An effort to lobby for a change of heart with closed door meetings conducted by senators’ bipartisan caucus led to more school funding within the draft Alaska budget that is currently being considered within Alaska’s state Senate.
The following Wednesday afternoon the Members of the Senate Finance Committee were presented with the $6.2 billion plan that would cover state services for the 12 months beginning July 1.
In the plan is $175 million in additional money for public schools in the K-12 range which will increase the formula used by the state to fund per student and the allocation to students by 680 dollars for a single year.
Even as late as Monday afternoon the senator. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka was claiming that the Senate was focussing on a lower number of $500 per student or $46 million less however, the subsequent pressure from Stedman’s fellow senators pushed the number higher despite the fact that Stedman along with others on the Finance Committee held to a promise that their budget would not spend money from savings.
“There was lots of excitement within members of the Senate Majority to see a greater number, and to match with the House,” Stedman said Wednesday afternoon.
Similar lobbying efforts led to other amendments including Senate. Cathy Giessel, R-Anchorage has successfully added $30 million to the Medicaid funding to cover senior care in homes Multiple lawmakers pushed the Senate to include $15 million to fund better wages in child care centers.
The plan for the state to take over the federal program to regulate the construction of wetlands has been removed from the budget and a plan has been put in place to integrate the procurement officers of the state to form the Department of Administration.
In addition, there’s $1 million of money for radio stations in rural areas and $5 million to the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute, and another $2 million for tourism marketing.
None of these modifications are yet definitive.
The full Senate isn’t scheduled to vote on the draft budget until the end of next week. the draft budget must be compared to an alternative budget plan approved through the state House in the last month.
To fund its reforms without spending money from savings To pay for its changes without spending savings, the Senate cut its Permanent Fund dividend proposed by the House by halving it from the $2,700 amount the House prefers.
As lawmakers begin the last third week of this legislative session this dividend is anticipated to be a significant issue.
The members of the Senate seem hesitant to draw money on savings to pay the dividend which members of the House majority claim they want. The lawmakers face an constitutional deadline to adopt an economic plan.
What will happen when the impending impasse be solved?
“We on July 1, must have a budget that is balanced,” Stedman said. “The constitution will allow us to get out.”
The story was originally published in Alaska Beacon and is republished here with permission.
