From Sean Cockerham in Juneau –

A preliminary opinion from the Legislature’s lawyers says all bets are now off when it comes to corporate spending in Alaska elections, with no limits or any requirement for disclosure.

“Given the silence of our state statutes and the likelihood that our existing statutes will not be enforced following the (U.S. Supreme Court’s) holding in Citizens United, there are now no limits on independent expenditures made by for-profit corporations and no statutory disclosure, identification, or reporting requirements for those disclosures,” said the opinion from legislative counsel Alpheus Bullard.

Bullard wrote that it appears to apply to labor unions as well, although he found that was not made explicit in the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision.

His opinion was a first pass on the subject, and the Legislature’s lawyers are liable to have more to say on the subject at a state Senate Judiciary Committee hearing this afternoon.

Lawyers from the Alaska Department of Law will also be at the hearing to talk about what the Jan. 21 U.S. Supreme Court ruling is going to mean for Alaska elections. They're expected to talk about what the state's official position will be.

Corporate campaign contributions in Alaska were against the law prior to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling. Under the ruling, corporations and unions can't give directly to or coordinate with candidates.

But they will be able to spend unlimited amounts on advertisements for -- or against -- those on the ballot. The justices split 5-4, with the majority ruling that the government should not bar political speech.