The One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) is one of the most transformative pieces of legislation for Alaska in decades. This comprehensive package is the product of years of relentless, focused work, delivering historic wins for our state.
The legislation contains numerous provisions to unleash Alaska’s extraordinary resource economy, deliver tax relief for hard-working Alaskans and small businesses, make the largest U.S. Coast Guard investment in history, secure the southern border and halt the flow of fentanyl, build up our Alaska-based military, upgrade Alaska’s aviation safety, strengthen Alaska’s health and nutrition programs, protect Alaska’s most vulnerable, and achieve historic savings for future generations.
Due to the hard work of our congressional delegation, I think it’s fair to say no state fared better from this bill. In the coming months, my team and I will be working to better inform Alaskans about this legislation and dispel falsehoods being spread in ad campaigns funded by the same far-left interest groups that always seek to crush Alaska’s economy and working families.
This op-ed is a start.
At its heart, the OBBB is a jobs bill. It will unleash Alaska’s private sector economy, generate billions of dollars in new revenues for the state, and create jobs for hard-working families. The OBBB mandates historic provisions to responsibly develop ANWR, NPR-A, and Cook Inlet. The bill also increases Alaska’s share of future revenues from these federal lands to 70% and helps accelerate the Alaska LNG project.
Importantly, these provisions cement in statute regular lease sales to guard against attempts by future Democratic leaders to use regulations to shut down our economy, as was done with President Biden’s 70 executive orders and actions targeting Alaska — the “Last Frontier Lock-Up.”
The bill lets Alaskans keep more of what they earn by extending the 2017 tax cuts and making them permanent, preventing a $4 trillion tax hike. We secured an increased Child Tax Credit and standard deduction, small business deductions, no taxes on tips or overtime, and significant tax relief for seniors. The Council of Economic Advisors predicts this legislation will increase take-home pay for an average family by over $7,000.
The OBBB also achieves the most significant spending reductions in history. According to nonpartisan scorekeepers, the bill reduces federal spending by over $1.5 trillion and, using the current policy baseline, will reduce the deficit by $400 billion over 10 years. That is before considering the pro-growth elements of the bill.
As chairman of the Senate Subcommittee overseeing the U.S. Coast Guard, I also fought to secure the largest investment in Coast Guard history — nearly $25 billion. This includes funding for 16 new icebreakers and $300 million to homeport the new Juneau icebreaker. The urgency of this cannot be overstated, with the Russians and Chinese racing to control our Arctic waters. And, with the “Golden Dome” initiative substantially funded by the OBBB, we’re building the next generation of homeland missile defense — Alaska being the cornerstone — to protect the entire country. The bill also commits over $100 million to redevelop existing Arctic infrastructure, like the Adak Naval Base.
This bill secures our southern border with the most robust enforcement package in a generation — $46 billion for the wall, billions more for Border Patrol and law enforcement, and substantial resources to crack down on deadly fentanyl coming into Alaska.
Finally, I know Alaska has been flooded with dishonest ads by far-left groups — at the direction of Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer — scaring Alaskans with false claims that the OBBB will cause them to lose Medicare and Medicaid.
Here’s the truth. Medicare isn’t touched in the OBBB. Not one dollar in Medicaid benefits was cut for Alaskans. This bill actually strengthens health care in Alaska.
The only people who were advocating for Medicaid cuts for Alaskans were Sen. Schumer and Senate Democrats. They stripped out a provision I included in the bill to help Alaska’s rural hospitals and increase the federal match for Medicaid for Alaska, which would’ve amounted to hundreds of millions more dollars a year.
Further, Sen. Schumer tried, but failed, to strip out other significant funding — approximately $200 million a year for the next five years — for Alaska’s health care system.
I worked to make sure commonsense 20-hour-a-week work or volunteer requirements were included, ensuring able-bodied Americans utilizing these programs are contributing to our communities. But the bill has important exemptions — for disabled veterans, parents or guardians with children, individuals with disabilities or mental health challenges, Alaska Natives, and those living in rural areas with few economic opportunities.
But Sen. Schumer’s anti-Alaska campaign wasn’t just aimed at our health care. He and Senate Democrats sought to specifically kill every single positive provision for Alaska in this bill: ANWR, NPR-A, Cook Inlet, homeporting the Juneau icebreaker, the Adak Naval base, and greater flexibility on SNAP requirements. We successfully fought back, but one thing remains clear: Democrats in D.C. have once again demonstrated they are the anti-Alaska party.
Ultimately, national Democrats didn’t win in this bill. Alaskans did. From growing our economy, to tax relief for working families, to national defense, to securing our border, to strengthening our health care, this legislation reflects years of determined advocacy for Alaska. The final result is numerous historic wins for Alaska that will positively shape our state’s future for decades.
Sen. Dan Sullivan has represented Alaska in the U.S. Senate since he was first elected in 2014.
