Kawasaki-JuneauNote

Today, Tuesday, is the penultimate day of the 34th Alaska Legislature. The House and Senate are expected to adjourn before midnight on Wednesday, leaving only about 30 hours to complete much work. The edition will cover the last few major items expected to be voted on before the end of the session.

The 34th Alaska Legislature is in the final 7 days before the scheduled end of session by the constitutional provision. The legislature can end early, vote to extend up to ten days, adjourn and call ourselves back in to a special session or adjourn at which time the Governor can call us back to a special session of his choosing. It is hard to say what will happen at this point in the process, but I know a lot of lawmakers and staff who temporarily live in Juneau will be evicted by the end of the month!

The Legislature has begun the official springtime in the Capitol with the onslaught of cruise ship visitors sailing up the Inside Passage. In fact, Alaska is going to receive a record number of passengers in 2026 because of an extended season that starts early and ends late and a high demand to visit this place of beauty. As I have said, Alaskans are lucky because we literally live in a postcard!

The Legislature is rounding out the 30 days of the 121-day session here in the State Capitol. As the final month begins to wind down, the committee process does too as only a few bills will continue on their approach to passage. There are many bills that remain in either the House or Senate Finance Committees or are awaiting final passage on the floor or which would be considered ‘dead’ and likely not to pass this year. Of the roughly 700 bills that are introduced in a Legislature, only 100 will end up passing both chambers and then go on to the desk of the Governor for his signature or veto.

The long, Easter weekend allowed me time to meet with constituents at a Town Hall Meeting, the Alaska Children’s Trust Celebration and the Mush for Kids, the Fabulous Feminist Auction and Open Office Hours on Thursday through Monday! The weather has finally turned for the better with sunny skies, chilly mornings and hot days reaching the 40’s! Thanks for making all of my events and meeting with me as the legislature approaches the remaining 36 days of the session that will end on May 21st

Easter is this coming Sunday and the Legislature has a long-held tradition of taking a brief break to spend time with family. It means that we will have a short week of legislative hearings and I will be back in Fairbanks to host another Town Hall meeting with my colleagues Rep. Ashley Carrick and Rep. Maxine Dibert. While we have this break to meet with the public, there are a lot of things moving very quickly for which we would like to hear public support or public opposition.

The midway point of the session passed last week, and the remaining two months will move very quickly. House Bills and Senate Bills are exchanged as they go through the bicameral legislative process. I will try to keep folks updated back home through social media and these e-newsletters. I am also hosting an upcoming Town Hall event in Fairbanks! If you have an immediate question, comment, or suggestion, you can always contact me directly at the office at 907.456.7423!

The Legislature will approach the half-way mark, day 60, on Friday of this week. For now, we remain on schedule to conclude on time on May 20th, but that can change with the rise in oil prices due to the war in Iran. In fact, the recent debate in the State House has been whether to balance the budget on the war-driven oil prices or to conservatively use the state savings account or Constitutional Budget Reserve fund. As you know, oil prices can rise or fall and ‘hope’ is not a sound budget principle.

The legislature has been busy as we approach the spring recess, at which time some legislators go home to host town hall meetings. The Anchorage Delegation and Mat-Su Delegation will host their annual town hall on March 14th with details forthcoming. Because Rep. Maxine Dibert and Rep. Will Stapp and I hosted a town hall meeting only three weeks ago, my next scheduled trip home will not be until early April – And we will certainly have a lot to talk about!

The legislature is quickly approaching a midpoint which will quicken legislative hearings on bills and begin hearings on the State Operating Budget in the Senate. The personal bill deadline came and passed so there will be no new bills introduced this year unless they come from a Standing Committee or the Governor. Diligent work begins on the bills that are currently in committee in both chambers to that we can complete work in due and regular time.