Before adjourning their regular session for the year, Alaska legislators passed 33 bills through both the House and Senate. Two were vetoed before lawmakers left the Capitol. One of those became the subject of the first successful veto override since 2009.
Here’s a look at what’s passed and is headed to Gov. Mike Dunleavy for final approval or rejection.
Education took top billing
Except for the budget, no subject took more of the Legislature’s attention than education. In April, lawmakers passed House Bill 69, which would have increased the base student allocation — core of the state’s per-student funding formula for public schools — by $1,000 per student.
Dunleavy vetoed that bill days later, which caused legislators to switch their attention to House Bill 57, an alternative proposal that had a $700 BSA increase and some policy measures proposed by the governor. The House and Senate passed that in late April, but Dunleavy vetoed that bill, too. On Monday, legislators overrode that veto by six votes, marking the first time since 2009 that the Legislature has overridden a governor’s veto and the first time since 2002 that it did so to a sitting governor.
Legislators also passed Senate Bill 95 and Senate Bill 96, which would create a tax credit program that rewards companies that invest in child care programs for their workers. It also offers a new grant program for child care and expands the number of families eligible for child care assistance from the state.
The Legislature passed both of those bills last year but had to redo them this year because of a legal challenge. These new versions have yet to be considered by the governor.
Budget and finances on the table
The veto override for HB 57 likely won’t be the last word on education. The new education formula in HB 57 is subject to funding through the state operating budget, House Bill 53. Dunleavy has the ability to veto line items from the budget, and overriding his decisions on that document would take 45 votes, not the 40 it took to override him on HB 57.
In addition, a part of the education bill is contingent upon the enactment of Senate Bill 113, which changes the way the state handles corporate income taxes assessed on internet businesses. It doesn’t increase taxes, but it does divert revenue from other states to Alaska’s treasury, and Dunleavy implied on Monday that he would veto that bill because he doesn’t view it as a stable way to pay for part of the education bill.
In addition to HB 53, the operating budget, lawmakers also passed House Bill 55, the state’s comprehensive mental health budget, and Senate Bill 57, the state’s capital budget, which is used to pay for construction and renovation projects across the state.
Because of low oil prices and the Legislature’s reluctance to pass new revenue measures, all three budget bills were smaller this year than last year.
Few services will see budget increases, and this year’s Permanent Fund dividend is $1,000, down from $1,403 last year. Alaskans received another $298 last year as a one-time bonus atop the regular dividend.
Help for tourism
Early in the legislative session, lawmakers approved a bill that allows the state-owned Alaska Railroad to borrow money for a new cruise ship dock in Seward. The Legislature passed an identical bill last year, but it was one of five that Dunleavy vetoed, citing the fact that the House voted on it after the legal end of the legislative session. This time around, the governor had no problem signing the bill into law.
The governor also signed SB 15, another after-midnight bill that was redone by the Legislature. That law allows teens as young as 18 to serve alcohol in restaurants, breweries and distilleries, but not package stores or bars. Teens as young as 16 may work in those places but not serve alcohol. The measure was intended to increase the labor force during the summer tourism season.
Legislators also cleared up a long-running tax dispute involving the car-sharing company Turo by passing a bill that requires Turo to collect and remit the state’s car rental tax. Turo rentals are a common feature of the summer tourist season.
Previously, individual car owners who rented out their cars through Turo were required to independently account for and send in their taxes. State records show few people followed that procedure.
The Legislature passed a different version of the bill last year, and Dunleavy vetoed it. The new version cuts the state’s car rental tax and institutes an even lower tax for Turo users.
This version has not yet been examined by the governor.
Changes for commercial fishers
Following some of the recommendations of the state’s seafood task force, legislators passed three bills dealing with commercial fishing.
Commercial fishers who form cooperatives to collectively pay liability and damage claims would see these payments be exempted from being regulated as insurance if House Bill 116 becomes law. At least three co-ops are already operating in the state, but under Washington state law.
House Bill 31 would exempt many commercial fishing boats from the requirement that they register with the state Division of Motor Vehicles. The exemption applies only to Coast Guard-documented boats with a current license from the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.
Alaska’s Commercial Fishing and Agriculture Bank would receive a small grant from a defunct state loan fund, allowing the bank to issue low-interest loans to fishers. The Legislature passed the change, recommended by the seafood task force, in Senate Bill 156.
All three bills have yet to cross the governor’s desk for final review.
Tablet computers in prisons
Alaska is one of the last states to forbid prison inmates from regularly using tablet computers. House Bill 35, passed by the Legislature, would change that by instituting rules for tablet use. The bill was encouraged as a means of rehabilitation and education for people in Alaska’s prisons but the 33rd Legislature failed to pass it. Reintroduced this year, the idea moved quickly.
Ban on payday loans
After failing to pass a ban on high-interest, short-term loans during the 33rd Legislature, lawmakers in the first year of the 34th Legislature rapidly passed and advanced Senate Bill 39, which eliminates an exemption from the state’s normal lending laws.
If enacted, SB 39 would restrict loans to a maximum 36% annual percentage rate. Many payday loans have annual interest rates that amount to several hundred percent.
The bill has not yet been sent to the governor.
