STANDING COMMITTEESCOMMUNITY & REGIONAL AFFAIRS
Jul 17 Thursday Anch Lio Conf Rm 4:00 PM
HB4002 RESOURCE REBATE PROGRAM FOR RESIDENTS
HB4003 APPROP: ENERGY RELIEF/REBATE/FUEL TAX Public Testimony
Jul 22 Tuesday Barnes 124 2:00 PM
HB4002 RESOURCE REBATE PROGRAM FOR RESIDENTS Testimony <Invitation Only>
HB4003 APPROP: ENERGY RELIEF/REBATE/FUEL TAX Testimony <Invitation Only> -
Presentation & overview of legislation by the Dept of Revenue, Dept of Law, Alaska Energy Authority, & the Dept of Health & Social Services
Jul 23 Wednesday Barnes 124 10:00 AM
HB4002 RESOURCE REBATE PROGRAM FOR RESIDENTS
HB4003 APPROP: ENERGY RELIEF/REBATE/FUEL TAX Public Testimony
LABOR & COMMERCE
Jul 23 Wednesday Capitol 120 3:00 PM
HB4004 SUSPENDING MOTOR FUEL TAX
RULES Jul 21
Monday Capitol 120
2:00 PM
HB3001 APPROVING AGIA LICENSE
HB4001 Corresponding Senate bill SB 4001TITLE: “An Act making supplemental appropriations, capital appropriations, reappropriations, and other appropriations; making appropriations to capitalize a fund; and providing for an effective date.” http://www.legis.state.ak.us/PDF/25/Bills/HB4001A.PDF HB 4002 Corresponding Senate bill SB 4002TITLE: “An Act establishing the Alaska resource rebate program and relating to the program; and providing for an effective date.” http://www.legis.state.ak.us/PDF/25/Bills/HB4002A.PDF HB 4003 Corresponding Senate bill SB 4003TITLE: “An Act making supplemental appropriations to the Alaska Energy Authority for power cost equalization; making special appropriations to the Department of Revenue and to the Department of Health and Social Services for the Alaska resource rebate program; making a special appropriation to the Department of Revenue for the payment of certain shared taxes relating to aviation fuel; and providing for an effective date.” http://www.legis.state.ak.us/PDF/25/Bills/HB4003A.PDF HB 4004 Corresponding Senate bill SB 4004TITLE: “An Act suspending the motor fuel tax; and providing for an effective date.” http://www.legis.state.ak.us/PDF/25/Bills/HB4004A.PDF
The Seward Legislative Information Office is open for the Special Session. There will be teleconferences and chances for the public to voice their opinions on these subjects. Call the Seward LIO for information for updates at 224-5066 or email requests to Seward_LIO@legis.state.ak.us
This beautiful quilt is on the move this week to Sew-n-Bee Cozy. Seward’s own quilt shop located at 211 4th Ave. Sew-n-Bee Cozy is displaying the quilt through the holiday weekend. Stop by and see the quilt and get your raffle tickets during their business hours of 10am-7pm M-Sat and Sundays 12-5pm. www.sewnbeecozy.com
The raffle proceeds go to the Seward Community Library Museum building project. Tickets are only $1 each and tickets sales are going fast. Drawing will be at the Library August 20th at noon. A 3-D model of the project is on display at the Library, stop by to see the model and look at the plans. More information is on our website, www.somethingforus.org.
Thank you Sew-n-Bee Cozy for displaying the quilt! Donated by Pam Ventgen, a quilter from Anchorage. Pam will be in Seward doing quilting classes for Seward’s local quilters in October and January.
Tickets available at the Library, Museum, Teresa Roy at First National Bank, Mary Tougas at Hertz, Karla Oates at Sew-n-Bee Cozy, Vanta Shafer at Cover to Cover.
Blood Bank of Alaska is pleased to announce our first Seward blood drive in our new LIFEmobile July 2 and 3. The new mobile unit, which will assist in collecting blood donations statewide, is customized with screening rooms, phlebotomy chairs, a cantina area and artwork.
The drive will be held July 2 and 3 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Hotel Edgewater. Alaska’s blood supply is dangerously low with a less than one-day supply available statewide. Although Alaska’s need for blood increases in the summer because of increased activity and travel, blood donation rates take a significant plunge. This situation leaves Alaskans at the mercy of Lower 48 blood banks. Please call (907) 222-5630 to schedule an appointment.
