The Alaska Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld a lower court’s ruling that a private air service violated campaign finance laws when it offered flights to two Lake and Peninsula Borough assembly candidates in September 2010.
In 2011, the Alaska Public Office Commission filed a complaint against Bush Planes, LLC, the non-commercial air service owned by the multimillionaire anti-Pebble financier Bob Gillam.
APOC said Gillam’s firm made illegal corporate contributions when it offered airplane rides to assembly candidates Nana Kalmakoff and Michelle Ravenmoon without charging them a commercial fare.
The candidates were invited to join in the flights by former state legislator George Jacko, who Gillam had hired to be his “eyes and ears in Bristol Bay.” Jacko traveled throughout the Lake and Peninsula Borough on Bush Planes’ aircraft to advocate against the Pebble mine.
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