Insurance and accounting updates
Alaska’s insurance laws are in line to receive significant updates under two bills that the House and Senate passed this year. Senate Bill 133 regulates the prior authorization process used by doctors and other medical specialists when getting permission from an insurance company before undertaking a procedure on a patient. If enacted, it’s designed to speed up the medical treatment process, and the state’s division of insurance is required to keep statistics on how well the changes are working.
The House and Senate also passed a broader insurance bill, Senate Bill 132, that includes a series of minor changes to the state’s insurance laws. It was amended late in the process to include components of a separate bill regulating pharmacy benefit managers.
Accountants also got some attention from the Legislature this year with the passage of House Bill 121, which eases the work requirements for new accountants to become certified to work in Alaska.
None of the three bills have yet been considered by the governor.
Encouraging local housing growth
The Legislature voted to encourage local governments to make long-term housing plans by passing Senate Bill 50, which amends state law to say that boroughs’ comprehensive plans may include housing development. Comprehensive plans are long-term planning documents that set expectations for a borough’s growth and future.
The bill hasn’t yet reached the governor’s desk.
Changes for big-game guides
After more than a decade of work, the Alaska Legislature passed Senate Bill 97, which changes the way the state regulates big game hunting guides. If enacted, SB 97 would permit the state to limit the number of hunting guides in a specific area by selling hunting concessions, much like the federal government already does on federal land in Alaska.
SB 97 was the result of a yearlong process in 2023 by the state’s Big Game Commercial Services Board, which formed a task force to make recommendations and conclusions.
The bill has not yet been sent to the governor for final approval.
Stricter audit procedures by the Legislature
Amid a long-running dispute with the executive branch, the Alaska Legislature passed Senate Bill 183, which would require state officials to turn over data in the format requested by the legislative auditor.
Legislators say that since 2019, they have been unable to properly audit the part of the Alaska Department of Revenue that audits tax payments by oil and gas companies.
The executive branch, legislators and audit officials say, has refused to compile reports that it previously provided without difficulty.
As a result, legislators don’t know whether the Department of Revenue is cheaply settling tax disputes with oil companies.
Senate President Gary Stevens, R-Kodiak, and Speaker of the House Bryce Edgmon, I-Dillingham, each sent a letter to Dunleavy, asking him to not veto the bill because of its importance.
The governor has yet to take final action.
No inflation-adjusted raises for state executives
Early in the session, the Legislature voted unanimously to reject a recommendation that the pay of legislators and other top state officials be automatically adjusted for inflation each year.
Dunleavy signed that bill into law on March 6.
Small changes to state laws
The House and Senate passed a handful of bills that make relatively small changes to state laws. In each case, these changes were requested by Alaskans who ran into trouble and asked for help from their legislators.
House Bill 70, for example, would allow ambulance crews to help some police and rescue dogs who are injured on the job and need to be taken to a veterinarian. Existing law allows bystanders to help, but not certified medical technicians.
Some laws pertaining to the Permanent Fund dividend division, which handles the annual distribution of PFDs, would be updated if House Bill 75 becomes law.
The state’s rural school fund would be able to pay for teacher housing and Mount Edgecumbe High School in Sitka if House Bill 174 becomes law. Currently, MEHS isn’t eligible for grants from the rural school fund under the process used by other rural schools.
Senate Bill 47 clears the way for the Municipality of Anchorage to use local money to pay for pothole repairs on Canyon Road, within Chugach State Park. Those repairs are currently blocked by state law.
All four bills have yet to receive consideration by Dunleavy, who may veto them, allow them to become law without his signature, or sign them into law.
Boards and commissions extended
Alaska has dozens of boards and commissions that regulate various professions and industries, and each of those boards needs to be regularly reauthorized by the Legislature. This year, because of a lawsuit filed by a former legislator, the House and Senate had to redo a boards bill that passed through the Capitol last year, as well as pass their regular bill.
In addition to those two bills, legislators passed a bill that would allow the regulation of some interior designers, affecting the Board of Architects, Engineers and Land Surveyors.
All three bills have yet to be considered by the governor.
Ceremonial bills
Every year the Capitol sees at least one bill ceremonially renaming a state-owned landmark or establishing a ceremonial holiday. This year was no different.
Legislators voted to rename the airport in Ruby after Harold Esmailka, a well-known Interior pilot who operated air services, including medevac service, for decades.
They also added two ceremonial marks on the calendar, passing bills that made May 12 the Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Day of Recognition and March as Women’s History Month.
Dunleavy signed Women’s History Month into law in April; he has not considered the other two bills yet.
Letters of protest and praise
In addition to the bills they passed, the House and Senate also approved 15 resolutions — official letters from the House and Senate that stated their positions on specific issues. Among the approved resolutions were ones opposing cuts to Medicaid, praising the sovereignty of Canada and Taiwan, asking for more international immigration for teachers and Afghans, and celebrating the U.S. Marine Corps’ 250th birthday.
In addition to those 15 joint resolutions, the Alaska Senate passed a unilateral resolution asking Congress to allow people from American Samoa to vote in federal elections and serve as officers in the U.S. military.
• James Brooks is a longtime Alaska reporter, having previously worked at the Anchorage Daily News, Juneau Empire, Kodiak Mirror and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. This article originally appeared online at alaskabeacon.com. Alaska Beacon, an affiliate of States Newsroom, is an independent, nonpartisan news organization focused on connecting Alaskans to their state government.