The new coach arrived in Alaska after a 5000 mile journey from Tampa to Tok. It was unveiled at an open-house at the Copper River Health Fair in Glennallen, May 10. It will host drives in Fairbanks, Seward and Wasilla. The new LIFEmobile is a 2007 Blue Bird Bus. It is 40 feet long, has a 6 cylinder Cummins 6.7 engine and a 60 gallon fuel tank.
The new coach has hosted more than 33 blood drives since May 16, allowing Blood Bank of Alaska to collect hundreds of pints of blood. Between now and the end of the year, the new coach will complete more than 130 drives statewide, collecting an estimated 2500 pints of blood. Mat-Su Health Foundation, BP, First National Bank Alaska, Combined Federal Campaign, First American Title, The Rasmusen Foundation, and the Safeway-Carrs Employee Giving Campaign have made contributions to help offset the coach’s purchase price of more than $200,000. (END)
June 20, 2008, Juneau, Alaska – Governor Sarah Palin today released a draft bill proposing a special one-time payment in the amount of $1,200 to Alaskans and suspending the state fuel tax for one year. The legislation is intended to be a starting point for a discussion with the legislature about how to provide relief from high energy costs to working Alaskans and their families. “As the fiscal year winds down, Alaskans are assured of surpluses beyond the billions of dollars put into savings and funding for priorities such as forward funding education and municipal revenue sharing,” Governor Palin said. “With savings and funding priorities covered, I am confident that Alaskans, who are the owners of our resources, can spend their resource revenue better than government can.” She added, “We can afford to share resource wealth with Alaskans and to temporarily suspend the state fuel tax. It is my hope these items would be implemented by September. We look forward to working with legislators in the coming weeks to find the best possible solution to provide short-term energy relief.” While the unique fiscal circumstances the state finds itself in at the end of this fiscal year warrant a special one-time payment to share some of the state’s wealth, the payment comes at a time when Alaskans are facing rising energy prices. High prices for oil are a double-edged sword for Alaskans. While public coffers fill, prices for heating fuel and gasoline have skyrocketed over the last six months and are now running into the $5- to $9-a-gallon range for heating fuel and gasoline across several areas of the state. (Examples: Kokhanok - $9.10 for heating fuel; Hughes - $8.50 for gasoline.) The payment to Alaskans is estimated to distribute roughly $729 million of the state’s resource wealth. Suspending the state fuel tax for one year would save Alaskans about another $40 million in state fuel taxes. Governor Palin and the administration will continue reviewing a proposal to make grants to utilities and introduce bills for the legislature to consider next month. In addition to this short-term relief, efforts are ongoing toward a long-term energy plan for the state. That initiative is being directed by Steve Haagenson, who was appointed the State’s Energy Coordinator in March. Haagenson, who also serves as Executive Director of the Alaska Energy Authority, is developing a statewide plan to reduce energy costs, promote conservation and secure long-term supply solutions for each region of the state. Results of his work are expected by the end of this year. “These energy prices are draining family finances and causing hardships all over the state,” said Haagenson. In addition, it was announced that the Division of Investments will be amending its regulations to allow for low-interest loans to commercial fishermen to purchase more fuel-efficient engines. This proposal has no financial impact on the state’s budget. A proposal to use debit cards to deliver the special one-time payments to Alaskans was dropped due to significant costs and the inability to use the debit cards in many rural Alaska communities. A copy of the draft bill can be found at:http://www.gov.state.ak.us/pdf/FuelTaxBill_06-20-2008.PDF
Remember the town meeting with Paul Seaton tonight in the council chambers. The topic is a legislative report and the natural gas pipeline.
From 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm.
The Bear Creek Fire Service Area is pleased to announce the results of it’s evaluation in September of 2007 by the Insurance Service Office (ISO).
Effective July 1, 2008 the Public Protection Classification shall be improved to a 6 from a 7, this may result in reduced insurance rates for homeowners and businesses within the area.
ISO is an independent company that serves insurance companies, fire departments and insurance regulators providing information about community fire risks. It provides surveys that are conducted in communities and then assigns them a Public Protection Classification (PPC).
