Fairbanks: Education Veto, Capitol Projects, PFD

April 17, 2025

Dear Neighbors,

Today is day 87 of the 34^th Alaska Legislative Session, meaning we have a mere 33 days remaining to pass a balanced budget, work on education reforms and pass signature legislation from individual members and committees. I will continue to bring current news to you on a more frequent basis as items begin to move more quickly since the Operating and Capital Budget have been moved from each of the houses of the bicameral legislature along with an education funding bill that passed both houses but has been vetoed by Governor Dunleavy. The veto override of education support will be done after this Easter on Wednesday in a joint session.

I spent last weekend in Fairbanks, where I attended the Military Appreciation Banquet as a donor and saw my colleague Representative Stapp receive the Jim Messer Service Award on Friday and hosted a townhall with Representative Stapp on Saturday. Easter weekend begins this Thursday and so my office will be closed on Easter Sunday, but I will fly back to Fairbanks with Representative Maxine Dibert to once again host town hall meetings and other events to get consensus information from constituents and neighbors. Check out the latest of details in Juneau in this Easter edition of my e-newsletter below!

Education Still a Priority: Veto Override the Right Thing to Do!

The Governor announced his veto of HB69 which passed the Senate and later passed the House. It contained an increase to the Base Student Allocation of $1000 which would go a long way to saving school closures and decreasing class sizes. Based simply on inflation, the BSA should be closer to $1800, but it was not fiscally prudent to raise it by that much without the assurance that it would be continued at that same rate in the future. The smaller BSA is sustainable, significant and provides relief to Fairbanks property taxpayers.

The version of HB69 that hit his desk did not have any of the types of accountability measures that have been proposed or requests from the Governor. For instance, Correspondence school students get 90% of the BSA compared to brick and mortar schools but they are not required to take competency testing; only about 14% choose to take the testing. Parents of the correspondence students are not required to report how the $5,364 for each of their students was spent so public dollars are not accountable to the district at all.

The veto override will occur on Wednesday of next week after the Easter Sunday break in a joint session. While the bill only contains the funding and not the other measures, it is still important to override the veto and ensure that districts know that they have state support-before pink slips and school closures occur. I will continue to work with the administration on student accountability measures and other non-monetary parts to ensure that all Alaska kids get great educational opportunities at all levels.

My meeting with concerned parents about education funding and the youngest lobbyist in the building

Capital Budget is the Roads, Rails and Runways

The Alaska State Capital Budget is different than the Operating Budget. The Capital Budget contains, usually, one-time items and roads, rails, runways or public buildings as opposed to ‘daily operating’ expenses. The Capital Budget originates in the Senate and then goes to the House where they add and sometimes subtract funding to specific projects.

This year the Capital Budget remains among the smallest in Alaska history when it comes to state support. Instead, the budget contains enough funding to match many federal projects, a few of the Governor’s priorities and no individual or community requests. In fact, there were over $3,200,000,000 of requests and the Senate funded only $162M or a mere 5% of the requests. Federal funding makes up the rest for a nearly $3B budget!

Most of the projects greenlit for the Fairbanks area are improvements to our roads. Road projects are slated for Holmes Road, Minnie Street, 6^th and 7^th Avenue, Murphy Dome Rd, the Richardson Highway and Sheep Creek Road to name a few. There is also more than $20M for upgrades to the Fairbanks International Airport and funds to help fill winter potholes across the interior.

House Passes Budget with a $1,400 PFD and a $450-million Deficit

Governor Dunleavy gave the legislature in December a budget which called for a full PFD that would also result in a $1.6-billion deficit. The House had to make major revisions, including cutting the PFD to roughly 1/3 of the original amount, cuts to public safety, corrections and general health and welfare-all of which are guaranteed in the State Constitution. The budget passed only by the narrowest of margins and will come next to the Senate where we will try to reconcile the budget needs and wants with the revenues we have at hand-and it won’t be easy.

The PFD has been a great gift-but has also caused a great rift in the budget because it has been the easiest way to balance the budget. But it is the wrong way! A cut to the PFD is regressive and harms seniors on fixed incomes, poorer Alaskans, people who live in rural Alaska and children. For the last 12 years, Alaskans have failed to get a fair share for our resources-particularly in oil and gas. The oil wealth giveaway had made bold promises: more oil, more jobs and a bigger PFD. In fact, over the 12 years, we have less oil in the pipeline, fewer jobs on the North Slope-many of which go to outsiders and a smaller PFD. Legislatures and Governors have also had to balance the budget using our Constitutional Budget Reserve that has gone from $18-billion down to $2-billion today!

Alaska legislators need to reduce the deficit by ensuring Alaskans get a fair share for ALL of our resources including our fish, our gold, our timber, our minerals and especially our limited oil and gas reserves. There are several bills in the legislature this year that can help immediately, including SB92 which closes a tax loophole on one billionaire who makes profits on Alaska oil. Check out information on this one bill that would bring a calculated $180-million in revenues back home.

Wouldn't it be nice if Alaska saw more profits from oil and gas?

