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A pair of bills were submitted to the State Legislature which would help move forward a proposed land exchange between the United States Forest Service and the state Mental Health Trust Authority. House Bill 155 was introduced by Rep. Dan Ortiz (I-District 36) earlier last week, with Sen. Bert Stedman (R-District R) submitting Senate Bill 88 shortly after. An agreement to initiate the swap was signed by both services in June 2015, which followed approximately eight years of negotiations that included input from a wide collection of...
The Senate Finance Committee reviewed a bill which could end up reshaping the future of the state’s finances last week. As with two other bills under consideration, the Permanent Fund Protection Act (Senate Bill 26) would arrange the Permanent Fund’s Earnings Reserve Account – from which the state’s annual dividends are paid out – so that the amount of money drawn from the earnings would be tied to an historical average of percent of market value (POMV). Proposed by Gov. Bill Walker, a percentage of the ERA under this new regime would the...
PETERSBURG — State Senator Bert Stedman predicts the legislature will be in session for a full 120 days with an additional 30 day session if they are to complete their work this session. “There’s a lot of talk of the 90 day session but the constitution calls for 121 days. “We’ve only finished in 90 days one time,” Stedman noted. Stedman was in Petersburg this past weekend to attend the Chamber of Commerce Annual Banquet along with his wife Lureen. Stedman said there is a “near zero chance of a 90 day session with any quality work being accompl...
As the Alaska House and Senate continue to prepare budgets for the coming year, residents of Wrangell and Ketchikan were invited to their Legislative Information Office locations for a call-in session with Rep. Dan Ortiz (I-District 36). Meeting late in the afternoon February 23, 10 Wrangell residents and seven in Ketchikan tuned in for the representative’s pitch for House Bill 115, a proposal to reconfigure Alaska’s Permanent Fund along with revenue enhancements being sponsored by the Majority-led House Finance Committee. The bill calls for...
Entering its third full week of the session, Alaska’s Legislature continues to look at a variety of spending cuts and revenue options. On February 2, the Senate Finance Committee heard SB 21, a proposal of Sen. Bert Stedman to restructure how Permanent Fund earnings are appropriated. Currently the $56B in the fund are constitutionally protected, but the bill proposes further limiting the amount of money that can be withdrawn from the principal to 4.5 percent of market value, based on a rolling five-year average. That rate falls within the f...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – Alaska has never violated its constitutional spending cap, but many Republican lawmakers consider the limit too loose and want it tightened to limit future government growth. Under the existing cap, which excludes certain types of spending, this year’s budget could not exceed $10.1 billion. Current spending falls well below that. So far, House and Senate Republicans have proposed three constitutional measures aimed at restricting spending growth. These come as lawmakers, faced with a gaping deficit, are expected to debate...
Alaska’s 30th Legislature convened for its new session on Tuesday, with the state’s finances presenting a daunting challenge for the next 90 days. The spending deficit is projected at around $3.1 billion this year if the budget is left as-is. Agency spending has come to just over 13-percent since FY15, and the budget as a whole has taken a 29-percent cut when capital projects and other funding is considered. Revenue has failed to cover operating expenses since FY13, but has covered an ever-dwindling proportion since. This year the $1.2 bil...
For Wrangell, the past year was one mixed with successes and setbacks, shared tragedies and uplifting moments. Sales taxes collected over the spring and summer tour seasons neared all-time highs, with the visitor industry experiencing a good season overall. On the other end, fishermen experienced one of their worst harvests of the summer, which after a disappointing 2015 season has put the fiscal pinch on a number of local families, boat builders, and associated sectors. As 2017 dawns, concerns...
Local voters took to the polls Tuesday, putting an end to what was for many an overlong campaign season. Nationally, indications showed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump to be ahead of Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, though by press time Tuesday final tallies were being calculated in half a dozen states. In Alaska, preliminary results from around the state were only just coming in from different precincts as of Tuesday night. In unofficial tallies for Wrangell voters, some 45 percent of registered voters turned out on Election...
Stopping in town one last time before next week's election, Sen. Bert Stedman talked about the state's ongoing deficit woes, by far the largest issue the new set of legislators will be facing when they head into next year's session. Speaking on October 27, he tried to put the scale of the deficit into perspective. While for readability's sake the amount is sometimes expressed in terms of "billions," he noted the full figure may come to between $3,100,000,000 and $3,500,000,000 this year – an a...
It has come to my attention in recent days that groups from outside our district and outside Alaska have started to send out negative ads against me. Judging from where this effort is coming from, I take it in stride. As your state representative, my only goal is to be your voice in the legislature. Residents of District 36 know that I actively request input from every side of every issue, and I listen to everyone. My goal has never been to appease big oil or the Railbelt, especially when their desires are in conflict with the needs of Southern...
Ahead of next month's general election, candidates for Wrangell's State House district have been stopping in to meet with constituents and secure their votes on November 8. Running for District 36 as a Republican, Ketchikan Councilman Bob Sivertsen spoke about his candidacy. He had previously visited the community on the campaign trail over July 4 and in September. "I think the campaign's been going great," Sivertsen said. "I spent a fair amount of time in Wrangell, visiting with residents. And...
Wrangell's annual Independence Day celebration draws hundreds of visitors, from former residents and current ones' relatives to returning tourists. Among the weekend's visitors were Sen. Bert Stedman of District R and Republican candidate for House District 36 Bob Sivertsen. On a brief break before returning to Juneau for a special session beginning on July 11, Stedman explained the purpose of his visit to Wrangell was twofold: catching the first two days of its Fourth festivities and visiting w...