ISO evaluates communities using a nationally recognized standard of performance developed by the National Fire Protection Association and the American Water Works Association. A communities PPC depends on 1) Fire Alarm and Communications 2) Fire Department operations, personnel level and training, and 3) Water Supply System.
Results of the evaluation show that Bear Creek earned a rating of 48% of 100 points, up 15 % from the evaluation in 1994 where Bear Creek received a 33 % Score and a rating of 7. The department will submit an improvement plan with hopes of accruing a 5 on the next evaluation. Improvements will include increased staffing levels (we need more volunteers) and training.
The Volunteers wish to thank the Community, Service Area Board and Kenai Peninsula Borough for their ongoing support of Public Safety improvements within our Service Area. The department is the only rural department without hydrants in Alaska that has achieved a 6 Public Protection Classification.
We also want to thank all the past and current volunteers for the countless hours they have given to the community and the fire department to help make our community a safer place.
Area residents should advise their insurance carrier of the improvement and may call the station at 224-3345 for a letter of advisory.
My wife and I spent some time volunteering on the Parks Project last week. It was a memorable experience and makes me proud to live in Seward, Alaska. What would make me even prouder would be to have a mayor that shared our community experience. Willard Dunham and other council people have stepped forward and they have been doing the job the mayor should be doing. Sure the man has to work, can’t blame him for that. But it is obvious his work and his living in Anchorage have taken precedence over any commitment to Seward. He never attended any of the Muni League Mayor functions, he didn’t lobby in Juneau or Washington DC, he hasn’t attended any community functions, he misses city council work sessions and many have had to rescheduled so he could be there and he still doesn’t make it. He isn’t available to the public. He was a mediocre city manager and now an even more mediocre mayor. So I just have to ask the question: Is it ethical to be the mayor and not do the job of mayor? He promised ethics and we get squat. I think it highly ironic that I got to meet our state representative from Homer and the Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor, but our mayor was conspicuously not there. You proved your point. You got elected, now do the honorable thing and resign.
To end on a positive note - great job parents, kids and citizens and all of the contributors. You made a dream come true.
May 15, 2008, Anchorage, Alaska – Governor Sarah Palin today unveiled a short-term energy plan to address the skyrocketing costs of energy in Alaska. The package includes two parts – returning surplus funds through a grant to all electric utilities to reduce ratepayer bills and an Energy Debit Card for the next 12 months.
“Alaskans are feeling the pinch of high energy costs,” Governor Palin said. “The state treasury is swelling, while family checkbooks are evaporating. The right thing to do is to return surplus monies to the resource owners through energy relief. Instead of going to Washington, D.C. for relief, Alaskans should be independent enough to take care of this energy problem ourselves.”Since coming into office, the Palin Administration has been focused on long-term solutions to Alaska’s energy crunch. In some of Alaska’s communities, consumers are faced with the nation’s highest energy costs. In 2007, a comprehensive energy supply inventory was initiated to identify alternatives to high-cost energy supplies. Earlier this spring, Steve Haagenson was appointed as the State’s Energy Coordinator. In his capacity as the Executive Director of the Alaska Energy Authority, he is developing a statewide plan to reduce costs, promote conservation and secure long-term supply solutions for each part of the state. Results of that work are expected by year-end 2008.“For instance, in Bush Alaska, the best solutions to high diesel prices are to use less and find alternatives,” Governor Palin said. “We cannot lose sight of the need for these long-term fixes, but as crude oil prices continue to set daily records, Alaska’s families, communities and businesses cannot afford to wait.”Returning surplus funds through grants to electric utilities will result in a 60 percent reduction for all ratepayers. The benefit will flow to homeowners, renters, schools, governments and businesses. A review by the Department of Law has indicated that there should be no federal income tax consequence since the grants act to offset the revenue collected by the utilities themselves. In addition, there will be conservation incentives for the utilities. For every 1 percent reduction in 2008 kilowatt hour sales from 2007 sales, the state will make a year-end contribution for capital energy projects to the utility. The Energy Debit Card will go out to every qualifying Permanent Fund Dividend applicant. The benefit will be $100 per month per PFD recipient. The amount allocated for children’s benefits will accrue to the card of the sponsor on their PFD application. Money not used on the card one month will carry over to the next month. It is expected that the amount available to individuals through the card will be considered income by the IRS.The temporary Energy Debit Card can be used for purchases from Alaska energy vendors, such as heating oil distributors, natural gas utilities, electric utilities, gas stations and other retail fueling stations. The value of this plan is approximately $1.2 billion. The grant to electric utilities is expected to be $475 million, while the Energy Debit Card totals are forecast to be $729 million. The Governor has proposed this energy relief plan for one year.
