Anchorage -- Today Representative Les Gara (D-Anchorage) called on Attorney General Gregg Renkes to release a legal memorandum he has withheld on the legality of the voter initiative. The initiative would allow a vote next time there is a U.S. Senate vacancy, but was rejected Tuesday on controversial legal grounds by Lt. Governor Loren Leman, who said he made the decision based upon Renkes' advice. In his letter to the Attorney General, Gara writes: "it is now clear your office has at least one legal memorandum on the constitutionality of this initiative that it has not shared with the public."

Questions have arisen why the Attorney General waited until October 21 to recommend this initiative petition be rejected, and why he asked for his staff to re-write it's legal analysis of this question in a revised, and then released October 20 memorandum. A recently written letter shows that the Attorney General was in receipt of a different legal memo from staff on the legality of this initiative before October 16, perhaps long before that date. In an October 16 letter responding to a request for information from Gara, Renkes wrote he was in receipt of a legal memo from staff, which "was under consideration by this office."

On October 21 Mr. Renkes issued a press release stating the surprising conclusion that the initiative should be rejected. He attached an October 20 staff memo to that press release stating the same conclusion. The question remains whether an earlier memo(s) to him recommended approval of the initiative, why the Attorney General asked for a new memorandum, and, most importantly, why the Attorney General delayed his decision until he received the re-written October 20 memo.

Supporters of the initiative have contended the Attorney General delayed his decision to keep them from meeting the January deadline for gathering the roughly 30,000 signatures they need.

For more information, contact Rep. Les Gara at 269-0106.