After putting forward an operating budget to the governor’s desk late last week, the Legislature is now looking at a measure to restructure the Alaska Permanent Fund. In a special session called by Gov. Bill Walker, legislators were retained in the capital in order to pass a budget for the coming year. The budget they placed on his desk last week, a compromisory draft of House Bill 4001 and its Senate counterpart, SB 4001, remains largely unfunded. To remedy this, late on Monday evening the Senate passed SB 128, which would restructure the e...
Alaska's Legislature returns to work next week to begin its second regular session, and by far its biggest task will be to make the state's budget sustainable. Convening in Juneau on Jan. 19, legislators in the House and Senate will begin putting together budgets for the 2017 Fiscal Year, which will have to address a projected $3.6 billion spending deficit. Last month the office of Gov. Bill Walker released its budget plan, which proposes $100 million in net cuts to agency spending and $360...
A project to renovate the facilities at Wrangell's Shoemaker Harbor seems well-placed to receive state assistance, the Port Commission learned this month. Harbormaster Greg Meissner told commissioners at their Nov. 4 meeting the Tier I capital project being proposed to the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities (DOT) was ranked second for consideration, after a proposal by Kodiak. The DOT 50/50 matching grant program was first approved by the Alaska Legislature in 2006, and...
Looking ahead to another century, delegates with the Alaska Native Brotherhood (ANB) and Alaska Native Sisterhood (ANS) met in Wrangell last week for their 100th annual Grand Camp. Seventy-one of 120 camp delegates from Alaska, Washington and Oregon were able to attend the four-day conference, which brought about 140 visitors in all. Dedicated to advancing civil rights and improving living conditions for Native communities, the Brotherhood was founded in Sitka in 1912, with an auxiliary...
Next week, the Alaska Native Sisterhood celebrates its 100th anniversary at the place of its founding, Wrangell. Alaska Native Brotherhood/ANS is the oldest rights organization for indigenous persons in the world, with the Brotherhood founded in 1912 and the Sisterhood established in 1916. Its stated mission is to improve the lives of Native people and their families, by promoting Native culture and advocating for civil rights and land rights. Membership is organized into local camps,...
All of last weekend, the first of what is intended to be many cultural courses was held at Wrangell Cooperative Association's new carving facility, which was finished last autumn. From Thursday afternoon through Sunday, local Native residents were shown how to craft with sea otter pelts by Jeremiah James, operator of Yakutat Furs since 2010. "This is the ninth class I've done," James explained, and the second he has delivered in Wrangell. It was his first time working in the new facility...
JUNEAU (AP) — Tensions flared Monday between members of the Alaska House and Gov. Bill Walker over how best to advance state efforts to secure a major gas pipeline project, with a visibly upset Walker denouncing a bill from the speaker of the House as “the most un-Alaskan thing I’ve ever seen put together.” House Speaker Mike Chenault, R-Nikiski, introduced legislation that would limit the role of a state-backed corporation in an alternate gas line project proposed by Walker. The state has been pursuing a major liquefied natural gas project...
Wrangell’s unit of the Salvation Army is looking for community support in preventing homelessness. In an open letter, Major Scott Nicloy pointed out that among the cuts being made across the board in dealing with Alaska’s financial difficulties, funding for the state’s Basic Homeless Assistance Program has been cut from next year’s budget. This grant is administered locally, and as part of its administration of the grant, the Salvation Army has helped applicants fill out the 15-page form needed to receive assistance. The state division of the...
PETERSBURG – Representatives from the Alaska Department of Transportation (ADOT&PF) gave a public presentation on their long-range transportation plan for Southeast Alaska last Wednesday. The presentation was followed by a public comment period, which centered largely on ferry service and the Kake Access project. ADOT&PF’s draft Southeast Alaska Transportation Plan (SATP) is a 20-year plan for the region which recommends projects for roadways, airports and ferry service. Regional trends, current priorities and projects, as well as mai...
Local legislators were circumspect about their accomplishments in the 95-day second legislative session, gaveled out April 25. State Sen. Bert Stedman (R – Sitka) and State Rep. Sam Kito (D – Juneau) both cited a $3 billion contribution to the Public Employee Retirement System and Teacher Retirement System, known as PERS and TRS, respectively, as among the positive steps, though they were quick to point out that legislators also extended the terms of the unfunded liability, meaning Alaska municipalities could feel a budgetary pinch down the roa...
A bill being considered in the State Senate could impact local ferry workers. Senate Bill 182 amends Alaska State law pertaining to bargaining rights to eliminate what is known as a cost-of-living differential. This provision of contracts allows for salaries to be automatically adjusted to match the cost of living of a certain area. For individual employees, this can amount to as much as $4 per hour, or roughly $8,320 per year for, in particular, Alaska Marine Highway System employees, who are currently bargaining with the state for a new...
The Wrangell Chamber of Commerce launched a letter-writing campaign aimed at getting capital funds placed in the 2015 state budget. A first draft of the budget by Gov. Sean Parnell’s administration included no new capital money for Wrangell projects. Previously allotted state funds will provide for engineering for the refurbishment of Evergreen Street this year, with construction slated to begin in 2015, borough officials have said. State transportation officials also mentioned apron construction at the airport as an imminent project. A d...