Drop by the Seward LIO and meet with Representative Seaton today from 4 to 6 pm. He will also be giving a legislative update at City Council this evening, so tune in to the council meeting. Seward LIO phone number is 224-5066.
This past budget cycle was a very high-profile one for our community, and some of the issues remain unresolved. May 8th, at 7 PM, the City Council is holding a worksession on the sales tax cap (along with the 1st quarter financials). It is your opportunity to be heard and explore in depth what sales (and which businesses) would truly be impacted by an increase in the sales tax cap.
Sales to government entities and non-profits are excluded. These charges already account for a large amount of Seward’s gross sales. The tourists will not be paying more as our hotels are taxed on an individual room rate per night, and our sightseeing boats and charter trips are taxed per seat, per day. None of these charges exceed $500.
What about our commerical fishing vessels, ships repair services, construction projects, home heating fuel? Please attend, and be sure that we all know who is impacted when we implement a sales-based program.
Laura Cloward
Executive Director
Seward Chamber of Commerce
L E G A C Y Imagine a powerful tool local residents will create and use to strengthen our community today and forever. Imagine an endowment available to support our emerging needs as a growing community in Southcentral Alaska. With your participation, these visions will become reality. Read More>
I would request the City of Seward repeal the sales tax on heating fuel. The cost to heat our homes is quickly becoming unbearable. The business sector, in order to survive, will surely pass along the high cost to the consumer in the form of higher prices. Increased fuel costs and the increased cost of needed commodities will surely have a negative impact on the economic growth of our community. If working people can’t afford to live here, school populations decline, business ventures fail and land values decline.
Repealing the tax will understandably effect the City’s bank account, but it will be a great help in the economic survival to continued growth in our community and a welcomed relief to our cost of fuel shocked townspeople. It will be received as a message that our City truly cares about us.
As a resident of Alaska and a resident of the City of Seward I have the right to know how each city council member votes on every motion. I would like to see how the individual council members voted to adjourn after the meeting on Monday night at 11:03 pm. I ask each and every city councilman, knowing that there is a video record of their actions, to look in the mirror and reflect how they voted that night to adjourn. Every now and then, it is important for each council member to reflect on why they are sitting in that seat.
Voting is not a game but very serious business, rarely is there a vote that does not cost some person something. We citizens hope that each vote is measured by the guidance of common good not personal pride or gain.
The people of Alaska do not yield their sovereignty to the agencies who serve them; and the people in delegating authority, do not give their public servants the right to decide what is good for the people to know and what is not good for them to know.(as 44.62.312)
I have had the opportunity to hear the citizen’s unease about Monday’s meeting. Some are outraged; others don’t understand the significance of how it only takes one vote. I would like to remind those who can’t remember, that the former Soviet Union also held votes; these votes were meaningless, Cuba also votes, even the Mugabe the strongman of Zimbabwe claims to be duly elected. So really a vote is “a right” only as long as it is accorded legal standing, so the votes of the Seward City Council are important to me.
Can the City Clerk provide the voting results of the Seward City Council for the vote to adjourn on Monday night April 28? I will assure you that there was not unanimous consent.
It appears that Mayor Corbridge in his rush to continue the meeting on April 28 did not (in an afterhour’s motion), allow a majority vote to continue the meeting to 8am April 29, 2008. This willful failure to follow the procedures of the Seward City Code and Robert’s Rules makes the morning continuation of the meeting illegal and all actions taken at the meeting void.
Robert’s Rules, the Seward City Code, and the Alaska Statutes are not to be used at random, because only by the proper use of the rules are the rights of the people including the minority protected. Mr. Corbridge willfully and flagrantly disobeyed the rule of law that protects our citizens from the abuses of government.
The Alaska Open Meetings Act suggests several remedies when a governmental body like the Seward City Council violates their own laws and the laws of the State of Alaska. Some of these remedies are:
· Reconsideration of the issues of the illegal meeting at another properly convened meeting.
