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House leaders call for Kohring to step down
The Associated Press
Alaska House leaders have joined growing calls for state Rep. Vic Kohring to resign.
House Speaker John Harris, R-Valdez, and House Majority Leader Ralph Samuels, R-Anchorage, said they met with Kohring the last week in May at his home and relayed concerns of fellow lawmakers that the corruption scandal is tainting them all.
A federal grand jury indicted Kohring in May. The Wasilla Republican is charged with selling his vote on the state petroleum tax last year to the Anchorage oilfield services company VECO Corp.
Kohring and two former legislators also under indictment have pleaded not guilty.
VECO executives Bill Allen and Rick Smith pleaded guilty to conspiracy, bribery and tax charges. They have resigned from VECO.
Kohring’s trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 22 in Anchorage.
Concern over public trust in Legislature Samuels said he and Harris approached Kohring to share concerns expressed by other lawmakers that the corruption scandal was affecting public trust in the Legislature.
“We didn’t go out there to try and force him to resign; we just want to make sure he understands where his colleagues are at with the situation,” Harris said.
Harris said he was not considering expelling Kohring from the House.
In Wasilla, some residents are calling for Kohring’s resignation and selling “Recall Vic” T-shirts.
Wasilla City Councilman Mark Ewing began gathering signatures in May for an application requesting a special election to strip Kohring of his House seat. The application for the recall must have at least 709 signatures before the state Division of Elections will review it.
Ewing said volunteers have collected the required minimum but planned to double the amount in a “blitz weekend” before filing it.
“The focus is to get us some representation in Juneau that is stable and trusted,” Ewing said. “A lot of his supporters who gave him $500 every time he ran are signing this thing.”
More signatures required for recall If the Division of Elections approves the recall application, Ewing would have to collect at least 1,770 signatures, equaling 25 percent of the voters from the district’s last election. After reviewing the second set of signatures, the Elections Division could order a special recall election.
Gov. Sarah Palin said in May Kohring should step down. As governor, Palin would appoint another Republican to replace him if he resigned or is recalled.
Kohring declined comment June 4.
Kohring was aware of fellow lawmakers’ concerns, Samuels said.
“He’s aware of the situation that he’s put himself and everyone else in,” Samuels said. “Even if he did nothing wrong, there is the negative perception in the public that affects the whole institution of the Legislature.”
Harris expects Kohring to decide within a few days whether to retain his seat.
If he resigns, he would not participate in a special legislative session to revisit the oil tax. After VECO executives pleaded guilty May 7 to bribing lawmakers for their votes on the petroleum tax, Palin announced that she would call for the special session.
Palin at the time said the corruption probe surrounding the tax debate had tainted the law and called into question if it was the right tax law for the state.
“I have a strong feeling that it won’t be an issue at that point,” Harris said regarding Kohring’s presence in a fall special session. “I think we’ll see a decision here pretty soon. Whether or not that’s going to be him saying he will step down is ultimately his decision.”
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