Candidates for the school board and Juneau Assembly will join a candidate forum hosted by the Juneau League of Women Voters and KTOO on Friday, Sept. 19, at 7 p.m.
For the Assembly’s Areawide seat, incumbent Ella Adkison is running uncontested. For District 1, incumbent Greg Smith is running uncontested. For District 2, incumbent Wade Bryson is running against Nathaniel “Nano” Brooks. Brooks ran unsuccessfully for the District 1 seat in 2024 and the Areawide seat in 2023.
Four candidates are running for school board this election. Two full-term seats are up for grabs, as board president Deedie Sorensen and member Emil Mackey are not seeking reelection. One partial-term seat on the Juneau school board is also open following the resignation of former board member Will Muldoon. The candidates for the three open seats are Jeremy Johnson, Jenny Thomas, Melissa Cullum and Steve Whitney.
In addition to candidates seeking public office, voters will decide on three ballot propositions.
Proposition 1 seeks to decrease the local property tax rate, also known as the mill rate. One mill is equal to $1 per $1,000 in property value. A “yes” vote supports decreasing the property tax limit from $1,200 per $100,000 in assessed value to $900 per $100,000 in assessed value. A “no” vote opposes decreasing the property tax limit from $1,200 per $100,000 in assessed value to $900 per $100,000 in assessed value.
Proposition 2 would exempt CBJ residents from having to pay taxes on essential food and non-commercial utilities. A “yes” vote supports creating an exemption for essential food and non-commercial utilities. A “no” vote opposes creating an exemption for essential food and non-commercial utilities.
Proposition 3 seeks to implement a new, seasonal sales tax that would raise taxes throughout the summer tourist season and lower them during lower-traffic months. It would also increase the base sales tax rate. A “yes” vote supports implementing a sales tax of 2% from Oct. 1 through March 31 and a sales tax of 6.5% from April 1 through Sept. 30. A “no” vote opposes implementing a new sales tax rate and would maintain the existing permanent sales tax of 1% and the temporary rate of 3%.
The forum will be livestreamed on juneauempire.com and broadcast by KTOO Public Media from their studio on KTOO 104.3 FM radio, KTOO 360TV and ktoo.org. The public is also invited to join in person at 360 Egan Way. KTOO news staff worked to collect questions from the public to ask during Friday’s forum.
The Juneau municipal election will be held Oct. 7. Ballots will be mailed Friday, Sept. 19, and vote centers will open for early and in-person voting on Sept. 22. Official election results will be certified by Oct. 21.
The filing deadline for this election was July 28. Write-in candidates must file by Sept. 30.
For more information on the election, including how and where to vote in the by-mail election, you can visit the city election website at juneau.org/clerk/elections.
