The right to petition our state government

To the editor

My heart was warmed in the cool rain during Wasilla’s Fourth of July Parade to see people exercising their constitutional rights to petition our state government so Alaskans can vote on the critical Senate Bill 21 oil tax issue. If enough signatures are gathered by July 12, Alaskans will have a year to learn the facts and debate them before a vote in 2014.

Otherwise, the new law will remain without people being fully informed about why the state could lose nearly a billion dollars a year without any guarantee of new jobs, projects or production. The Alaska Permanent Fund Reserves Account is one source where Gov. Sean Parnell has suggested getting funds to fill the huge hole in next year’s budget — a hole created by lowering the tax to oil companies already making record profits at a time when North Slope employment is at record highs.

There is new evidence legislators may have been given erroneous information as they made their decision. Independent oil analyst Richard Fineberg publicly presented this information at Mad Hatchers Pizza, near the corner of Palmer and Wasilla Fishhook roads.

Petitions for a referendum are difficult to do and are rarely done because signatures must be gathered within 90 days of the legislation passing. July 12 is the deadline and more signatures are still needed.

Visit repealtheoilgiveaway.org, find us on Facebook or call 982-6828 to find a petition to sign or to help gather signatures. Alaskans deserve to know what’s really going on and to make sure our constitutional requirement to get maximum value for our natural resources is being fulfilled.

Jim Sykes

Palmer