I hope your new year is off to a great start! I have spent much of the last month moving offices to Juneau and handling the administrative duties in my new role as the Senate Rules Chair for this upcoming legislative session. Now that we are underway for our first full week, I wanted to provide you with an update.
Thank you for reading my e-news!
New Session
The Senate gaveled in last week and voted on new leadership.
In my role as Rules Chair, I help with administrative duties in the Capitol Building and calendar legislation for the Senate Floor.
The Senate has organized a bi-partisan coalition with Democrats and Republicans sharing leadership positions within the majority caucus of the Senate.
I'm looking forward to working with all my colleagues in a collaborative and productive way to address some of the big issues facing our state.
Senator Wielechowski Receiving his Corsage Before Being Sworn In
Senator Wielechowski and Lt. Gov Dahlstrom Signing Oath of Office
Senator Wielechowski and Staff with Lt. Gov Dahlstrom
Welcoming New Staff
I wanted to take the time and welcome the new staff members to my office, Mercedes Colbert, Hunter Lottsfeldt, and UA Intern Kali Spencer.
Mercedes Colbert is taking on the role of Chief of Staff in my office and helping support the many administrative duties of the Rules Chair. She has over a decade of legislative experience including working for Senate Minority Leader Tom Begich since 2019.
Hunter Lottsfeldt is taking the lead with scheduling and constituent work in my office. He brings with him previous legislative experience including a family history of serving the legislature. His great-grandfather was elected to Alaska's third state legislature in 1962.
Kali Spencer is in her senior year at the University of Alaska Southeast. She is majoring in interdisciplinary studies and is a Student Regent for the Board of Regents at the University of Alaska. Kali is part of the Ted Stevens Legislative Internship Program.
A big welcome to my new staff! Note: The names and contact information for all my staff, including David Dunsmore and Nick Moe, can be found above on the blue sidebar to the left.
Senator Wielechowski stands with teachers at the rally for education on Monday
Education Funding and Pensions
There are many big issues facing our state and I wanted to highlight a few priorities that are taking center stage.
After the Anchorage School District proposed drastic budget cuts to programs, including closing two schools in East Anchorage, it was clear that the legislature needs to do more to support education funding.
Just as inflation has hurt family budgets, years of flat funding have made balancing school district budgets nearly impossible without cutting educational opportunities. As your senator, I have a constitutional duty to ensure that education is fully funded for all Alaskans, and I am committed to doing whatever I can to provide the increased state support needed to help school districts offset the high cost of inflation and provide our students the top quality education they will need to succeed in the global economy.
Another issue that relates to teacher and public employee retention is passing a pension plan for Alaska's teachers. Alaska is one of the only states in the country without a defined benefit pension for teachers. This makes it easy for other states to lure experienced Alaskan teachers away with the promise of a secure retirement program.
In order to have the best education system, we need the best teachers and we cannot afford to keep losing talented teachers to other states or the private sector.
Alaska went from having one of the best retirement plans to having one of the worst and our students have been paying the price for it ever since. It is time we fix retirement for all our public sector employees to help keep our best and brightest workers in the state.
Geologic sequestration – basically allowing companies to pay to inject carbon dioxide into empty oil reserves. Also typically referred to as carbon capture, utilization, and storage or “CCUS”.
Biologic sequestration – where the state can be paid to not allow development on specific land and water allowing accumulation of carbon in trees, soils, kelps, or other natural processes can be promoted or encouraged.
While the details and specific bill language have not been released yet, I am excited to learn more about this potential revenue-generating proposal.
With Alaska's fluctuating oil prices and budget uncertainty, I welcome new and innovative ways to generate revenue for our state.
As always, feel free to reach out to my office if I can be of assistance.
