The Primary, Special, and General Election Ahead

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[cs_content][cs_element_section _id=”1″ ][cs_element_layout_row _id=”2″ ][cs_element_layout_column _id=”3″ ][cs_element_text _id=”4″ ][cs_content_seo]Hi all,
I’m excited to share with you that The Alaska Center Board of Directors has wrapped up our endorsement process! 
As a part of this process, the Board considers a questionnaire that asks about our core issues, including climate, democracy, equity, Pebble Mine, records and voting history, and candidate code of conduct statements and actions. 
I’m thrilled to share The Alaska Center endorsements: 32 candidates for the state legislature, Mary Peltola for the special election for US Congress, and Pat Chesbro for US Senate (and, in case you missed it, our gubernatorial endorsement from the other week). In 5 legislative races, The Alaska Center recommends a ranking order for the general election, with the knowledge that our votes are most powerful when we rank our choices.\n\n[/cs_content_seo][/cs_element_layout_column][cs_element_layout_column _id=”5″ ][cs_element_button _id=”6″ ][cs_content_seo]Check Out Our Endorsements Here\n\n[/cs_content_seo][/cs_element_layout_column][cs_element_layout_column _id=”7″ ][cs_element_text _id=”8″ ][cs_content_seo]We need leaders on every level who will stand up for our clean air and water, healthy communities, and strong democracy. And in this election, it is critical that we maintain and grow the bipartisan majority in the State House and build more power in the State Senate. 
These elections will determine the next two years of legislative advocacy, but the legislation that our leaders pass will determine our future decades from now. It’s past time that we pass the critical legislation. We need to establish a Renewable Portfolio Standard to help our state meet renewable goals, we must create a ballot-curing process for voters, and it’s far past time we pass more comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation. These candidates will decide whether we have to spend our time fighting off proposals from a hostile administration or devote more energy to creating the future we want to see.
Voting great leaders into office is essential to creating a thriving, just, and sustainable future. Make sure you’re ready to vote here!
Best,
Jenny-Marie Stryker
Political Director
The Alaska Center\n\n[/cs_content_seo][cs_element_gap _id=”9″ ][cs_element_button _id=”10″ ][cs_content_seo]More Of Our Blog\n\n[/cs_content_seo][/cs_element_layout_column][/cs_element_layout_row][/cs_element_section][/cs_content]

Rank it, Flip it, Be Heard

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Ranked-Choice voting is here, Alaska! Our new ranked-choice voting system will be used for the first time on August 16 to fill former Rep. Don Young’s seat in the House of Representatives. It’s time to learn about the process and start researching to choose candidates and ballot measures that represent your values.

The open primary in June narrowed the field of primary candidates down to three: Sarah Palin, Nick Begich, and Mary Peltola. At the same time they rank candidates for the special election, voters will also choose one primary candidate to advance to the general election for the permanent House position along with Governor/Lt. Governor, US Senate, and State Senate and House Representatives for various districts across the state. You will pick one candidate for each of the primary races on the front of your ballot, then flip your ballot and rank the three running for the US. Special Election.

After voters make their choices on Election Day, all the absentee, early, and election day ballots will be counted, and all voters’ first-place choices will be tallied. If no candidate gets over 50% of the votes in the first round, the least popular candidate will be eliminated, and the votes for them reassigned to their voters’ second-choice picks. This process will continue until one candidate has over half of the votes. While it is not required to rank all four (or, in this case, three) candidates, it is recommended because it means that your voice can be heard throughout the entire election, not just in the first round.

While ranked-choice voting is brand new in Alaska, it’s used successfully in states and cities throughout the country, including for federal elections in Maine and recently in the election for New York City mayor. Ranked-choice voting is just as secure and effective as more traditional voting forms. The new system means that our votes will go further, and our preferences will still be counted even if our first-choice candidate doesn’t win.

