Dirty Detox


-Updated August, 2009-
The project described on this page has morphed into the "Salvation Army Specialized Treatment Unit".

  • In 2008 Alaska had a huge budget surplus. Governor Palin could have taken roughly $100 million to provide lifetime treatment for Alaska's substance abusers and alcoholics.
  • Instead, the governor took about $500 million and gave a $1200 cash payout to every Alaskan to supplement their PFD check. (The PFD is a check every Alaskan receives just for being a citizen of Alaska).



SB100 is a bill that would give the Salvation Army millions of dollars to build and maintain a "secure" treatment facility for involuntarily committed addicts and alcoholics.

Governor Palin (a former Salvation Army director) talks about how the project will "help people", but few people actually look at who is really benefiting.

Again, millions of dollars are passing quietly, with neither scrutiny nor accountability.
** PLEASE DESCRIBE THIS IMAGE **

This Alaska senate bill was designed by evangelicals, as a sly way to slide a large pile of cash to the Alaska Salvation Army. It strengthens the Salvation Army's evangelical mission with no real benefit to addicts.



This is an evangelical project, not an addiction project.


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The relevant testimony on S.B.100 is copied here. Senator Bunde's unusual offer, excerpted below, was made at 10:07:26 AM. (Clitheroe is misspelled "Clithroe" on the Alaska Legislature website). [The testimony was removed from the Alaska Legislature website in January.]
The first flow of money ($435,000) is documented here.

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  • The Salvation Army was given this windfall [a 5 year, $1.9 million dollar per year contract] without anyone asking why another, more qualified treatment center did not receive the contract. The very large contract involves creating a "secure" treatment setting for certain types of clients.
  • Snuck into the middle of hundreds of documents (10:07:26 AM, March 27, 2007) is this:
" SENATOR BUNDE asked if Clitheroe would run the pilot program..."

And thus the $9.5 million was quietly passed... There are many facilities that would be interested in that project.
Akeela has more experience with that type of client.
They would do a better job.
  1. Why would a senator invite an Alaska API employee to give testimony, then casually ask if another organization that individual is coincidentally associated with would be interested in the enormous financial benefits of the project? It looks like a scripted event.

  2. A huge multi-year multi-million dollar contract like that could not go to the lesser qualified of several organizations without somebody pulling strings.

  3. If you want to send the Governor an email asking for an investigation, her email link is on the upper right of the "proclamations" page.

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The person who is identified as a state of Alaska API employee is the Salvation Army employee responsible for admitting clients. (He is known to all Clitheroe employees).

[Material removed from website]

The Governor signed Senate Bill 100 on July 17th, 2007. here / orig
Anyone associated with this project, whether Salvation Army staff or politician, is welcome to fill in the details on how this project developed, what qualifies Salvation Army Clitheroe to run it, and why no other organization was given an opportunity to express interest in it.
email: .