out-of-state citizens and Alaskan residents to serve,” he said.

Chenault said it was an oversight in HB 4 that AGDC was not specifically exempted from an Alaska statute which requires board members to be Alaskans unless otherwise provided.

At issue is the appointment of Richard Rabinow, formerly with ExxonMobil and president of a firm which provides consulting services to the pipeline industry.

The Alaska Constitution provides that board members “shall be citizens of the United States.”

The Alaska Railroad is an example of a board whose statutes specifically allow non-resident to be named to the board.

The issue cited for allowing non-resident appointment to the board is ensuring that the governor has access to the best expertise available in naming members to the AGDC board.

The bill was amended in House Rules to require the governor to submit a letter explaining why a non-resident was appointed.

The House passed HB 383 by a 27-12 vote April 9.

—Petroleum News