The Alaska House of Representatives on Saturday rejected a Senate-drafted multibillion-dollar tax break for a proposed trans-Alaska natural gas pipeline project, as members of the House declined to abandon a different proposal they drafted. Members of the House voted down the Senate’s revised bill 12-28, nine votes short of what was needed to adopt the […]
Alaska’s public employees and public school teachers will not have access to pensions this year. In a 33-27 vote Tuesday, the Alaska Legislature failed to override Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s veto of a bill that would have created a new pension system for teachers, municipal employees and state employees in Alaska. Forty votes were needed for […]
After two southeast Alaska Republicans reversed themselves, the Alaska Legislature on Monday failed to override Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s veto of an elections bill intended to take effect this year. Forty votes were needed to override the veto. Monday’s vote was 38-22, with Rep. Jeremy Bynum, R-Ketchikan, and Sen. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka, providing the critical votes […]
Members of the Alaska Senate voted to approve a long-awaited pension bill on Tuesday, amid debate on the cost of the new public retirement benefits system and responsibilities of the state and local community employers. The Senate passed a revised version of a pension plan approved by the House last year. The vote was 12 […]
The Alaska Senate Finance committee advanced a draft capital budget on Tuesday that would put nearly $250 million toward state facilities and maintenance projects next year. The draft budget adds $88 million to Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s proposed capital budget of $159 million, with the largest additions going toward K-12 schools and university facilities maintenance. That […]
The Alaska Senate on Wednesday advanced a constitutional amendment that would establish a dedicated fund for public education. If passed, lawmakers could design a new source of state revenue to go toward the fund that would be used specifically for schools. The resolution states that the Legislature could only appropriate money from the fund for […]
The Alaska Department of Corrections spent over $24 million more than the budget approved by the Legislature last year, with a large portion for staff overtime, raising alarm from lawmakers. DOC officials submitted their additional budget request to the Legislature earlier this month, part of a routine budget process to account for state spending over […]
Lawmakers held a series of hearings with officials from Mt. Edgecumbe High School, the largest state-run boarding school in Alaska, following a tumultuous year of budget and staff cuts, administration changes and a wave of student disenrollments. Sen. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka opened his remarks at a Feb 12 Senate Finance Committee hearing saying lawmakers need […]