· Recall of an elected official. An elected official’s violation of the Alaska Open Meetings Act is grounds for recall due to failure to perform the prescribed duties of office.
· Injunctive relief the Supreme Court ha ruled that injunctions may be used to prevent future violations of the ACT.
· Since a person who brings suit under the Open Meetings Act is acting as a public interest litigant then they are likely to be awarded Attorneys’ fees.
The goal of the penalties of violating the Open Meetings Act is not to put an undue burden on governmental agencies but is to prevent violations of the Act, and thus to protect the rights of the citizens. The Seward City Council should void the illegal morning meeting and with proper notice at a legal meeting reconsider the actions taken at this improperly announced meeting.
Here is the link to the Alaska Supreme Court’s decision reaffiming the Superior Court’s decision.
http://www.state.ak.us/courts/ops/sp-6253.pdf
This opinion was released April 25.
The Seward City Council on a vote of 4 - 3 passed an increase to the sales tax cap from the current $500 limit to a new $1,000 cap. There was a certain misconception in the public that charters, other recreational and hospitality industries, were bypassing paying taxes by charging customers by the boat or by the trip or by the week. As of April of ‘07 the borough changed the rules so that all of these industries must charge per person per day. The increase in the sales tax cap has no impact on these industries due to this change in borough tax computation.
So you may ask who the tax increase impacts. It impacts people who pay rent over $500, which is almost every rental in the city. It impacts people who have high oil bill costs and I would say that is a majority of the citizens of Seward. It impacts businesses who must compute the tax cap on borough sales up to $500 and then compute the Seward tax cap up to $1000. Many businesses have said that finding a software that does all the multiple calculations a near impossibility. The impact, in my opinion, is local.
The meeting after the council passed the tax cap increase, the city administration placed a brand new truck, not to exceed $63,000 on the agenda. This truck was not budgeted in the 2008 budget by the city council. Administration stated that it had been budgeted in the 2006 budget but never purchased. The Electrical Department head stated his workload was too heavy in ‘06 and he did not get around to it. He also stated that the old truck had not been maintained because they were going to purchase a new truck. Documentation was presented to the council for repairs to the existing truck for $20,000 and the department head stated the new truck cost went down to $55,000. So where am I going with this? I would like to ask the city council to not authorize repairs to the truck or purchase of a new truck (new truck again on upcoming council agenda for April 28). I would ask them to wait until John Bird does a complete audit of city vehicles, including but not limited to best usage policies, maintenance policy and maintenance schedules and maintenance records. Good stewardship of the public’s money is an expectation of good government.
So if you would like to sign the tax roll back petition, please call me at 224-7172 and I will refer you to the nearest circulator, or stop me on the street. I have it in my purse.
Senator Gary StevensSenate Rules Chairwww.aksenate.org
GaVEL FALLS ON 25TH ALASKA LEGISLATURE:
Juneau—The gavel fell on the second session of the 25th Alaska Legislature early this (Sunday afternoon) after lawmakers gave their approval to the final major piece of legislation, the Fiscal Year ’2009 Capital Budget. Working with Representatives Paul Seaton (R-Homer) and Gabrielle LeDoux (R-Kodiak), Senator Gary Stevens (R-Kodiak) was able to secure support for numerous infrastructure projects for the communities he serves in the Kenai Peninsula, the Lake and Peninsula Borough and Kodiak Island. “The District R projects in the capital budget are of great importance to my constituents and the communities I represent in the Senate, so I’m pleased we’ve been able to get legislative support for them,” Senator Stevens commented. “I would like to thank the civic and community leaders around my district for working with us on the projects, as well as Representatives LeDoux and Seaton for their efforts to gain support for these projects in the House.”
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Story by Arlene Carpenter
Photo by Greg Carpenter
American Legion Boys State and American Legion Auxiliary Girls State are the premier programs for teaching how government works while developing leadership skills & an appreciation for your rights as a citizen. As a participant in the program students will run for office, learn public speaking skills, create and enforce laws, and actively participate in all phases of creating and running a working government in this exciting and fun summer program. This is entirely paid for by the local American Legion and American Legion Auxiliary.
