Greetings from Juneau,
The second session of the 26th Alaska State Legislature commenced this week in Juneau. It’s been a busy week, but not short on excitement. The Legislature welcomed two new members to the body, Representative Neal Foster of Nome and Representative Tammie Wilson of North Pole. Governor Sean Parnell addressed the Legislature in the annual State of the State address last night. We are gearing up for another productive session.
A number of bills were introduced this week, and they are available on the Legislature’s website at www.legis.state.ak.us, or they are always available in hard copy at your local Legislative Information Office.
I am continuing to push HB 36, which addresses the many problems with the current initiative process. I will be the first person to admit how important the initiative process is to Alaskans. However, the loopholes in the process are big enough to drive the Matanuska or the Malaspina through. HB 36 requires more information to be given to the public before an initiative is placed on the ballot, and HB 36 also brings the financial disclosure requirements up to par with candidate requirements. It is very important to me that Alaskans know the source of money when it comes to influencing public policy.
Today I introduced HB 311, which allows the Alaska State Council on the Arts to adopt their own regulations. The Council has previously been adopting their own regulations, but according to the Department of Law, they do not have the authority to do so under the Administrative Procedure Act. I am happy to introduce this bill at the request of the Alaska State Council on the Arts because of District One’s strong arts community. This bill will empower our arts community, and arts communities around our state, to ensure that they are able to carry out their message and mission.
I plan on posting to my blog often during session, so please check back often. I will keep you updated on the issues affecting District One and our great state.
Regards,
