Session's Out

May 20, 2024

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

We're adjourned! The Senate finished work Wednesday night with 13 minutes to spare. Now that I've caught up on a little sleep, here's a rundown on what happened:

Rep. Story and I were honored to present the TMHS boys' and girls' Basketball Teams with a well-deserved legislative citation this week!

Final Projects

I had one semester in college where all my final exams hit and final papers were all due in a 48-hour period. The 33^d Legislature ended similarly. After four months of work, we passed a whole bunch of bills in the last two days of session. The House kept going past midnight on the 121^st day, so a few of them are constitutionally in question. But before the clock struck twelve, we got a lot of good things through.

This newsletter would rival War and Peace for length if I tried to update you on all of them. Here are a fistful I haven’t written about yet that will head to the governor's desk:

We mandated insurance coverage for 12 months of contraceptives. Both Medicaid and private health insurers will cover a full year’s prescription of contraceptives at once. That’s important everywhere, but doubly so in a state with so many remote rural communities.

Rep. Story’s bill to update and rename the (now former) Alaska Native Language Preservation and Advisory Council crossed the finish line. The new name will be the Council for Alaska Native Languages, because their work goes far beyond 'preservation.' The bill also adds more official languages to fully reflect the languages spoken around the state.

We required large warehouses to treat their workers decently. Employees in big warehouses will have the right to know what quotas they’re expected to meet. And employers won't be allowed to deny them bathroom breaks. Current and planned new warehouses in our state assure us they all meet these standards already, so it shouldn't be a new burden.

We created a new state license for Associate Professional Counselors, who have their masters degrees and practical training, but not yet the years of experience to have their own full license. This will match similar masters-level mental health clinicians. This step lets them bill a patient's insurance while they're treating people subject to supervision—also like their peers. We desperately need more mental health providers in the state. This small step will help more Alaskans afford care.

We made a long-needed fix to child care grants. We removed a cap that got in the way of helping keep centers open. In combination with money I helped add to the budget, this will help prevent more closures that Alaska families and our economy can't afford. Other pieces of this bill extend education tax credits, boost Alaska Performance Scholarships, and need-based-grants, and adds more vo-tech funds to UAS and Sealaska Heritage Institute.

We created an Alaska Military Affairs Commission. The commission will help connect military bases with Alaska communities and help military families find work in our state. I worked with the sponsor to ensure the bill fully includes Coasties in the commission's work.

We repealed the assistive technology loan program. On first blush, that sounds awful. But I dug in to it and learned the program is long defunct. There’s unused money left in the loan fund doing nobody any good. Once the program is repealed, the budget puts the remaining funds in the hands of a non-profit. They'll put the cash to work helping Alaskans who need assistive technology to live their fullest, most productive lives on their own terms.

We helped schools get more qualified teacher s. We added a bonus for teachers who get a top national certification. We also made it easier for retired teachers to fill in as long-term substitutes to fill staffing gaps.

We made buying a house a little easier for working families. We helped the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation expand affordable home loans for Alaskans. This bill also created a green bank to invest in renewable energy projects—primarily for homes and small businesses—and temporarily lowered the interest rate for commercial fishing families applying for a state loan.

We expanded eligibility for nutrition assistance. More people will be eligible, including seniors who own a home but have very constrained income. We also authorized the state to start a demonstration project on expanding Medicaid eligibility for preventative health care.

We required the University of Alaska to disclose the costs for textbooks and course materials. Now students will know their full costs before they register. You'll be able to search the course catalog to look specifically for classes with low-cost or zero-cost texts.

We declared Juneteenth a state holiday. Alaska has state holidays to recognize our most important state and national events. On June 19, 1865, enslaved people in Texas were finally freed, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. With this new state holiday we can all celebrate the end of a shameful time in American history.

We strengthened investigations into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons. We created a formal review committee to examine unsolved cases and make policy recommendations so we don't have so many in the future. The bill added investigators for these cases, increased cultural training for law enforcement, and set tighter timelines for submitting reports to the national missing persons database.

We supported renewable energy projects (in addition to the green bank!) For the first time Alaskans will be able to participate in community energy projects. These installations give you money off your electric bill. Homeowners can already produce renewable energy with solar panels or small wind generators. The bill lets renters and condo owners participate, too.

It was my privilege to speak at the Missing and Murdered Indigenous People rally a week back. Legislation addressing this critical issue passed last week, but the work won't stop there!

What made the grade?

In my last newsletter, I told you about some key bills to watch. I know you’ve been in suspense. Here are the cliff notes:

Carbon: Passed. There are lots of steps left to implement a carbon sequestration program, but putting CO₂ underground has potential to moderate some harm as the world pursues the transition to renewable energy.
Transmission: Passed. We created a railbelt transmission organization (with vital Regulatory Commission oversight,) to make things more efficient, made sure Southeast won’t accidentally get caught in the Railbelt regs, and put in tax breaks for new electricity generation and storage.
Cook Inlet royalty reduction: Failed. We didn’t give oil & gas tax breaks without the math to back it up. To help with the southcentral gas crunch we'll let AIDEA do “reserve based lending.” That lets them use the gas underground as collateral for loans to jump start drilling.
Public safety: Passed. The omnibus bill to address public safety issues made it through. There's a lot in here for prosecutors to love. We also added some protections for victims. I helped write important safeguards to ensure the process stays fair.
Elections: Failed. In the final moments of the Legislature, the House minority caucus tried to save this bipartisan bill. It was not to be.
Education: Incomplete. We got one-time funding equivalent to adding $680 to the BSA, plus a boost to pupil transportation. We also passed a one-year temporary program to allow correspondence programs to continue while the court case continues. We'll need to come back next year to work on permanent fixes for both.
Pensions: Failed. We came closer to fixing our retirement system than we have since 2013. The need is more dire than ever. The legislature must revisit this and restore real pensions nest year.
Budget: Passed. OK, you knew that one. We’d be in special session if we hadn’t funded the state for the coming year. Overall, it’s a pretty good budget. I’ll update you on all the details in a future newsletter, but the takeaway for now: it's balanced and on time.

Congrats to the TMHS culinary arts team on their amazing work. They won the state ProStart competition and their wild Alaska King Salmon and King Crab really impressed the judges at nationals!

All my best,

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Events & Happenings Around District B

Juneau Fiber Arts

Are you a fiber artist? Join other Juneauites who share your hobby at 418 Harris St, Rm 403 on the 24^th from 5-7pm!

Juneau Planetarium

Want to learn about weird space things? Make sure to catch the Planetarium’s Going Rogue in the Cosmos this Friday, May 24 at 6pm.

Haines Burger Feed

A burger feast for everyone! Head to the Legion Hall on the 24^thfor food, fun, and games!

Gustavus Kids Night

Got a kid in the K-5 range? They can have a fun night of games and crafts at the Community Center on the 22^nd from 4-6pm. If you can, bring a sharable snack or a donation.

Skagway Seafood Social

Who doesn’t want a free seafood meal? If you have a dish to share, bring it with you on the 22^nd from 5:30-7:30pm.

Skagway Windy Valley Babies

Swing by the library for the weekly special story time for kids aged 0-3!

Klukwan Lingít Language Practice

All skill levels welcome at Lingít Language Practice May 21st. Listen to language & song, and practice speaking!

Klukwan Story Time

Reading, songs, and browsing library books! Head to the Klukwan Library to participate on the 22nd at 9:30am.

Gustavus Beer & Brats

Square dancing and food for a good cause! Head to the Community Center on June 1^st at 5pm—proceeds go to the Girl Scouts and the Community Center.