Because the August 16 election is a statewide general election, it will be conducted in person at local polling places, unlike recent Anchorage Municipal elections and special primaries. Anyone who wishes to vote by mail for any reason must request an absentee ballot at least ten days before Election Day and make sure that their ballot is postmarked on or before election day.
It’s important to be an informed voter on Election Day. Stay tuned for next week’s blog to learn which candidates The Alaska Center will be endorsing for races across the state.
As always, thanks for voting.
The Alaska Center

A special step towards a better future

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What if Alaskans have the power to change the trajectory of our entire nation? We know that might sound like pie-in-the-sky dreaming or potentially the ramblings of an overly optimistic team committed to our climate future. But honestly, right now, this special election could influence national politics more than you may realize.

Recently we had the chance to vote in our special runoff primary, and we have three candidates to choose from in the August special election. These 3 candidates show us three routes our state could take depending on who rises to the top in the next Ranked Choice election. We could be looking at an extremist conservative candidate with a history of abandoning our state in times of need. We could have an even more extreme candidate who wants to remove bodily autonomy and destroy the EPA. Or we could make another choice, and the seat left open by Don Young could be filled with a progressive candidate who has shown their commitment to protecting our salmon, our communities, and our way of life in Alaska.

Isn’t it about time an Indigenous woman represents our state? Isn’t it about time we let our leaders know that the attacks on our bodily autonomy, environmental protections, and accessible voting are not just decisions Alaskans will sit idly by and watch? Isn’t it time we show the rest of the nation what change can look like and what we need leadership to be?

Sure this special election is for a limited term, but this first special election has the ability to set the stage for an election season where Alaskans say we want progressive leaders to make effective and long-lasting policy decisions for the country. Decisions that can help turn the direction of our climate and our country’s future.

And while this special term is only a few months, whoever gets elected has a much stronger chance of being elected in November. When people turn up to vote, the political infrastructure (campaigns, parties, and political spenders) listens. This is an opportunity for Alaskans to influence bigger and broader elections.

This election is a chance to show up and move the needle for our climate and our communities. When we show up at the polls, we show leadership that we are active and will stay engaged. Our numbers in elections can set the tone, and our leaders can expect to be held accountable for the length of their term.

This year, Alaskans have a lot of elections, and each of them holds the power to make a significant change in our state and our country. This special election can be more special than we may even know. Don’t forget this Sunday is the Voter registration deadline for the special house election.

Keep your eye on the prize, and together we can build a future for all Alaskans.
The Alaska Center

The Governor’s Election Ahead – Our Endorsement

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After an in-depth process, The Alaska Center Board of Directors has unanimously voted to endorse the Les Gara and Jessica Cook Gubernatorial ticket and encourages voters to rank the Bill Walker and Heidi Drygas ticket second.

The Gara/Cook campaign stands by The Alaska Center values 100%. Les Gara has a strong track record of being a clean air and water champion, healthy communities, and a strong democracy. This campaign has a vision for Alaska we want to be in and the leadership skills to get the job done. This endorsement decision was not a difficult one.

In a ranked-choice voting environment, voters must rank multiple candidates to give us the best chance to defeat Governor Dunleavy in this election.

More On Our Endorsement

While Governor Walker may not share every policy goal of ours, we know that he would do right by Alaskans in restoring civil leadership to the administration that recognizes the urgency of the climate crisis. We encourage voters to rank the Walker/Drygas ticket second.

The stakes in this election are incredibly high: we need to oust Governor Dunleavy. Dunleavy has orchestrated a budget crisis that threatens our communities. He has been a puppet for Pebble Mine and supported conspiracy theories that sow doubts in our election system. He has even attempted to gut our Automatic Voter Registration and waste millions of dollars of our dwindling state resources in supporting countless frivolous lawsuits, sweetheart contracts, and more. It is time for Dunleavy to go.

