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I was sworn in as the Senator for District F by Lt. Governor Dahlstrom on January 17th.
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February 7, 2023
Welcome!
My name is James Kaufman, I am the Senator for Abbott Loop, Independence Park, Huffman/O'Malley, and the lower Hillside (Senate District F). This is the first of many newsletters that we will try to get out every other week. As this is the first, buckle in for a more-lengthy-than-usual read.
If this message was forwarded to you by the original recipient, make sure to sign-up using the link at the bottom of the newsletter. If you would like to opt-out, simply scroll down to the bottom of the newsletter to find the unsubscribe button – but we hope you'll stick around!
For those who don't know me, although I've lived on the Hillside for years, Senate District F is new to me. For the last two years I represented House District 28 which included the Hillside, Rabbit Creek, Bear Valley, Turnagain Arm, and Girdwood.
Now in the Senate, our new district is bordered on the West by New Seward Highway, on the South by Huffman Road, on the East by the top of the hill, and on the North by Dowling/Tudor. The district includes Abbott Loop, Far North Bicentennial Park, Hilltop Ski Area, Prospect Heights, Lower and Middle Hillside, the Alaska Zoo, and many local businesses.
If you want to look closer at the maps, you can find them here:
House District 11: Huffman/O'Malley & Hillside
House District 12: Abbott Loop & Independence park
We will be using this and many other forms of communication throughout the year to keep you, our neighbors elsewhere in Senate District F (and some outside of the district) up to date on current news, events you may be interested in, bills you may want to follow, important committee affairs, and other happenings in state government.
Speaking of, I will be back in district next weekend and would love to meet you! Join myself and Rep. Coulombe at SteamDot Coffee, Saturday the 18th, 9-11am:
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We’re currently on Day 23 of the legislative session and things have been moving quickly.
This year, I am a member of the 17-person Senate Majority and have a solid list of committee assignments which I’ll go over a few sections down in this newsletter.
We have been doing a great deal of work getting the office set-up, solidifying team procedures to operate at full capacity, and transitioning everything from "Representative" to "Senator" (website, Facebook, email, phones, etc.).
I am incredibly happy with the exceptionally talented and very hardworking staff that we have assembled, and how well we are all coming together as a highly functional team. We show up early, stay late, and are in the office most weekends. Most importantly we really enjoy working together.
The expanded team now includes:
- Matthew Harvey my Chief of Staff
- Emma Torkelson my Transportation Committee Aide
- Dominick Harnett my Office Manager
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I had the pleasure of introducing one of my constituents on the Senate Floor for the first time. It is always a joy to connect with my neighbors while I have to be in Juneau.
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Setting the Vision
We will continue to pursue my Vision and Mission statements that I set at the beginning of my first term in the legislature.
The Vision
A state where our society thrives, our people prosper, and our constituents experience a high-level of wellbeing. We will achieve this through a limited, accountable, efficient, and transparent government which provides opportunities and respects personal freedoms.
The Mission
Champion continuous improvement and best management practices to balance Alaska’s budget, protect the Permanent Fund, and lay the groundwork for prosperity for years to come.
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Follow along with my Committees:
Chair of Transportation: Learn more about the committee and follow along with our meetings here. Also, see below for updates on what we've done so far in the Transportation Committee.
Vice Chair of Health & Social Services: We are working to reduce the high cost of health care and improve the performance of government. Major issues include SNAP Delays, the split of the Department of Health and Department of Family & Community Services, and Department IT challenges.
Member of Legislative Budget & Audit: We will continue to use audit findings to pursue continuous improvement and efficiency in our agency performance. Last year, through this committee, we implemented an audit oversight framework which prioritized audit findings and focused our effort on the highest priority items. I'm excited to follow through on use of this framework.
Member of Resources: I am focused on an all-of-the-above energy approach where Alaska is able to responsibly develop our resources while we expand our other portfolios like wind, hydro, micro-nuclear, etc. Other important issues include our fisheries depletion, food security, carbon sequestration, and more.
Member of Judiciary: We have oversight over judicial matters (courts, civil/criminal penalties, constitutionality of resolutions, and more).
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Bills, Bills, Bills
My Personal Legislation (Prime Sponsorship):
SJR 4 / SB 20: Spending Cap
A functional appropriation limit linking government spending to Alaska's private-sector, productive economy. This spending cap ties government spending to a percentage of Alaska's State GDP. This includes a constitutional amendment via SJR 4 and a statutory change in SB 20. These two proposals work together to provide a lower control limit requiring a supermajority to spend (on capital projects) up to the constitutional limit, which cannot be exceeded. Read more about this proposal at this link: https://senatorkaufman.com/spending-cap
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SB 21: Executive Budget Act
Strategic planning, budgeting, execution and reporting to help Alaska's state government address longstanding performance and management problems. Under this new model the Governor would set 3-6 broad statewide priorities, which would guide 4-year agency strategic plans updated every other year. Annually, performance and financial plans would be produced for the budget process and would be aligned with the higher-level strategic plans. Read more about this proposal at this link: https://senatorkaufman.com/executive-budget-act
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SB 25: Repealing Funds, Accounts, and Programs
This bill repeals unused funds, accounts, and programs. SB 25 is intended to reduce administrative cost/complexity and provide decision-makers with the necessary tools to reduce other funds as recommended by our Legislative Finance Division.
