At its July 21 meeting, the Anchorage Assembly voted to censure fellow Assemblyman George Martinez following findings by the Alaska Public Offices Commission that he violated state law with his campaign funds and then gave dishonest testimony under oath.
Earlier this year, Martinez was fined $5,300 by APOC, after the oversight body found that he had improperly used campaign funds for personal benefit, including a round-trip flight to Florida.
Assembly Members Jared Goecker and Donald Handeland submitted resolution AR 2026-192 to formally deliver an accusation document to the city clerk and direct the city attorney to secure outside counsel for an independent investigation into Martinez’s use of city funds for travel and to examine if his travel coincided with or subsidized private business activities.
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The approved resolution, which only censured Martinez, was introduced by Assembly Members Keith McCormick, Erin Baldwin Day and Sydney Scout. This did not remove Martinez from office, but only publicly rebuked his actions.
Assembly members appear divided on whether to seek Martinez’s formal removal from the body. Before members could vote to authorize an investigation into Martinez’s travel expenditures, the meeting reached the hard 12 a.m. closing deadline. The matter will be taken up at the next meeting on Aug. 4.
In other issues, a motion failed to open retail marijuana stores to Chugiak/ Eagle River, and a proposed public safety advisory commission effectively died, as no assembly members seconded the motion to open discussion on the matter.
