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Session: State Capitol, Room 434 Juneau, AK 99801-1182 Phone: (907) 465-2487 Fax: (907) 465-4956 Send E-Mail Interim: 112 Mill Bay Road Kodiak, AK 99615 Phone: (907) 486-8872 Fax: (907) 486-5264 (at LIO) |
Alaska Regional Economic Aid Program
An Act extending the termination date of the Alaska regional economic assistance program; and providing for an effective date.
Updated: January 20, 2000
In 1988 the Alaska Regional Development Organizations program was created in statute. Commonly referred to as ARDOR's, they are private, nonprofit corporations formed by local initiative to promote private sector economic development within their designated regions.
The statutory authority for the Alaska Regional Economic Assistance Program is found in AS 44.33.895. Formerly AS 44.47.900, this statute change was the result of Chapter 58 SLA 1999 which merged and changed the name of certain departments in the executive branch of state government. This program is currently under the administrative oversight of the Division of Municipal & Regional Assistance within the Department of Community and Economic Development.
The ARDOR program has led to the formation of 11 regional development organizations such as the Anchorage Economic Development Corporation, the Southwest Alaska Municipal Conference, the Southeast Conference, and the Lower Kuskokwim Economic Development Council. Nearly two hundred representatives of local political, social and economic interests, who serve on ARDOR boards of directors, are working together to lead their regions to greater economic self-sufficiency.
The ARDOR grants, while not particularly large, are not tied to specific projects and so may be used for operating expenses and to leverage dollars from other sources. These are the hardest kind of dollars to find and are, therefore, extremely valuable to the organizations. Millions of additional dollars have been leveraged from federal, private and other funding sources.
ARDOR's 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 and training for local businesses and entrepreneurs, support to value added production and proactive involvement in locally initiated economic development projects.
Another important benefit afforded ARDOR's by statute is the ability of state agencies to enter into contracts, with them being exempt from a competitive procurement process. This has proven beneficial to ARDOR's, who are able to provide greater local expertise in service delivery or project implementation, and to state agencies who through the ARDOR's, are able to deliver services or projects more efficiently and with less administrative burden.
Sound economic development relies heavily on solid partnerships between the public and private sectors. The ARDOR's were conceived to facilitate this kind of partnering and to bring a regional perspective to the discussion of economic development issues.
The original legislation had a sunset clause ending the program in 1993. This bill extends that date to July 1, 2003. I believe it is in the best interest of the State of Alaska to continue the ARDOR program to insure the ongoing economic viability of Alaska's various regions.