Attorney General designee Stephen Cox forwarded to joint session after committee probing over voter data and amicus briefs

Stephen Cox, the governor's nominee to be Alaska's next attorney general, was forwarded to a joint session for consideration after the Senate State Affairs Committee on April 30 questioned him at length about the Department of Law's cooperation with the U.S. Department of Justice and the office's litigation choices.

Cox opened the hearing by introducing his family and describing his path to Alaska and public service. He framed his priorities as Attorney General as addressing "quality-of-life" crime through coordinated civil and criminal tools, keeping domestic violence and sexual assault prosecutions central to the department's work, and increasing consumer-protection enforcement. "If confirmed, you'll get my best judgment," Cox told the committee.

The committee focused most of its questioning on the Department of Law's role in responding to a federal request for voter-roll information and the department's participation in multistate amicus briefs. Chair Kawasaki and several senators asked whether Cox was involved in the decision to provide a complete list of eligible voters to the Department of Justice and whether that disclosure was lawful.

Cox said he was involved in the discussions and that, after threats of litigation, the state sought a memorandum of understanding (MOU) setting parameters and restrictions on use. "We looked at this from really two perspectives," he said: whether a statute authorized disclosure for lawful government purposes and whether cooperation with federal partners was appropriate. "I think in terms of the policy choice, I still would have deferred to our statewide policy makers, the governor and the lieutenant governor," he added.

Senator Wilkowski pressed Cox on whether advice from the attorney general's office had changed after the lieutenant governor initially declined to provide confidential voter data. Cox said he did not direct a change and that he believes "there is an Alaska statute that authorizes that disclosure to law enforcement." He urged that legal experts in the Department of Law were consulted and that the department's position is that the MOU provisions set forth lawful government purposes.

The nominee also faced detailed questioning about the department's litigation strategy and its frequent participation in amicus briefs. Cox said the state has historically joined many amicus filings and that the department evaluates each request on whether it aligns with Alaska's legal interests, the law at issue, and precedent. He described the choice to file a fact-based brief in a national voting case as a strategic attempt to highlight Alaska's logistical challenges rather than to take a partisan position.

Public testimony was sharply divided. Thomas Garver and David Hague, testifying online, urged the committee to withhold confirmation, criticizing written comments Cox submitted to the Alaska Supreme Court about proposed grand-jury rule changes and warning that his proposals would constrain citizens' access to investigative grand juries. "Please withhold confirmation of Stephen Cox," Garver said. Judy Miller and Theresa Obermeyer also testified in opposition, raising concerns about Cox's familiarity with Alaska law and his record of joining national litigation.

By contrast, Kevin Pendergast, an Anchorage resident who said he has worked with Cox professionally, urged confirmation and described the nominee as someone who "approaches this job desiring to serve Alaskans" and who "emphasizes partnership, finding practical solutions."

The committee also addressed several administration and transparency questions: Cox said he had not directed the temporary removal of links to amicus briefs from the Department of Law's website, blamed resource and accessibility work for the absence, and said he has asked staff to restore the materials. He explained his decision to recruit an out-of-state solicitor general for a new statewide office as an effort to bring additional appellate relationships and expertise to Alaska while working closely with Alaska-based civil and criminal appellate lawyers.

Vice Chair Bjorkman moved to forward Cox's appointment to a joint session for consideration; the motion passed without objection. Earlier in the meeting the committee had reported Senate Bill 243 (work draft 34 LS 14 56 A), a definition-of-prohibited-weapons bill, out of committee with individual recommendations and an attached fiscal note.

The committee adjourned after completing those items and scheduled additional bills for a May 2 meeting.