newsminer.com

You can disagree with his positions, but you can’t accuse him of bowing to public pressure. Rep. Mike Kelly, a Fairbanks Republican, was the lone no vote this week on two bills that just passed the House.

One was HB 307, which stiffens the penalties for third-time domestic violence offenders. Kelly made his thoughts on that bill clear during a House Finance hearing last week in a way he later described as a little harsh. (Basically, he argued we shouldn’t just rely on the cops.)

The other was SB 97, which tweaks and clarifies existing law dealing with the Silver Hand program, a seal identifying arts and crafts as being made by an Alaska Native. Kelly told me today he was concerned about references to tribes, which are recognized federally but not in Alaska. He said he didn’t want to add any legal standing to Natives in Alaska and end up with different sovereignties in Alaska like there are on reservations in the Lower 48. “I’m an Alaskan and I want to be under Alaska law,” he said, whether he’s in Nikolai or anywhere else.

Kelly said he’d probably back the program if not for the legal issue, but added that he was uncomfortable with anything that split people up by race. “I’ll be glad when Alaska is colorblind,” he said.