Alaskans deserve leadership that has a vision for a thriving, just, and sustainable future. These candidates can bring our state back on track and can pave a new path forward to a sustainable, renewable, and viable Alaska that works for All Alaskans.

I hope you join me in ranking Les Gara and Jessica Cook first, and Governor Walker and Heidi Drygas second!

Why do you celebrate Juneteenth?

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[cs_content][cs_element_section _id=”1″ ][cs_element_layout_row _id=”2″ ][cs_element_layout_column _id=”3″ ][cs_element_text _id=”4″ ][cs_content_seo]This weekend, Alaskans and others across our country will commemorate and celebrate Juneteenth. Juneteenth marks the date in 1865 when enslaved people in Texas finally learned they were free, two years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation.
Juneteenth is a time to recognize and amplify Black excellence. It is also a call to action: that we must engage in anti-racism in every aspect of our lives to push back against the continued oppression of white supremacy throughout our education, government, and legal systems and throughout our communities. And it is a reminder of the growth and healing we are capable of when we learn about our true histories.
Juneteenth is also a time to reflect upon the importance of prioritizing freedom from over freedom to. For decades “states” and plantation owners thought they had the freedom to enslave human beings for profit. But we all must have freedom from enslavement, violence, misinformation, colonization, government retaliation, and brutality of any kind; and fight for freedom from attacks on our genders and identities.
Juneteenth is an opportunity to lift up all voices and ensure everyone can access and participate in the decisions impacting our communities and lives. To have a true democracy, all Alaskans must be able to vote and be reflected by the leaders we elect.
The Anchorage Juneteenth Citywide Celebration will be the largest ever, starting with a Freedom Rally at 12:30 pm on Saturday, June 18th at the Delaney Park strip. There will be over 100 vendors, games, and activities for the whole family, entertainment, dignitaries, a parade, a pageant, speakers, and more! We will be there running the KidZone (lots of fun activities!), and helping voters understand the new Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) system. We need more volunteer help, please email info@akcenter.org if you can join us for a shift!
In Fairbanks on Saturday, we’ll be at NAACP’s Freedom Day from 10 am to 2 pm at Allridge Park. This picnic and party will have food, vendors, cultural presentations, and activities for the whole family.
We hope you can join us at these events or others in your community, celebrating freedom, standing in solidarity with others, and speaking truth to power toward a thriving, just, and sustainable future. See you out there!

\n\n[/cs_content_seo][cs_element_gap _id=”5″ ][cs_element_button _id=”6″ ][cs_content_seo]More Event Info\n\n[/cs_content_seo][/cs_element_layout_column][/cs_element_layout_row][/cs_element_section][/cs_content]

PRIDE!!!

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[cs_content][cs_element_section _id=”1″ ][cs_element_layout_row _id=”2″ ][cs_element_layout_column _id=”3″ ][cs_element_text _id=”4″ ][cs_content_seo]At The Alaska Center, we believe a true democracy is one in which all Alaskans feel safe, respected, and able to participate in the decisions impacting our communities; and when all Alaskans feel reflected and represented.
Today’s blog is dedicated to PRIDE Month. Pride is more than rainbow memes and merch; it is about the uplifting of Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Questioning (LGBTQ+) voices, hearts, and culture and the protection of LGBTQ+ rights. It is a declaration of direct action and care. It is the remembrance that our inalienable rights were not codified by pen and paper, but love and rage turned to action at an anti-police brutality riot in June 1969. This is the history our work builds from. As allies and activists, we must honor and remember this truth. We must hold this truth when we grow our movements, build our tables, and cast our ballots.
This year, rampant attacks on Transgender people and women’s bodily autonomy swept through the nation and played out right here at home, during the Alaska legislative session. SB140, a bill that would ban transgender girls from playing sports, narrowly passed to be then tabled by three votes on the Senate floor. Our House failed to pass HB17, the anti-discrimination bill that would protect LGBTQ Alaskans, again. In Anchorage, community spaces that should be places of safety, learning, and belonging- like our public library- are threatened by ignorant leadership and harmful actions like banning books.
For years, the policies and actions of our leaders have continued to tell LGBTQ+ Alaskans that they are not protected or valued. All of this is why diligence and action are essential. This is why voting accessibility and education matter so much. It’s why holding our leaders accountable to all our community members is paramount. And it’s why we must come together as a community and bask in our joyous resilience now.
Actively seeking and creating joy is a revolutionary act and ensuring that those joyful voices are heard is at the heart of our work.
Pride events are happening across the state, and we hope to be there to celebrate and amplify in as many spaces as we can this month!
Be sure to check in with your local LGBTQ+ leaders to support the events and communities in your area.

