Alaska State Legislature

News From The House Majority

Ken Freeman, Press Secretary
State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801
phone: (907) 465-3804
web site: http://www.akrepublicans.org
Actuality line: 1-800-478-6540

House Priorities Protected From Spending Reductions

For Immediate Release: April 2, 1997 Contact: Rep. Mark Hanley (907) 465-4939

JUNEAU - The Alaska State House of Representatives will debate the state's operating budget Thursday.

"The House budget continues our strategy to cut more and tax less to close Alaska's fiscal gap in five years," said House Speaker Gail Phillips. "We have prioritized spending and protected those items most important to Alaskans."

House Finance Co-Chair Mark Hanley listed the Majority's priorities as schools, police, roads and airports.

"This year's budget represents fully funding education, increasing the budget of public safety and funding Alaska's roads and maintenance needs," said Hanley. "Our long-range strategy is to do what the people elected us to do - reduce the size, scope and powers of government - and that is just what we did."

According to Phillips, the Majority is working steadily to a goal of $60 million in spending reductions.

"We will be working with the Senate to ensure we reach our goal in line with our Five-Year Plan to close the state's fiscal gap," said Phillips. "The Legislature is facing the difficult task of reducing the operating budget. There has been a lot of finger pointing and blame laying by those who don't have the responsibility of making the tough decisions."

"This year the Governor has taken credit for reductions made last year - reductions he objected to vehemently, and called a special session to overturn," said Hanley.

"The Governor would have everyone believe we have crippled state government! Despite the rhetoric, Republicans have reduced government spending, and Alaska's economy is stronger and healthier today than when we started these cuts 6 years ago," said Phillips. "Last year, the same arguments were used against cutting the budget. Government did not come to a halt. Our economy did not collapse!"

Hanley said proposed reductions to next year's budget represent less than one percent of general fund spending.

"We want to give credit where credit is due. Some State Managers have made great strides in reducing costs. Some success stories have been lease costs, public radio and television, and providing Medicaid services in community settings," said Hanley.

"During the state agency overviews in the Finance Committee, we heard example upon example of how, in response to reduced budgets, various efficiencies have been achieved in many state agencies. Many of these efficiencies would not have occurred without budget reduction and a legislative focus on spending," said Hanley.

"We understand we are spending the public's money - $2.4 billion this year. The Legislature is charged with being deliberate, considerate and careful, not unduly impacting the basic needs of government. Our job is to ensure that the belt tightening is reasonable," said Hanley.

Phillips pointed out that despite all the concerns coming from the Governor about proposed spending reductions, in the final analysis, nearly 97% of the Governor's budget requests will be funded.

"We are currently operating under a situation that, if left unchecked, creates a wider and wider fiscal gap. This year the deficit, or fiscal gap, is approximately $350 million. Businesses are constantly re-evaluating the way they operate, and it is incumbent upon government to find the most efficient and cost effective means of delivering essential services," said Phillips.

Phillips drew an analogy to a family budget to illustrate the task facing lawmakers

"Government, like your family, must live within its means," said Phillips.

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Broadcast Note: An audio actuality is available by calling 1-800-478-6540.

Highlights from Budget before House of Representatives

As of 4/2/97

SUBJECT TO CHANGE

Department of Education:

• Fully funded education foundation formula
• The Department of Education budget was approached from the overall premise that there were three primary functions or areas of protection that would be observed. These were:

1. Students first, then teachers then administrators
2. Enable as much as possible the vocationally handicapped to achieve independent living
3. Assure as much as possible the ongoing availability of vocational technical education to assist the transition from welfare to work.

• Reductions in the budget occurred primarily in areas that would not affect the classroom directly, that would not detrimentally intervene in vocational rehabilitation, and that would not limit access to vocational or technical training courses.

Department of Public Safety:

• Increased funding for Fish and Wildlife Protection to ensure our natural resources are preserved. These are renewable resources that need to be managed responsibly.
• Additional funding for 2 part-time fish and wildlife protection officers to patrol Bristol Bay during the fishing season.
• Increased funding for troopers, $400,000 above last year's level.
• Seven new Village Public Safety Officers will be funded.
• Budget includes increases to combat domestic violence and help those that have been victimized.

