Anchorage Assembly introduces resolution to initiate first-ever removal proceeding against member Martinez

The Anchorage Assembly is scheduled to introduce a resolution on July 7 that would formally initiate removal proceedings against East Anchorage member George Martinez, a step the body has never taken since the municipal code established the procedure in 1993.

Assembly Members Jared Goecker and Donald Handeland filed the accusation document on July 1 and are set to introduce AR 2026-192 for its first reading on July 7. The resolution would direct the Municipal Attorney to retain outside counsel to investigate Martinez and, if the Assembly votes to submit the accusation, present evidence before an Administrative Hearing Officer.

The accusation document alleges five counts of perjury, three ethics-code violations, two counts of falsification of records, and one count of substantial breach of statutory duty. The triggering document is the Alaska Public Offices Commission's June 11 final order, which imposed the maximum civil penalty on Martinez and described his sworn testimony as "formulaic and evasive." APOC found that Martinez "outright refused to respond to questions or provide answers to straightforward inquiries."

The accusation covers three areas of alleged misconduct. On December 27, 2025, Martinez purchased a $1,255.70 nonrefundable ticket using campaign funds for an approximately 8,000-mile round trip that allowed only 63 minutes on the ground in Fort Lauderdale. The following day he contributed $1,000 in campaign funds to Chooose, Inc. and received 1,500 status points credited to his personal Alaska Airlines rewards account. Martinez testified under oath that the trip was for campaign strategic planning and that airline status benefits "were unknown at the time of the transaction" and "were not part of the expenditure rationale." APOC rejected that account.

On a November 2025 trip to Puerto Rico, Martinez submitted an expense report claiming $456 in per diem. His approved travel authorization entitled him to $312. The accusation charges the $144 overage as both an ethics violation and falsification of a public record.

Martinez also filed public official financial disclosure reports on January 16 and March 12, 2026, each certified under penalty of perjury as listing all financial interests. Neither listed his ownership interest in Consoach LLC, though his candidacy paperwork filed the same day as the January disclosure did list the company. The accusation further alleges he used his Assembly title to promote a personal book tour around April 28, 2026, and used his official Assembly Facebook page on June 18 to promote Consoach's social media activity.

If the Assembly votes to submit the accusation, outside counsel would receive full access to municipal records and personnel, with scope covering all taxpayer-funded travel during Martinez's tenure, his adjunct-professor income disclosures, and whether the conduct reflects a broader pattern of using public office for private benefit. An Administrative Hearing Officer would then adjudicate the allegations in a proceeding that would be the first of its kind in Anchorage's history.

Martinez has represented East Anchorage on the Assembly since April 2023. The resolution requires Assembly action before removal proceedings formally advance.