Girdwood is hosting a third annual Pride Parade on June 17 at 7 pm 

Homer Pride is hosting a Juneteenth X Homer Pride Community Walk on June 18 from 12-3 pm 

Anchorage, head down to Writer’s Block on June 25 from 12 pm-6 pm for the Fourth Annual Pride Block Party. More details on Facebook >>  

Fairbanks Queer Collective has an event guide! More info can be found on their Facebook page or website! 

Underground Pride and the Queen’s Guard is hosting a celebration for all of their LGBTQ+ families and allies in the Mat-Su Valley! 

Native Movement is hosting several events this month: their 3rd annual Diversity in the OUTdoors, individuals can submit videos until June 13

Indigiqueer/LGBT2S Caspeq Workshop June 18 &19, and Drag Story Hour June 30- see their FB page for more info! 

The League of Conservation Voters is hosting an “Out to Win” webinar”: LGBTQ+ candidates can face special challenges on the campaign trail, especially in more conservative parts of the country. They’ll talk with two LGBTQ+ elected leaders and hear their tips on successfully running and legislating. June 21, 2022, 10 am PT/1 pm ET Join the webinar.

Wherever you are we hope all of you find a reason to celebrate. To our queer friends, family, coworkers, and partners in this work- we love you so very much, and we will always fight with you.
Happy Pride Month!
The Alaska Center Team\n\n[/cs_content_seo][cs_element_gap _id=”5″ ][cs_element_image _id=”6″ ][/cs_element_layout_column][/cs_element_layout_row][/cs_element_section][/cs_content]