Department of Transportation and Public Facilities

• House prioritized highway maintenance and held the maintenance and operations areas from reductions.
• Encourages the Department to look carefully at the upper layers of management as part of its effectiveness review and in the distribution of the unallocated cuts.
• No cuts were made to maintenance and operations to protect the road infrastructure.

Department of Corrections:

• This budget is a fair approach to our correctional needs. It exceeds the actual expenditures of the FY96 budget by over $1 million dollars. Provides funds for more beds and encourages the department to make better use of low cost alternatives to hard beds.
• There is a $11 million increase over FY95 actual spending.
• An additional 150 beds can be added to the system. This was accomplished by changing funding priorities to reflect a need to address our capacity problem.
• The House plan allows access to over $5 million in new federal crime bill funds to provide additional beds over the next two fiscal years.
• The budget requires state employees to travel less
• A top priority of the House budget is $50,000 appropriated to the Rural Affairs Coordinator to review the cultural relevance of the inmate programs we provide. Programs that don't fit a person's culture are rarely successful. When over 35% of prison population is classified as native, we need programs sensitive to that fact.

Department of Natural Resources:

• Protected agricultural loan funding to ensure farming in Alaska. Many farmers would not be able continue their operations without access to these funds.
• Additional funding for information resource management for RS-2477 mapping.
• Funded the seed potato project - strong potential of development for exports of Alaska potatoes.

Department of Community and Regional Affairs

• Funded senior citizens and disabled veterans renters equivalency rebate at same level proposed by Governor
• Re-implemented the circuit rider program for rural energy. This service trains local governments about how to operate rural energy equipment in a more efficient manner.

University of Alaska:

• Total funding is over $8 million dollars more than last fiscal year.
• Preserved the Alaska Cooperative Extension Center as a separate identity within the University
• Encouraged trade and business services to reduce reliance on general funds.
• Legislature intends student doctors in the WAMI program to either return to Alaska, or repay the entire cost of their education in order to save state funds.
• House restored $530,000 of Alaska Science & Tech. Foundation funding which had been deleted by governor

Department of Environmental Conservation

• Fully funded state control of air and water programs, rather than allowing federal takeover.
• Funded seafood and sanitation inspections to ensure public safety and promote economic development.
• Fully funded hazardous spill prevention and response.
• Fully funded facility construction and operations for water and waster water facilities in rural Alaska.

Department of Fish and Game

• Fish and Game spending will actually increase $1.5 million above authorized spending for FY97.
• Created A-Y-K Region BRU in comfish to Encourage the department to move more of its regional and biological staff to the affected regions to promote better understanding of the area and people they are serving.
• Subcommittee supported creating a Rural Subsistence BRU, with the intent that the division have full-time personnel in Barrow, Kotzebue, Nome, Bethel, and Angoon offices.
• Funds additional enforcement officers in Bristol Bay

Department of Health and Social Services

At over $900 million, House H&SS Finance Budget is allowed to increase $15 million. The House subcommittee was also able include some increases in funding to a few programs:

• Several additional youth probation officers will be hired in FY98.
• An additional Indian Child Welfare Act compliance officer will be hired.
• The Women, Infants and Children baby-formula program will be allowed to distribute an additional $750,000 worth of formula in FY98.
• More children will be served in the Infant Learning Program due to a $100,000 increase.
• $314,000 additional state dollars will be used in the Healthy Families program to replace lost federal grant dollars.
• An inhalant abuse program will also begin in FY98 due to the subcommittees action.
• Federal social services block grant, which supports child protection programs, has been reduced by Congress, and the House subcommittee was able to appropriate state money to replace the federal money.

Courts

• Overall increase over last year's budget
• Give courts flexibility to allocate resources in manner to address the most urgent case-load needs. This funding will prevent a bottleneck from developing as stricter criminal laws are implemented.

Department of Law

• Legal funding for defense of our statehood compact was included as a priority.
• Fully funded Civil Division.

Department of Military and Veteran Affairs

• $100,000 has been added to this budget to fund the national guard youth corps if federal matching monies are appropriated.
• Legislature actively working to restore actuarial soundness of guard retirement.

Department of Commerce and Economic Development

• Fully funded Alaska Science and Technology Foundation
• Created Division of Trade and Tourism - within that, an Office of Trade and Office of Tourism.
• Restored funding for the film office.

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