SB 26: Fallen Peace Officers
A small token of support for our fallen peace officers in the form of commemorative plates for Peace Officers killed in the line of duty. These "Peace Officers" include Police Officers, State Troopers, VPSO's, Officers of the Court, and Department of Corrections. Read more about this proposal at this link:
https://www.senatorkaufman.com/remember-the-fallen/
SB 33: Renewable Energy Grant Fund (REF)
Provides a 10-year extension of the REF sunset date to June 20, 2023. The REF is a competitive grant program which advances Renewable Energy Projects across the state. Launch Alaska posted a great article which describes some of the benefits of the Renewable Energy Fund. Read that article here: http://www.launchalaska.com/blog/2023/1/18/alaskas-renewable-energy-fund-a-critical-catalyst-in-our-energy-transition
SB 34: Citizen Advisory Commission on Federal Areas
Reestablishes the Citizens Advisory Commission on Federal Management Areas. After more than 30 years of activity, the commission sunset last year, but the need for it remains great. CACFA’s purpose is to research, educate and advocate on behalf of Alaskans when federal land management decisions are inconsistent with federal law and Congressional intent of Alaska's Statehood Act, the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, and ANILCA. The Commission makes recommendations on matters relating to those determinations and works to prevent loss or erosion of property, access, and other valid rights of Alaskans.
Bills I am Co-Sponsoring:
SB 10: Hunting / Trapping / Fishing: Disabled Vets (Senator Kiehl)
Provides for permanent trapping cards for service-disabled veterans.
SB 38: Interference with Emergency Services (Senator Wilson)
Establishes the offense of interference with emergency communications, protecting operators and reducing dangerous first responder harassments.
SB 46: Brain Injury Awareness Month (Senator Tobin)
Establishes March as Brain Injury Awareness Month, recognizing the prevalence of brain injuries and increasing awareness of prevention and treatment of brain injuries.
SB 51: Controlled Sub. Data: Exempt Veterinarian (Senator Tobin)
Exempts veterinarians from the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program, allowing the PDMP to work as designed to combat human opioid abuse, protects the privacy of human patients, and reduces costs of veterinarian care.
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Catch up on Senate Transportation
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I attended the Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board's meeting in Juneau last week. AMHOB works with the Department to create a long and short term plan for the System--all the more important as AMHS plans major modernization and standardization projects for the aging fleet.
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As chair of the Senate Transportation Committee for the next two years, it is my mission to work collaboratively with DOT&PF to drive continuous improvement across all modes of transportation.
Most recently, we heard from Department of Transportation and the Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board about how they are planning to manage critically needed capital improvements to the AMHS' aging vessels and overall reliability. DOT has now received $300 million for standardization and modernization of the fleet. As the planning and building projects progress, the Committee will be closely following along. We look forward to seeing some concrete long- and short-term plans that will efficiently and effectively target AMHS’ biggest needs.
Catch up with what the Committee has been doing:
1/24: Watch the Committee's discussion on direction and Transportation priorities for the year.
1/26: Watch a presentation on DOT&PF’s Structure, Organization, and Direction you can look through the slide pack here.
1/31: Watch DOT&PF presenting on Federal & State Funding structure that guides how most projects are built. Look at the presentation slides here.
2/2: As discussed above, see an Overview of the Alaska Marine Highway System by DOT&PF and the Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board. See the slide deck here.
Coming up this week: Thursday, Feb 9, 1:30pm-3pm, we will be hearing a presentation from DOT&PF on the State's public facilities and aviation divisions.
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Projects for the District
Our legislative system for inputting capital projects for our district is known as CAPSIS and the system is currently open. We’ve been working with our House Representatives, Representative Coulombe in District 11 and Representative Schrage in District 12, to gather projects and coordinate with the Abbott Loop, Huffman/O'Malley, Hillside, and HALO Community Councils.
We have projects from last year that we plan to resubmit and a few new ones: Fire prevention/mitigation and Firewise projects, pedestrian safety projects, LRSA/RRSA projects, and several others. Something we’ve been reiterating with all who are requesting funding for capital projects (or otherwise), is that the budget is going to be more constrained this year. Markets and oil prices have both been shaky creating uncertainty for this year’s budget (which has another several months left to go), next year's budget, and the budget we’re currently working on.
The budget provided to the legislature at the beginning of session has a deficit, so this is something we’ll work through during the session. Stay tuned for more Capital Project updates.
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AKLeg Contacts:
Rep. Julie Coulombe (HD 11) — 465-3879
Rep. Calvin Schrage (HD 12) — 465-4931
Find your Community Council: Online here
or call 277-1977
Municipality of Anchorage
Assembly Members
Anc School District: 742-4000
Anc School Board: 742-1101
Anc Pothole Hotline: 343-8277
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My bills
SB 20/SJR 4: Proposes functional spending cap which a constructive link our private sector performance (measured by GDP) and government spending.
SB 21: Reorganizes the Executive Budget Act to integrate the planning and budgeting processes used by the executive and legislative branches.
SB 25: Repealing statutory funds that have been replaced or have long been unused.
SB 26: Creating a specialty license plate honoring peace officers who have died in the line of duty.
SB 33: Extends the Renewable Energy Grant Fund which allows communities across Alaska to pursue renewable projects that reduce the high cost of gas.
SB 34: Reauthorizes CACFA which helps Alaskans navigate complex federal land access and land use regulations and works with federal agencies to ensure Congressional intent is implemented with respect to Alaska’s interests.
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