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Greetings again from Juneau! With less than two weeks remaining in the second session of the 23rd Legislature, activity at the capitol building is in full swing. The House has worked late into many evenings, looking at closing the fiscal gap without compromising essential state services. As always, your ideas and comments are welcome.
Percent of Market Value
After much deliberation, the House decided to let voters settle the issue of whether or not to use Alaska Permanent Fund earnings to balance the state's budget. After hearing passionate testimony from legislators on both sides of the issue, the House passed HJR 26 by a vote of 27-13. The resolution, which received bipartisan support, will allow Alaskan voters to decide on the Percentage of Market Value (POMV) plan. I was honored to vote on behalf of Kodiak and Lake & Peninsula residents for passage of HJR 26.
POMV changes the management of permanent fund earnings. It limits use of earnings to 5 percent of the market value of the fund each year. The present system allows use of all earnings of the permanent fund each year. Under the present system, if there are no earnings then there is no dividend check for that year. POMV assures a steady income stream and thus a more stable dividend.
The Senate will now consider HJR 26. If adopted, the measure would put a constitutional amendment on the ballot this November.
Spending Cap
The House passed HJR 9 on April 22nd. This resolution will put a constitutional limit on future state spending. The spending limit is a formula that would tie state spending to inflation and growth rates in Alaska. In short, the rate of state spending could increase by no more than 75 percent of the inflation and population growth rates in the state.
The legislature could spend up to 4 percent more, only if approved by a three-quarters vote. HJR 9 provides exemptions for over a dozen areas, including bond debt for construction projects and the payment of dividend checks. Again, I was honored to vote on behalf of Kodiak and Lake and Peninsula residents for passage of HJR 9. If approved by the Senate, HJR 9 will go to the voters in November.
Education Funding Update
The House has passed an education-funding package that includes an increase in the base student allocation from $4,010 to $4,588. The Senate also passed an education package, which differs from the House version. A conference committee, consisting of members of the House and Senate, will meet to work out a compromise before the close of the second session.
On the Radar
If you support or oppose the efforts of the House to solve the fiscal gap by passing the POMV and the spending cap, I encourage you to contact Senators and urge them to act on your advice. The Senate will be addressing these issues this week and next.
Many folks have asked and urged me to support an income tax as a method of taxation. I support the income tax approach should we need to go to a general tax to get money to fill the budget gap. Should the Senate and the voters pass the POMV I do not believe we will need an income tax.
Also, I want to be very clear about state sales taxes; I oppose them and will not vote for them. City sales taxes have been a traditional method of revenue generation for cities and boroughs and should remain such.
Marine Fellowship
A fellowship opportunity in Washington, D.C. is available for graduate students studying marine resources and marine policy. The Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship is open to students currently in graduate or professional programs. The deadline for applications is May 5, 2004. For more information, go to
Directory of State Officials
The Kodiak Legislative Information Office has the official directory of state officials (DOSO). If you are interested in contacting state agencies, the Kodiak LIO may be able to assist you. They are located at 112 Mill Bay Road, across from Kodiak Subway.
Want to check on a bill?
All bills can be found on the Internet in the BASIS system. Anyone can find out a bill's status, including committee hearings, how legislators have voted on a bill, and you can view and print any bill's entire text. Access the system from
Visitors
It was our pleasure to welcome visitors, Tom Martin, Dave Woodruff, Carolyn Floyd, Linda Freed, Kelly Wakefield, Jack Wick, Marilyn Arneson, Wayne Stevens, Pam Foreman, Rex Powers, Tony Wassillie, Terry Lindeman, Rebecca Jensen, and Almeria Christiansen to our Juneau office. If you plan to visit Juneau during the legislative session, please stop by my office.
And remember, my ears and door are always open to you.
Dan Ogg
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