Anchorage Daily News

The politically connected Anchorage real estate development firm Penco was Alaska's biggest contributor to congressional races over the past year, moving into a top spot previously held by the defunct Veco Corp.

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Bob Penney

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There were $51,100 in donations associated with Penco in 2007, the latest Federal Election Commission reports available. That's close to the $51,650 that Veco managers gave for congressional races in 2006 before top executives pleaded guilty to bribing state legislators and sold the company. Veco was top Alaska donor for the past decade to federal campaigns, mostly congressional races, the Center for Responsive Politics found.

Penco is a family business owned by Bob Penney, a sportfishing activist who is a longtime friend and past business partner of Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens. Penney last year appeared before the federal grand jury investigating Stevens.

All the Penco-related donations listed were from Penney family members. Bob Penney, who gave the bulk of the contributions, did not return messages for this story.

Henry Penney, Bob's son, said the family contributions are about helping Stevens, up for re-election in the fall.

"It's about showing support for Senator Stevens, who has done a lot for this state," Henry Penney said.

Stevens has never had a close Senate re-election race, but Democrats think he's vulnerable because of the investigation. FBI and IRS agents raided Stevens' Girdwood home last summer in connection with a renovation job managed by Veco. Stevens has not been charged with any wrongdoing.

Henry Penney last year gave Stevens the maximum $4,600 he's allowed to give over the six-year U.S. Senate election cycle. He also gave $1,250 last year to Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who is up for re-election in 2010. Both are Republicans.

Henry Penney said he wasn't aware his father donated $25,000 last year to the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which works to get Republican incumbents re-elected to the U.S. Senate and funds challengers to the Democrats.

Giving to the committee lets donors contribute much more than they are allowed to give to individual candidates. The committee can then pass up to $39,900 to each U.S. Senate candidate. The committee, and its Democratic counterpart, can also pay for its own race-specific advertising and campaigning. The Republican committee, for example, has created a Web site, begichbaggage.com, to attack Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich. Begich recently created an exploratory committee to raise money and test the waters for a run against Stevens.

Bob Penney gave $2,600 to Stevens' re-election campaign in 2007 and $4,600 to Murkowski. Others in the Penney family last year donated an additional $7,200 total to the Stevens campaign and $5,850 to Murkowski.

Penney has known Murkowski since she was the small child of then-Alaska Sen. Frank Murkowski.

Lisa Murkowski was accused last year of getting a sweetheart deal from Penney on her purchase of a Kenai riverfront lot next door to Penney's home. Murkowski denied wrongdoing but decided last summer to sell the lot back to Penney as a result of the controversy.

Penney has long been a campaign contributor, giving money to Alaska candidates as well as Outside politicians including former U.S. Rep. George Nethercutt of Washington, Missouri Sen. Kit Bond, former Montana Sen. Conrad Burns and South Dakota Sen. John Thune.

But Penney's 2007 giving is far more than he's contributed in any year at least since 1990, the furthest back Federal Election Commission records compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics go.

Bob Penney and Ted Stevens' ties go beyond campaign contributions. They were partners in a Utah land deal where Stevens made an initial investment of $15,000 in 1998 and said in 2005 that he made $150,000 when he sold his interest in the property.

Stevens and Penney have also been partners in racehorses with other influential Alaskans. And they are involved in bringing members of Congress, corporate executives and other VIPs to Alaska each summer for the Kenai River Classic, a king salmon fishing tournament that raises money for fish habitat.

Penney is co-founder and a current board member of the nonprofit Kenai River Sportfishing Association. Congress has earmarked $4.7 million of Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund money over the past four years to be spent under KRSA's direction on fisheries research and habitat work.

The Stevens campaign released a statement Friday about his relationship with Penney.

"Bob Penney is a longstanding acquaintance of Senator Stevens, his political contributions to many Alaskan candidates are a matter of public record," according to the statement.

"The campaign has received more than 2,700 contributions for the 2008 campaign. Total contributions from the Penney family to the 2008 campaign are less than 7 tenths of 1 percent of the total that the campaign has raised for the 2008 election," it read.

Penney gives to candidates on the state and municipal level as well. Campaign reports show that for the 2006 election, the most recent for the state Legislature, Penney donated a total of $7,500 to legislative candidates. Most went to Republicans including Jay Ramras, Anna Fairclough, Ralph Samuels and Kevin Meyer.

He's also given to the Chris Birch and Sherri Jackson campaigns for April's Anchorage Assembly election.

"Bob Penney has been an active participant (in Alaska politics) and an active contributor since I came to Alaska over 25 years ago," said Ashley Reed, a prominent lobbyist.

Find Sean Cockerham online at adn.com/contact/scockerham or call him at 257-4344.