As the month of April had a certain way of re-introducing its snowy self to Seward on Wednesday, April 9, so did Western District Commander Richard Smith (of American Legion Seward Post #5) re-introduce The American Legion Boys State to Seward High School juniors for his 4th consecutive year. Accompanying Commander Smith was Eric Bilyou, of Seward Wildlife Cruises representing Seward businesses, Arlene Carpenter representing American Legion Auxiliary Unit #5, and Martha Fleming, counselor at the high school.
This year various Seward businesses have endorsed a plan that will allow any junior who may be (or hopes to be) employed with them, the opportunity to take a week out of their summer job while attending American Legion Boys State and American Legion Auxiliary Girls State in June. Some of those businesses who have endorsed this effort, and who welcome job applicants at this time are: Major Marine Tours, Renown Charter & Tours, the Seward Trolley, Seward Hertz Car Rental, and the Hotel Seward.
The Boys State program will be held at Meier Lake Conference Center (http://www.meierlake.com) near Wasilla from June 15 to June 21 with all participating students having room, housing and transportation paid for. The Girls State program will also be held at Meier Lake Conference Center from June 7 to June 14. “The entire conference center lends a special appeal to its many walking and hiking trails surrounding Meier Lake and a swimming area. Sports and music are also part of the schedule and of course that’s a plus” said Arlene Carpenter who has attended many conferences since being on part of the original planning end during the acquisition of the land from the Meier family of Anchorage.
Two girls and two boys will be chosen while attending Girls State and Boys State to go to Washington DC in July. Students will be eligible to receive college credit for participation at the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs.
The American Legion Department of Alaska will give a scholarship to each student chosen to attend Girls Nation and Boys Nation in Washington DC. A scholarship will also be given to two alternate participants that are chosen in case the first two participants can not attend. In addition, those students attending Girls State Boys State have the opportunity to apply for a scholarship through the Samsung American Legion Scholarship. This scholarship will be awarded to qualified students who are descendants of the United States wartime veterans. Selection criteria includes academic record, community involvement, school activities and financial need.
Applications for Boys State and Girls State are available thru Martha Fleming, Seward High School counselor, Richard Smith 491-0099, or Arlene Carpenter 224-5563. All applications must be postmarked by May 3, 2008 and mailed to: The American Legion, P.O. Box 706 for girls, P.O. Box 306 for boys, Seward, Ak 99664.
Further information can be found at www.boysandgirlsstate.org
Left to right: Eric Bilyou, Junghyun Lee Yoo, Nicole Hewitt, Kiia Hubbard, Richard Smith, Martha Fleming, Daryn Repasky, and Travis Price
March 24th, 2008 Newsletter
From the desk of
Rep. Paul Seaton
Issue 59
Contact Information
Toll Free :( 800) 665-2689
Fax :( 907) 465-3472
Website: http://www.RepPaulSeaton.com
Email: Rep.Paul.Seaton@Legis.state.ak.us
Greetings from Juneau on this 70th day of the 2008 legislative session. We are enjoying a warming trend that makes it feel like real spring – except for this morning’s snow that reminds us it is still March.
Things are very busy here with approach of the end of the 90 day session. However, this weekend schedule and Friday’s floor session were cancelled, corresponding with the Easter holiday. Tina and I traveled to California to join with my family in celebration of my Dad’s 99th birthday. He is active in the community, church, takes care of the yard work and still drives both in town and on the freeway. We are traveling back to Juneau on Monday after a great reunion with our California extended family and our son, Rand, who joined us from college in Reno Nevada.
We were pleased to welcome the following constituents to our Juneau office this week: Willard Dunham and Phillip Oates of the City of Seward and Rick Foster of Homer.
Read More>
What are Mayor Corbridge, Vice Mayor Dunham, and Councilmembers Valdetta and Smith thinking? At the March 14th council meeting, the City Finance Director pointed out that there are unexpected revenues of over $200,000 in sales tax and we have a budget surplus. Nevertheless, these councilmembers decided to vote to maintain the increase of the tax cap from $500.00 to $1,000.00. (they had voted to increase in January then brought back for reconsideration in February, then for a few weeks left people thinking they would overturn the increase then back to keeping it) This week, in the Seward Phoenix Log, Councilmember Valdetta said the city doesn’t have any revenue. Look at your March 25th City Council Packet, Mr. Valdatta, and you will see $19+ million in reserves.
