Juneau -- The Alaska House of Representatives Wednesday approved House Bill 265, sponsored by Representative Alan Austerman (R-Kodiak). HB 265 extends the life of the Alaska Regional Economic Assistance Program to July 1, 2003.

In 1988, the Alaska Regional Development Organizations (ARDOR) program was created in statute. The 13 ARDORs created across the state are private, nonprofit corporations formed by local initiative to promote private sector economic development within their designated regions.

"ARDORs are achieving significant success in sustainable development through the establishment of production and marketing cooperatives, improved access to capital, development and marketing of tourism destinations, technical assistance to local businesses and entrepreneurs, support to value-added production, and proactive involvement in locally initiated economic development projects," Austerman said. "The enabling statutes for this program also allow State agencies to enter into contracts with an exemption from a competitive procurement process.

"Sound economic development relies heavily on partnerships between the public and private sectors," Austerman said. "The ARDORs were conceived to facilitate this kind of partnering and to bring a regional perspective to the discussion of economic development issues."

"Since ARDOR grants are not tied to specific projects, they may be used for operating expenses and to leverage dollars from other sources," Austerman said. "Millions of dollars have been leveraged from federal, private, and other funding sources through this program."

HB 265 passed the House unanimously and now moves to the Senate.

Attachments:

• Sponsor Statement

Broadcasters note: Audio comments are available on the Majority Actuality line, 1-800-478-6540
= Alan Austerman, 53 K = Gene Therriault, 52 K
= Eldon Mulder, 75 K

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