Hot Takes in A Cold Place: You Can Stop Pebble Mine

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[cs_content][cs_element_section _id=”1″ ][cs_element_layout_row _id=”2″ ][cs_element_layout_column _id=”3″ ][cs_element_button _id=”4″ ][cs_content_seo]TAKE ACTION TO STOP PEBBLE MINE\n\n[/cs_content_seo][cs_element_gap _id=”5″ ][cs_element_text _id=”6″ ][cs_content_seo]“Life is short, art long, opportunity fleeting, experience treacherous, judgment difficult” – Hippocrates
That nifty aphorism could apply to the fight against the Pebble Mine aside from the difficulty of judgment part. It is a long fight, seemingly a generational fight, but the one thing we know is that a majority of Alaskans have judged this project to be the wrong mine in the wrong place. Over 2 million comments have been sent to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) opposing the mine. As for opportunity – now is the time is now to stop this mine in its tracks. 
EPA took an important step on May 26 by opening public comment on a Proposed Determination: “to prohibit and restrict the use of certain waters in the South Fork Koktuli River, North Fork Koktuli River, and Upper Talarik Creek watersheds as disposal sites for the discharge of dredged or fill material associated with mining the Pebble deposit, a copper-, gold-, and molybdenum-bearing ore body located in Southwest Alaska.” In its draft determination, the EPA proposes prohibiting the construction and operation of Pebble’s 2020 mine plan and restricting any future mining of the Pebble deposit to a size less than Pebble’s 2020 mine plan.  
We know that the relatively modest but still unacceptable mine plan put forward by Pebble in 2020 is just the camel’s nose under the tent. The actual plans are to initiate massive industrialization of the Bristol Bay Watershed with roads, mines, power plants, pipelines, processing facilities, mine waste sites, oil drums, barges, trucks, dust, noise, halogen light, diesel exhaust, garbage dumps, mining towns, saloons, brothels, gambling, etc. Boxing in the Pebble project to a relatively “small” footprint means that the mine will not be developed. Due to the amount of earth that must be displaced and moved and dumped elsewhere and the infrastructure and power development needs for Pebble, only a gigantic mine would turn a profit. Small mine most likely means no mine.
Public comments are due on July 5. The proposed determination stage is when the public gets the opportunity to comment. After considering public comment, the EPA then prepares a recommended determination. After that, EPA makes a final determination. So, this is an important step in the process because it’s the one opportunity for public comment, but EPA still has a couple more steps to go after this. We’re hopeful that EPA will move forward to quickly get to a final determination and stop Pebble Mine for good! 
Raise your voice today in support of Bristol Bay, her salmon, and the cultures and livelihoods that depend upon them. This precious resource is breathtaking in its abundance, but it is under siege. In all of its ecological intricacy, the Bristol Bay watershed is protecting the viability and diversity of Bristol Bay salmon in the face of climate change, ocean acidification, and other threats. We must stand together to protect the watershed. Please submit a comment to the EPA supporting the protection of the watershed from the Pebble Mine.
Together we can do this!
Thank you for your voice,The Alaska Center Team\n\n[/cs_content_seo][cs_element_gap _id=”7″ ][cs_element_button _id=”8″ ][cs_content_seo]STOP PEBBLE MINE PREMANENTLY\n\n[/cs_content_seo][/cs_element_layout_column][/cs_element_layout_row][/cs_element_section][/cs_content]

Hot Takes In A Cold Place: The Legislative Session Rides Off

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[cs_content][cs_element_section _id=”1″ ][cs_element_layout_row _id=”2″ ][cs_element_layout_column _id=”3″ ][cs_element_text _id=”4″ ][cs_content_seo]Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who advocated on bills and budget items this past legislative session. Through your phenomenal effort, we stopped numerous bad bills, settled on a budget that promotes public education and put the brakes on Dunleavy’s move to take over development permitting in sensitive wetland habitats from the EPA.
To recap. Due to your advocacy via letter writing, emails, phone calls, social media pressure, and direct grassroots citizen lobbying, the following bills passed the Legislature and are headed to the Governor’s desk:

Tribal Recognition! HB 123 by Rep. Tiffany Zulkosky passed and will require the State of Alaska to recognize Alaska’s federally recognized tribes. The federal government has a special and unique relationship with tribes that the State formally acknowledges. HB 123 will codify in Alaska law that federally recognized tribes are sovereign governments. It does not change any legal relationship. State recognition of Tribes will honor the first peoples of this land and the historical, economic, and cultural value they bring to the State.
Update to Alaska Sexual Consent Law: HB 325 by Rep. Sara Rasmussen was amended to include HB 5 by Rep. Geran Tarr and changes Alaska’s 40-year-old sexual consent statutes to change how sexual assault can be prosecuted by modernizing the definition of consent.
CPACE expansion: HB 227 legislation by Rep. Calvin Schrage to expand the Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy statute to include upgrades that improve the climate resiliency of commercial properties.
Broadband Expansion: HB 363 by Rep. Bryce Edgmon establishes the Office of Broadband to prioritize the expansion of high-quality, affordable broadband access to unserved and underserved communities and positions Alaska to receive unprecedented amounts of federal funding for broadband expansion statewide.

