The ordinance would allow the borough's Board of Ethics to dismiss ethics complaints deemed frivolous before they reach the assembly.
FAIRBANKS, Alaska - The Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly is scheduled to hear an ordinance sponsored by Assembly Member Scott Crass which is meant to reform the borough’s ethics code on Thursday.
Crass said this bill was prepared in response to a letter to the assembly from Matt Cooper, Chair of the borough’s Board of Ethics, asking for a way to allow the ethics board to dismiss complaints they view as frivolous. “This really does exactly that. It gives, it empowers the Board of Ethics to go and take those, and if they are de minimis, frivolous, it allows the board of ethics to dismiss them,” he explained. This comes after two members of the assembly received ethics complaints in the last year which were perceived by some, including Crass, to be frivolous.accused Assembly Member Barbara Haney of violating the borough’s ethics code by writing a Letter to the Editor in the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner in which she did not specifically identify that she was speaking as a private citizen and not on behalf of the assembly, a complaint which the ethics board found Haney liable, while noting that this kind of violation has been committed unintentionally in the past by other assembly members. Due to code demanding some form of penalty, Haney was censured, asked to attend a training, and fined $1, a decision which she is currently appealing in superior court, Crass said. Following that complaint, in March 2025, former Assembly Member Savannah Fletcher’s actions were brought before the assembly, having received an ethics complaint for a similar incident involving radio spots when in office, Crass said.Crass feels that censuring Fletcher when she was no longer in office could set a bad precedent. “When the Assembly adopted in 2006, what they were trying to address was people using the voice of the assembly to obtain some sort of gain or to influence things in an unethical manner, and so this is trying to get more towards the original spirit of that ordinance,” Crass said. Haney, who is appealing the ethics decision against her, is scheduled to attend a hearing Tuesday about the violation. She called the timing of the ordinance inappropriate and said it is an attempt to interfere with her case. Crass said his ordinance is unrelated to Haney’s ongoing case, and that the ordinance does not look backward. She mentioned a December ordinance reforming ethics code, which had been put forward by Crass and Assembly Member Brett Rotermund, which drew a 4-3 positive vote, but which failed to pass the assembly due to not reaching the five votes required by borough code.Crass explained the new ordinance that’s to be heard Tuesday, saying, “If we adopt this new ordinance, if something comes through the Board of Ethics, it means that they found that it’s meaningful. It’s not de minimis. And then the Assembly shall impose a penalty.” Rotermund said Thursday he is unsure about how he will vote on the ordinance, agreeing with Haney’s views about its vagueness, particularly regarding the definitions of certain words. “A lot of the parameters that define whether an ethics complaint is valid or not is kind of left up to some interpretation,” he said, later adding that he does think one way or another, the ethics code needs to be cleaned up.Bear mauling sparks large rescue response near Anchorage trailheadAnchorage Wrestlers reflect on Hulk Hogan’s Legacy
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