1. Digging into Alaska Native Corporations and other businesses
Jennifer LaFleur
Reveal | Center for Investigative Reporting

2. 12 Regional Corporations

3. Alaska native corporations (ANC) were formed when Congress passed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971.
The act allotted 40 million acres of land for division among 12 regional native corporations and 220 village corporations.
Alaska natives and descendants born before 1971 were allowed to receive 100 shares in their village corporation and regional corporation.
There were originally twelve Alaska regional corporations. In 1975, a 13th corporation formed to represent Alaska natives residing outside the state of Alaska, but it was dissolved in Today there are 198 village corporations.

4. In 1986, Congress passed legislation that allowed ANCs to participate in the Small Business Administration's disadvantaged business program, known as the 8(a) program, which sets aside federal contracts for minority-owned or other disadvantaged companies.
With strong advocacy from Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens, Congress later extended to ANCs additional special 8(a) benefits, such as the ability to win no-bid contracts for any amount and to own multiple subsidiaries in the program.

8. ANC data and documents
ANCs with at least 500 shareholders and $1 million in assets must file annual reports and and election proxy statements with the Alaska Division of Banking and Securities. All regional corporations meet that threshold, as do 28 village corporations.
Some ANCs make these available on their websites or sometimes you can get copies from a shareholder.

12. ANC data and documents
Court records: The Dept. of Banking and Securities regulates filings – all other complaints go through courts
Alaska courts
VA, MD
PACER

13. Lexis-Nexis Leadership directories
ANC data and documents
Lexis-Nexis
Leadership directories

14. Key data points
Revenue versus dividends. Some ANC companies make billions in revenue, but little goes back to the shareholders.
Executive pay versus dividends
Location of annual meetings. Some ANCs hold their annual meetings in locations that are not accessible to villagers.

15. Contracts
USAspending.gov – overview information on contracts, grant and loans (contracts themselves need to be requested from agency)
Federal Procurement Data System federal contracts, but is sometimes more thorough/current

16. Other federal data on businesses
OSHA – Worker safety
SBA – Small business loans (also on usaspending)
EPA
SEC – public companies
FEC – campaign donations and lobbying (opensecrets.org)

17. State and local data Corporations filings – Department of Commerce
Licensing – Business license search
Professional licenses
Inspections

18. Federal courts and bankruptcies – PACER State court records

19. Resources IRE – tip sheets, story archive, data
Reynolds Center for Business journalism - businessjournalism.org
Documentcloud.org

20. jlafleur@cironline.org @j_la28 www.revealnews.org