News from the Senate Majority
Alaska State Legislature

Wendy Lindskoog, Senate Majority Press Secretary
State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
Phone: 907/465-4582
http://www.akrepublicans.org
Broadcast Actualities: 800/478-6540

Bill Adds Legislators to Anchorage Transportation Committee

For Immediate Release: February 24,1998 Contact: James Armstrong, Assistant to Senator Dave Donley, at (907) 465-6581.

Juneau – The Senate Tuesday unanimously agreed Anchorage legislators should be added to the Anchorage Metropolitan Area Transportation Study (AMATS) Policy Committee since legislative authorization is required before any federal funds can be expended on AMATS priority projects. Senate Bill 259, sponsored by the Senate Transportation Committee, will move to the House of Representatives for consideration.

"Having legislators on the AMATS Policy Committee is very reasonable," said Senator Jerry Ward, Chair of the Senate Transportation Committee. "Anchorage residents were concerned with their inability to help guide the AMATS committee direction. They felt by having their elected officials involved in the committee process, their concerns and issues would be better represented."

AMATS was created to comply with federal law requiring communities of over 50,000 in population to have a Metropolitan Planning Organization in order to qualify for federal highway funding. Presently, the AMATS Policy Committee is composed of two Anchorage Assembly members, one representative from the State Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, one representative from the State Department of Environment Conservation and the mayor of Anchorage.

Senator Donley who Co-Chairs the Anchorage Caucus, said it doesn’t make sense that the committee has no legislative representation. Every other elected branch of local and state government is represented on AMATS but the Legislature. If adopted, SB 259 would add one Anchorage state senator and one Anchorage state representative to the committee and would remove one of the two administrative positions appointed by the governor.

"By changing the committee composition, we take a small step in streamlining and improving coordination of the Anchorage transportation planning process," said Donley. "Elected officials who represent communities affected by these transportation committees must eventually approve project expenses. Legislators have a far greater and more appropriate interest in developing a project list for the communities we represent than non-elected administrators."

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= Dave Donley, 32 K = Jerry Ward, 29 K