On the other side of the coin, you helped stop a slew of bad bills:

SB 39 worked to undermine local control of elections, suppress voting in Alaska, and take away the legal mechanism that adds thousands of new voters annually through Alaska’s Permanent Fund dividend – the automatic voter registration statute.
HB 398 would have made it impossible for Alaskans to protect waters of high ecological value as Tier III waters under the Clean Water Act.
SB 97 sought to give the Department of Natural Resources the power to authorize commercial development on any state land regardless of its status in an area land use plan and to repeal the Recreational River statutes that protect six popular and anadromous Mat-Su rivers: The Little Susitna River, The Deshka River, The Talkeetna River, Lake Creek, Alexander Creek, and The Talachulitna River.
HB 82, a bill to authorize subsurface natural gas drilling and development in Kachemak Bay, which is currently off-limits to oil and gas development.
HB 98 was legislation to decrease citizen participation in the Forest Land Use Plan process for timber sales.

There is a lot to unpack as a legislative session ends. This Memorial Day Weekend, we urge you to take the time to reflect on the positive outcomes of this past session and take heart in the true power of citizen advocacy in our beloved Democracy.\n\n[/cs_content_seo][/cs_element_layout_column][/cs_element_layout_row][/cs_element_section][cs_element_section _id=”5″ ][cs_element_layout_row _id=”6″ ][cs_element_layout_column _id=”7″ ][cs_element_button _id=”8″ ][cs_content_seo]More Bills This Session\n\n[/cs_content_seo][/cs_element_layout_column][/cs_element_layout_row][/cs_element_section][/cs_content]

Remembering Forward: The Just Transition Summit Recap

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This past weekend the Alaska Just Transition Community held the second statewide summit – Nughelnik: Remembering Forward – coming together on Dena’ina Land to reflect on the past two years, heal, look ahead, and center the knowledge and lessons held here for generations. The three days were an invigorating experience, showcasing inspiring work already being led in local Alaskan communities. It was a nonstop sharing of ideas, connection, optimism, and plans for how to build the world we want to see. The summit was juxtaposed with national tragedies, instances of violence that only highlighted the need for the event’s message and movement of a Just Transition to be held at a national and global level.

The Alaska Center team was grateful to join partners Native Movement, Fairbanks Climate Action Coalition, Native Peoples Action, Alaska Community Action on Toxics, Alaska Public Interest Research Group, Alaska Poor People’s Campaign in supporting and co-hosting this year’s summit, joined by so many other incredible individuals and groups.

This summit illustrated the importance of direct action, community care, and the intersectional approach we must use to solve our communities’ collective problems.

Vivian Mork shared a powerful message on healing, a message that resonates through this week-that “destination healing” is a myth. It’s a process, an approach, a practice, and yet not something to be done alone: “Indigenous healing is not just being responsible for my own healing, but going back and healing with the community.”

We drew lessons from the stories and perspectives of speakers within the labor movement. Particularly those who spoke about their personal history of organizing and the labor movement’s long history here in creating and grounding the fight for workers’ rights.

Two panels facilitated by Interior Organizer Alyssa Quintyne on the Relationship of Reciprocity, and Black Leadership in Alaska, centered the perspectives of first-generation Americans and immigrant families; and what a Just Transition looks like within the Black community in Alaska.

Alaska Youth for Environmental Action (AYEA) staff Shanelle Afcan and Marlowe Scully, guided a youth contingent through their Summit experience. AYEA alum Lauryn spoke on a panel reflection for day 2, garnering an incredibly enthusiastic response on her call for Alaskan youth–the leaders of tomorrow–to get involved today.

We must also remember that our approach matters as we work towards a more thriving, just, and sustainable Alaska for future generations.

“If all we do is fight against what we don’t want, we will learn to love the fight… We must actually organize ourselves in a different way; not to simply make demands of existing structures of power, not to simply decry what we don’t like, but to actually, together, in community, organize ourselves to directly meet our needs.”
Gopal Dayaneni, Alaska Just Transition Keynote, May 21

We’ll leave you with this intriguing question from Dayaneni’s keynote, “What if we’re winning, and we don’t know it?” As we shift back into our day-to-day routines, let’s carry that optimism with us and let it fortify our collective efforts to shape the Alaska and the world we envision.

