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Mar 7: In the black or in the dark?

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Yesterday, it was reported that Matanuska Maid might end up  in the black.

Both the Anchorage Daily News and KTUU reported that Mat Maid closed it books with $160,000 in the bank, $190,000 in receivables and only $50,000 in payables. They were saved by using a $600,000 emergency appropriation. 

For how closely I've followed this story since last June, (sometimes too closely) those numbers didn't seem right, so I asked a legislative contact who is close to the issue of Matanuska Maid.

Question:

 

According to the ADN this morning they're closing the books for Mat Maid.

 

This will likely be one of the last accountings for Mat Maid, which started in the 1930s as a farmers' cooperative and was taken over by the state in the mid-1980s after the private operator went bankrupt. Although it profited for several years, its directors shut it down in December because of mounting losses. (ADN 3/6/08)

They still have the two on going lawsuits as well as costs associated with disposing of assets and continued liabilities on the properties.

Do you have any idea how these additional Mat Maid costs are going to be accounted for?

Answer:

Yes, this still is an unresolved issue.  Apparently, the Department of Law is preparing a legal opinion regarding the state’s liability in the case of additional debt, costs and/or lawsuits/liabilities of the Creamery Board.  If the AG’s opinion determines that the state is liable, then additional debts or costs will mostly likely be covered by the ARLF.  If, on the other hand, it is determined by the AG that the state is not liable, the complainants may get nothing, even if they win their lawsuits.  Although, the final determination on whether the state is liable or not, will probably be made by a judge.

 

In addition, we have been told that Carlile Trucking was owed one million dollars by Mat Maid, but settled for $400,000.  So, I am not sure how that $600,000 debt is reflected in Mat Maid’s accounts at this time.  But, if a state court determines that the state is indeed liable for the Creamery Board’s debts and obligations, Carlile Trucking (and possibly others) may go after the state to pay what was owed by Mat Maid.

At the end of the day all of these potential expenses are a result of operations at Matanuska Maid no matter how you shift them around.

Claiming the dairy closed in the black is misleading. 

On March 25, 2008, the legislative auditor will report her confidential preliminary findings to the Legislative Budget & Audit Committee in an executive session.  During the meeting, the committee may or may not make the preliminary findings public.


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Solvent in the end??????

I think not. This is just more "spin" by this board and the ADN. It took the $600,000 grant to do it. This is of no credit to this ill managed board who was hand picked in one day. These board members had only 15 minutes to make up their minds on whether or not they wantd to volunteer for these boards. No filling out of forms, no checking on conflicts of interest. This board's single focus sems to be to vilify the former board and mangement and also to steer hundreds of thousands of dollars in equipment to the new Valley Dairy. All friends and family and the babysitter of Palin as a child. It is all orchestrated and because the Board of Agriculture and the Creamery Board are the same 5 people no one is checking on how things are being disposed of. Where is the copy of the so called lease given to Valley Dairy? How much is it for? Word is , that it is just few hundred a month. Why could no one else bid on that equipment ripped out of Mat Maid in three days flat? Now, the equipment at the Palmer Blow molding plant is being separated from the building and property when there are interested bidders for the whole package. Why was Raintree Properties bid revealed in the ADN? Will the City of Palmer now pay $1.3 million for the land or will it be yet another giveaway? If the equipment in Palmer is going to be auctioned, why was the Northern Lights equipment auctioned? This whole thing is being steered by a handful of people to give the Valley Dairy all they need for little or no cost. People...These are STATE dollars being given to three private business people in Wasilla. This all goes back to the USDA Federal grant that was protested on how the funds were administered. It apears that money was steered also from an Alaska office to these very same folks. There were many more qualified applications than the two that got the awards. The day will come when all this is revealed. What is so bad is that we have a governor who touts ethics, and transparencey and yet this at DNR and the Division of AG and the Creamery Board has a cover-up beyond belief. Big Conspiracy.


Northern Lights

Would you explain the reference to the Northern Lights Dairy, I didn't understand that. It seems that if the state leased equipment to the new dairy, that agreement should be public. Good post.


A Transparent & Forthright board?

Or they forswear the fortuitous circumstance of the creamery? Udder-ly ridiculous I say. Oh, what the hey, we have millions of moola we just got from those evil oil producers. Let's just wash it all under the table with sour milk and forget about it. Zippy do dah day, zippy do dah do, I bet my money on the old broke dairy, somebody won on the gov's pals.


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