I didn’t know that a vote of the mayor is “provisional” (definition: temporary), and thank you Seward Phoenix Log for pointing that out. How do you have a provisional (temporary) vote? Either this tax cap is in place by 2009 or it isn’t. Please explain what “It came up naked as you will. It was without anything that would keep the balance budgeted.” What does that mean? He then goes on to state that the City would have to “roll back the budget”. Since revenues from this won’t even be collected until 2009 and there is a revenue surplus, why will the 2008 budget have to be rolled back? He also wants to have future work sessions and hopes the council can figure out a way of both reducing the tax cap while finding alternative REVENUE INCREASES. Does this mean the Kenai Peninsula Borough should wait on ordering the $100,000 software they need to accommodate this tax cap increase until these gentlemen finally figure out what they want? That $100,000 cost also comes right out of the taxpayers pocket. Why can’t we reduce the budget rather than increase it? If it is decided to not put the tax increase on fuel, food or rent, isn’t that going to make this a very complicated endeavor for merchants for a gain of about $70,000.00 per year.
Oh, by the way, the city is seeking to purchase a new $63,000 service truck at the March 25th meeting. This vehicle was not a budgeted expenditure for the 2008 budget.
Thank you to Councilmembers Jean Bardarson, Linda Amberg and Betsy Keller for voting against the sales tax cap increase to $1,000.00. It is unfortunate their side did not prevail. This sales tax increase will have a negative effect on the middle class of Seward who are already struggling with exceptionally high fuel oil costs, electric bills, and other utility increases. These, along with the increase in the cost of food, due to high transportation costs, are truly having a negative effect on the Seward population. The City of Seward needs to learn to live within its means, and increasing the sales tax cap to $1,000.00 is a direct increase to many fuel oil bills. It is amazing that Mayor Corbridge, Vice Mayor Dunham, Councilmember Valdetta and Councilmember Smith did not seem to think that there would be negative effects from this increase on the community. It is their job to ensure the City government is not a burden to the taxpayer. They should be looking at ways to reduce the budget, not increase it. They are not carrying out their responsibility. It was especially astounding that this increase passed when the City said there is over $200,000 in unexpected sales tax revenue in 2007, that the PERS costs were not as much as had been budgeted for, etc. Thank you also to Kevin Clark who was very eloquent at the end of the council meeting. He is correct in that we should be looking for ways to retain families here, not drive them out with the high cost of taxes along with the high costs of everything else.
Early Passage of Budgets Opens Door for On-time Adjournment at 90 Days (Juneau) – By a vote of 29-10, the State House today passed HB 310, the proposed FY 2009 operating budget, which spends $4.1 billion in general funds, and $5.8 billion in federal funds and other state funds, for a total of $9.976 billion. The new fiscal year starts July 1. The House, by a vote of 33-5, also passed HB 312, which makes appropriations for both the operating and capital budgets for the mental health programs of state government. While the House operating budget represents a cut of $230.5 million from Governor Sarah Palin’s proposed amended budget, its general fund spending is still 10.6 percent higher than the current year. “In light of the condensed timeline necessitated by the 90-day session, passage of the operating budget on the 50th day of the session is remarkable,” said Finance Committee Co-chairman Mike Chenault, R-Nikiski. “Our budget represents a responsible balance between holding down spending on the one hand, while responding to the growing needs of the people of Alaska on the other. The cost of everything related to the budget is going up, and while we are in a time of historically high revenue, it would simply not be prudent to pass an operating budget we cannot sustain in the future.” Significant items in the operating budget include:
- $309 million for state employee negotiated salary increases
- $50 million in revenue sharing for municipalities and communities
- $175 million for oil and gas tax credits,
Chenault said a second significant challenge to budget-writers was coming to a common understanding over terms with the Governor’s staff. “We were presented a budget that laid-out the Governor’s budget over three years,” Chenault said. “So even though we were presenting the same items, the Governor’s plan showed a four percent increase, while ours showed a 15 percent increase. Coming to common ground on how the beans are counted was crucial to the open and transparent process we agreed with the Governor we need.” As a result, the Finance co-chairs requested:
- consistent use of funds from year to year
- consistent treatment of capital and operating items
- consistent linkages between year of appropriation and year of expenditure
- full disclosure of expenditures, especially for education and retirement
The operating budget bills will now go to the Senate for its consideration.