Entering the Rapids

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[cs_content][cs_element_section _id=”1″ ][cs_element_layout_row _id=”2″ ][cs_element_layout_column _id=”3″ ][cs_element_text _id=”4″ ][cs_content_seo]The 32nd Alaska State Legislature is careening toward its grand finale, which will likely be on or around May 18th, the constitutional 120-day limit to session. On or around May 18th, the House and Senate will reconcile their versions of the operating and capital budget, pass any remaining bills, and drop the gavel, ending the second regular session Sine-Die.
The high price of oil, healthy returns on Permanent Fund investments, and the federal infrastructure spending package have lawmakers swooning, many of them revved up to spend vast amounts on the Governor’s holy grail: The ultimate, humongous, gigantic, supersized, great, grand, king-daddy, monumental, amazing and astonishing full statutory Permanent Fund Dividend ($4,200 per Alaskan) in addition to a payment to offset high fuel prices ($1,300) for a total of $5,500. It is a lot of money, it is a great campaign gambit, it is universal basic income wrapped up in a different package, it follows the statute, and it will plunge the state into a deficit. Most notably, it will come at the direct expense of education and other state services. As the final days of the session churn forward, expect this direct cash payment to take up most of the air in the room.
That is not to say that other hugely important issues are chopped liver. Legislation continues to move through committees, and the pace will increase rapidly should the House and Senate fail to agree on the budget and appoint a conference committee to work through the differences. Once a conference committee is announced, the schedule goes from a 7-day notice requirement to a 24-hour notice requirement for committee hearings, so bills can move quickly.
HB 123 to establish a policy for State recognition of Alaska Tribes has finally moved from the Senate State Affairs Committee and was passed quickly by the full Senate. HB 120, legislation by the Governor to increase the sale of state land for commercial purposes (circumventing state land management plans), advanced from House Resources and awaits a hearing in House Finance. HB 98, another Governor’s bill to weaken public engagement in the timber harvest process, sits in the House Finance Committee, and its companion bill – SB 85 – is in Senate Finance. These bills could move quickly to passage if the votes are there. Alaska’s railbelt utilities whittled down legislation to create a Renewable Portfolio Standard to something they are calling a “Clean Energy Standard Bill.” It aims to get utilities off coal, natural gas, and diesel generation. HB 301, in its current form, allows Nuclear and fossil fuel waste heat recovery as means to achieve benchmark goals. This bill is in House Finance and likely will not pass this session, but you never know. The Senate wisely removed a budget increment authorizing the State of Alaska to take over development permitting in wetlands from the federal government.
In a stinging vote, the House voted 23-17 to strip language from SB 174 that would have protected natural hairstyles from employer discrimination. The intent of SB 174 is to prohibit a school governing body or an employer from prohibiting a student or an employee from wearing a hairstyle historically associated with race. Natural hairstyle is defined to include braids, locks, twists, and tight coils. The language prohibiting workplace discrimination was struck while the prohibition on school discrimination passed. This bill was sent to the Governor.
Many other bills remain in play. At this point, aligning votes for or against the budget is priority #1 of House and Senate Leadership and the Governor. If a bill suddenly lurches out of committee, you can bet that they struck a deal on a budget vote. The end of the session can be like the swiftening of a river as it enters a turbulent gorge. We all must remain vigilant. Obstacles approach fast.
We are ready, buoyant and alert,
The Alaska Center

\n\n[/cs_content_seo][/cs_element_layout_column][/cs_element_layout_row][/cs_element_section][cs_element_section _id=”5″ ][cs_element_layout_row _id=”6″ ][cs_element_layout_column _id=”7″ ][cs_element_button _id=”8″ ][cs_content_seo]More Bills This Session\n\n[/cs_content_seo][/cs_element_layout_column][/cs_element_layout_row][/cs_element_section][/cs_content]