Addressing Usury and the Military

Usury is the practice of making loans to people while unfairly enriching oneself. SB39, A bill I've cosponsored with Senator Forrest Dunbar would stop predatory payday lending practices in Alaska passed the Senate and will now move along to the House of Representatives. The bill would cap interest rates on these types of loans which average over 400% in Alaska to the federal 36% APR which is still incredibly high and incredibly profitable to some lenders-most of which are out of state corporations.

The bill will protect some of the most vulnerable families from the endless cycle of chronic debt and poverty that these types of short-term loans perpetuate and that these corporations tend to seek out-especially young military servicemembers. Of the 13 corporations licensed in Alaska do this type of lending, all were headquartered outside of Alaska. In the five years between 2017 to 2022 alone, payday lenders garnished over $3.7 million from PFD’s of Alaskans sometimes going to these lenders before restitution, child support and other instate garnishments.

Public Testimony Opportunities

Next week, many bill hearings will be taking public testimony. You can check out the full week’s schedule by following this link.

Below is a list of bills that I think you might be most interested in testifying for:

HB 13: Municipal Property Tax Exceptions

Tuesday, April 22 at 8:00 am

This bill would provide optional municipal tax exemptions that different municipalities can use at a tool to solve local housing challenges.

SJR 12: NOAA Buoy Outages

Tuesday, April 22 at 1:00 pm

This resolution is urging the United States Congress and NOAA to address outages of National Data Buoy Center stations. These outages are concerning because these buoys provide important data points for forecasting models and real time observations that ensure safe fishing and navigation in coastal Alaska.

SB 116: Campaign Finance, Contribution Limits

Tuesday, April 22 at 3:30 pm

Right now, Alaska doesn't have any campaign contribution limits after a 2021 Alaskan court decision. This legislation would establish reasonable limits on campaign contributions to ensure that a few affluent people cannot use their money to unduly influence a campaign.

SB 102: Eliminate Daylight Saving Time

Tuesday, April 22 at 3:30 pm

It isn't healthy to have to adjust your circadian rhythm twice a year when the clocks either fall forward or spring back. This legislation would eliminate Daylight Saving Time for Alaska, joining both Hawaii and Arizona who have already enacted this type of legislation.

HB 193: Unemployment Benefits; Paid Parent Leave

Wednesday, April 23 at 9:00 am

Several states already have programs such as Oregon's Paid Family Medical Leave that guarantees parents paid time off when they invite a new child into their home. HB 193 would establish a program like that in Alaska so that when a child is born, adopted, or fostered into a new home, the parents will be able to bond with that child free from the stress of paying the bills.

SB 176: Approve Marathon Petroleum Royalty Oil Sale

Wednesday, April 23 at 3:30 pm

This legislation would approve and ratify the sale of royalty oil by the State of Alaska to Marathon Petroleum Supply and Trading Company LLC.

HJR 13: Afghans, Special Immigrant Visas, Assistance

Thursday, April 24 at 10:15 am

This Resolution is urging the President of the United States to expand evacuation efforts for applicants with approved Special Immigrant Visas.

SB 167: Criminal Conviction Overturned: Receive Past PFD

Thursday, April 24 at 3:30 pm

Such as in the case of the Fairbanks Four, when innocent people were convicted of crimes they did not commit, and their convictions were later overturned, this legislation would ensure that these individuals would receive the PFD checks that were denied to them while they were unfairly incarcerated.

HB 180: Electronic Driver's Licenses

Friday, April 25 at 1:00 pm

Instead of always having to have a physical license on you this piece of legislation would allow drivers to have a digital license that they can keep on their phone.

Easter Weekend Events Around Town

Constituent Coffee: Saturday April 19, 9:30 – 11:30 am at McCafferty’s

Come drink coffee and chat with Representative Dibert and me.

Easter Town Hall: Saturday April 19, 1 – 3 pm at the Gasser Hall (Tanana Valley Fairgrounds)

Representative Dibert and I will be co-hosting this Town Hall. We look forward to your questions!

Politics and Pizza, Monday April 21: 6-8 pm at House of Fire Pizza Badger Plaza (in North Pole)

Bring your appetite and your questions.

Other Events in and Around Town

Beat Beethoven 5k: Saturday April 19, 11 am at the UAF Patty Center

Help race money for the Fairbanks Symphony by racing against Beethoven time-honored Fairbanks tradition! For more information go to: https://fairbankssymphony.org/events/beat-beethoven-5k/

Earth Day Fair and Makers Market: Saturday April 19, 12 pm – 4pm at the Joy Community Center

Every day is earth day, but Saturday is even more so. This event includes raffles, local nonprofits, local craft vendors and local food vendors. For more information go to: https://iagreenstar.org/earth-day-fair-and-makers-market/

Easter Bunny at FCM: Sunday April 20, 12pm – 3pm at the Fairbanks Children's Museum

Celebrate Easter by taking your kids to see the Easter Bunny! For tickets and information go to: https://www.fairbankschildrensmuseum.com/

My Staff and I are Here for You

As always, I will continue to keep you updated on what I’m working on in Juneau throughout the session. If you have any questions about anything going on in the Capitol or at home, feel free to give me a call or shoot me an email – as always, my staff and I are working for you. We will assist you with the issues important to you and your family.

Working Hard for Fairbanks Families,