Legislative session officially begins in Juneau

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - As lawmakers ascended on the Capitol for the start of the new session and 34th Legislature on Tuesday, priorities are beginning to take shape, with education, energy, and the economy drawing focus.

Before the introduction of new legislation, however – which will add, early in the session, to what is now a finalized prefiled legislation list – lawmakers had to be sworn in on the House and Senate floors, beginning with the latter.

Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom, who was on-site swearing lawmakers in, said during the opening floor session that much important work for everybody across Alaska is completed inside either chamber and that she believes lawmakers will come together to get it done.

“Disagreeing is a wonderful tool,” she said. “So we can learn how people think and what their priorities are... so we can come together and work.”

In the Senate, newly-reelected Senate President Gary Stevens, R-Kodiak, said in part that each lawmaker in the chamber represents approximately 36,000 Alaskans.

“Every Alaskan is represented here in this chamber,” said Stevens, who last held the position of Senate president during the 33rd Legislature after leaving the position back in 2012, “and every Alaskan has a senator being called upon.

“We may disagree,” he said, adding that he will strive to maintain a respectful relationship between all lawmakers across the chambers. “We all know we have work to do, work to accomplish together, enormous tasks and challenges ahead of us.”

Rep. Bryce Edgmon, NA-Dillingham, was named Speaker of the House in a 21-19 vote along caucus lines.

“We have a lot of work ahead of us,” he said during the House floor session Tuesday. “We have a very unique responsibility with the conditions that face our state. Multiple opportunities, of course, lots of challenges, of areas to agree on, lots of areas to disagree on, lots of areas to find respectful common ground.”

The House is currently divided into a bipartisan house coalition of 14 Democrats, 5 Independents, and 2 Republicans; and a minority caucus of 19 Republicans.

The Senate is currently made up of a mixed 14-member majority and a 6-member minority, with the latter comprising only Republicans. Both the majority and minority caucuses held press conferences Tuesday, outlining some of the efforts they are prioritizing this session.

As lawmakers have made clear in months – and years – past, those focuses include education, such as whether or not to move forward with an adjusted base student allocation; energy, for example, how to solve what many believe is a crisis surrounding a looming natural gas shortage; and the economy, to include affordability in Alaska, as a whole.

During a press conference held Tuesday morning, before the official start of session, the Senate Majority spoke broadly about some of what it is anticipating, and what it is hoping for as lawmakers work to come together for the new legislature. One of the major tasks will be arriving at a balanced budget.

“The operating budget gets done first, and if there’s anything left, we’ll get into the capital budget and other selections across the state,” said Senate Finance Cmte. Co-Chair Bert Stedman, R-Sitka, who also noted deferred maintenance projects as needing addressing with this year’s budget. “I’m not expecting, at this time, that we’re going to have a real robust capital budget that starts newer projects.”

Sen. Lyman Hoffman, D-Bethel, also a finance committee co-chair, emphasized while legislators are already facing some tough decisions, he believes the experience of many returning lawmakers will help arrive to a compromise.

“We have to have – constitutionally – a balanced budget,” Lyman said. “That is very important. The budget that was submitted to the people of Alaska by the governor overspends by $1.5 billion. There is no way we can afford that ... It has to balance.”

The newly-expanded minority caucus in the Senate, which is now made up of six Republican lawmakers, also spoke generally Tuesday on plans for the near future.

Minority Leader Sen. Mike Shower, R-Wasilla, said after the session officially commenced that he’s hopeful lawmakers – particularly from his caucus – bring forth a “unified vision” over some of the key topics slated for addressing over the next few months.

“What we’ve been focused on and what our discussions are,” Shower said, noting earlier that the group will, in the future, provide more detail on steps to attain its goals. “‘How do we move the state forward?’ ‘How do we govern efficiently?’ ‘How do we work as a team, not just within our caucus but with everybody moving forward?’ So, that is our goal.”

“The question has been asked, ‘Well, what are you guys going to do as a minority?’” Shower said. “Our goal is to find things that we can work together with on the House Majority and Minority, and the governor, so that, at the end of the two year-cycle or each year, we have found bills and legislation and policy that is going to move Alaska forward.”

As for what that common ground may look like, however, lawmakers have a long road ahead, with the session just getting started.

The House is adjourned until 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, while the Senate returns a half-hour later, at 11 o’clock.

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