A majority of Alaska state senators want to address education, elections, energy and the public employee retirement system when they convene in January.
Late Nov. 6, the day after the election, leading senators confirmed that the chamber will continue to be led by a large coalition of Republicans and Democrats.
Members of the new bipartisan coalition were vague about its precise makeup, saying negotiations are still ongoing. After one member of last session’s coalition lost reelection and another decided against running for another term, the group will be slightly smaller than the 17-member supermajority that has led the 20-member Senate for the past two years.
Kodiak Sen. Gary Stevens has been president of the Senate for the past two years and will serve another two years. He said Nov. 7 that the Senate majority will likely finalize its priorities at a retreat in late December or early January, “but it’s probably going to be similar to last time: the issue of forward-funding education, the issue of retirement, and how do we address those without putting us into tremendous debt?” said Stevens, a Republican.
Anchorage Sen. Bill Wielechowski, a Democrat and a member of the coalition, wants to see lawmakers take up an elections bill. “There’s just a recognition that we have a number of things that need to be fixed,” he said, mentioning signature verification on absentee ballots, witness signatures on those ballots, and adding the ability for voters to “cure,” or fix, errors that would otherwise disqualify their votes.
“I think making it easier for people to vote — it’s not a Democratic or Republican issue,” he said.
Anchorage Sen. Cathy Giessel said energy issues “will be a huge topic,” with hearings on the impending natural gas shortage for the state’s population center in Southcentral Alaska.
“Not just Cook Inlet natural gas, but what alternative fuels are available? How do we get them online sooner? Will the new national administration help us in getting other energy sources online faster?”
The Senate majority coalition will include at least 13 of the Senate’s 20 members.
According to a written statement, Giessel will continue as majority leader and Wielechowski will continue as chair of the Rules Committee, which determines which bills make it to the floor for a vote.
Sitka Sen. Bert Stedman, who represents Wrangell in the Senate, will serve as co-chair of the Senate Finance Committee, taking charge of the capital budget (public works, highways and community projects), a change from past years when he managed the state operating budget.
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