Hello and thank you for tuning in. I appreciate this opportunity to speak to you with a message from Juneau. Today I will speak about Borough Incorporation in Unorganized Areas and the need for everyone who can pay to help shoulder the cost of education.

This week school districts from across the state are in the capitol for their annual legislative fly in. Each school district schedules meetings with as many Senators and Representatives as possible in order to ask for more funding for education and to presents a united front in this endeavor. While I strongly support funding for education as I have indicated in past radio addresses, newsletters and interviews, I feel it is important to realize that the state is necessarily divided on this issue because not everyone is pulling their fair share.

As the State of Alaska struggles with state- wide issues of funding education and other state services, it is appropriate to ask the question of who should share in providing this funding. This logically brings up the debate regarding Borough Incorporation and Unorganized Areas.

Article X, Section 1 of the Constitution of the State of Alaska encourages the formation of borough governments encompassing large, natural regions. The Alaska State Legislature has a duty under Article X, Section 3 to establish fundamental State policy regarding the formation of organized boroughs.

Last year the Local Boundary Commission released a list of regions (unorganized areas) that the LBC determined had the resources and infrastructure necessary to begin paying for their schools with local taxes. The list includes the western Aleutian Islands including Dutch Harbor and Adak, the Upper Tanana valley including Delta and Tok, and the Copper River basin including Glennallen and 17 small unincorporated communities. Also on the list is Prince William Sound, where Cordova and Valdez pay city taxes for schools but could combine their efforts. Four areas in Southeast Alaska also are included.

Residents in organized boroughs and home rule or first class cities within unorganized boroughs are required to operate and help fund their public school system, yet residents in unorganized Alaska have no such requirement even when financial resources are available. For example, residents in organized boroughs contribute to the cost of major maintenance and new construction of public schools but residents in unorganized areas receive 100% of funding from the state for operational costs of their local schools.

Residents in each organized school district are required to contribute the equivalent of 4 mills of the Full and True Value of the taxable property within the district or 45% of the Basic Need of the preceding year, whichever is less. Although most residents pay a property tax to meet this obligation, local taxpayers may choose alternative methods to raise the required amount such as other forms of taxation.

We need to be asking the question: is this system equitable? Is there a reasonable basis for different treatment of Alaskans who live in organized boroughs and home rule or first class cities in comparison with the rest of Alaskans where those other communities have the ability to pay?

If we believe that the formation of boroughs

1. promotes maximum self-government;
2. relieves the State of a substantial burden of providing local services; and
3. results in equity and fairness, then we should be seriously looking at incorporation of these areas.

Senate Concurrent Resolution 12, sponsored by Senator Wilken, requests the Local Boundary Commission to review the selected areas in depth and make a recommendation for borough incorporation for each model borough that is determined to have met the applicable borough incorporation standards. SCR 12 seeks to address the fact that existing law imposes significant obligation on organized Alaska while no corresponding duties are imposed on the people living in the unorganized borough outside home rule or first class cities.

The list of regions determined by the LBC to be capable of paying for their schools with local taxes are on that list based on adequacy of facilities to provide communication and integration, existence of a population with common interests, a finding that incorporation is in the best interest of the State, and the existence of financial and human resources needed to support government among other factors.

In FY '04 organized Alaska will pay $165.1 million to support their local schools before receiving any state financial support. At the same time 19 Regional Education Attendance Areas will receive 100% state support, including four REAA school districts recommended for review.

If we are serious about resolving education funding, it is imperative that everyone at the table carry their fair share of the burden. If you believe that there is no reasonable basis in law to distinguish between those Alaskans who are required to accept these obligations and those Alaskans who are not then I encourage you to contact your elected officials and ask that they support SCR 12.

I would love to hear from you on any of these topics or anything else we are working on in the capitol.

For information on legislation I am working on, to read district updates, or to send me an email, please find my office on the internet at www.akrepublicans.org
You can also call the office directly, 907-465-6600 or toll free in state 1-877-465-6601. Please let me know if you would like to be included on my email distribution list for updates from the office.

Thank you for listening. Next week I plan to speak about education funding and some of the bills that are quickly moving through the Legislature. Have a wonderful week.

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