Alaska Senate President Pete Kelly speaks to reporters during a Senate majority news conference on Thursday, April 13, 2017, in Juneau, Alaska. Senate leaders discussed their priorities for the rest of the legislative session. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

Alaska Senate President Pete Kelly speaks to reporters during a Senate majority news conference on Thursday, April 13, 2017, in Juneau, Alaska. Senate leaders discussed their priorities for the rest of the legislative session. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

Alaska Senate, House at odds with session poised to run long

  • By Becky Bohrer
  • Thursday, April 13, 2017 9:35pm
  • News

JUNEAU — Leaders of the Republican-led Alaska Senate said Thursday they aren’t interested in instituting an income tax or raising oil industry taxes as a way to address the state’s multibillion-dollar deficit.

Their position is at odds with state House leaders, who have seen a broad-based tax, like an income tax, and a rewrite of oil tax and credit policy as key elements of a fiscal plan.

The House even conditioned approval of the one piece of a fiscal plan on which there’s general agreement — use of earnings from Alaska’s oil-wealth fund — to those other pieces passing.

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

Senate President Pete Kelly called the House’s move an interesting play and stressed the Senate’s resolve in opposing an income tax.

“We’ve said it before and will continue to say it. The only thing standing between Alaskans and an income tax right now is the Senate,” the Fairbanks Republican said.

The Senate will produce a mathematically sound fiscal plan that protects the private sector and is in the best interest of the state, Kelly told reporters.

Senate leaders did express a willingness to review the state’s oil tax credit structure but said they didn’t want to raise taxes on the industry.

The oil tax and credit overhaul that passed the House would, among other things, eliminate cashable credits for the North Slope and result in a tax increase at oil prices between about $50 and $100 per barrel, according to a Department of Revenue analysis. Senate hearings on the bill are expected to begin Friday.

With the budget and pieces of a fiscal plan unresolved, the Legislature is expected to run beyond the scheduled 90 days. Sunday marks Day 90.

Since the voter-approved 90-day limit took effect in 2008, lawmakers on numerous occasions have blown past it or needed special sessions to complete their work. The constitution allows for sessions of up to 121 days. The Senate has proposed focusing on a limited number of bills after Sunday, with some senators planning to send home staff who do not live in Juneau.

The major deficit-reduction piece being considered calls for structured draws from the earnings of the Alaska Permanent Fund, an oil-wealth fund that has grown through investments. The fund’s estimated market value is about $57 billion.

For the past five years, the state has had deficits and been using savings to get by. Gov. Bill Walker has advocated for a comprehensive fiscal plan to avoid simply continuing to draw down reserves.

The House and Senate have each passed their own versions of a permanent fund bill, significant given the discord on the issue last year in the House, where a permanent fund bill died in committee.

Both versions would initially limit the size of the dividends Alaskans receive from the fund and change how later dividends are calculated. Initial dividends would be at least $1,250 in the House bill and $1,000 in the Senate bill.

The Senate plan sought to limit future state spending. The House plan added the conditional language. House majority leaders have said a permanent fund bill alone is not enough.

Since a permanent fund bill is a priority for the House, Senate and Walker, Senate Finance Committee Co-Chair Lyman Hoffman said he hoped the differences could be hashed out.

Alaska Senate Finance Committee Co-Chair Lyman Hoffman, left, speaks to reporters during a Senate majority news conference on Thursday, April 13, 2017, in Juneau, Alaska. Listening at right is Alaska Senate Majority Leader Peter Micciche. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

Alaska Senate Finance Committee Co-Chair Lyman Hoffman, left, speaks to reporters during a Senate majority news conference on Thursday, April 13, 2017, in Juneau, Alaska. Listening at right is Alaska Senate Majority Leader Peter Micciche. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

Alaska Senate Finance Committee Co-Chair Anna MacKinnon, left, speaks to reporters during a Senate majority news conference on Thursday, April 13, 2017, in Juneau, Alaska. Also shown is state Sen. Kevin Meyer. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

Alaska Senate Finance Committee Co-Chair Anna MacKinnon, left, speaks to reporters during a Senate majority news conference on Thursday, April 13, 2017, in Juneau, Alaska. Also shown is state Sen. Kevin Meyer. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

More in News

The front of the Kenai Police Department as seen on Dec. 10, 2019. (Photo by Brian Mazurek/Peninsula Clarion)
Update: Middle schooler reported missing found after 24-hour search

The student was seen leaving Kenai Middle School at around 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.

The Oceania Riviera stands out against a bluebird sky at the Homer Harbor on Wednesday, May 7, 2025. Over 1200 passengers from aboard the boat explored Homer throughout the beautiful day. (Chloe Pleznac/Homer News)
Homer tourism season kicks off with arrival of cruise ships

The first cruise ship of the season arrived April 28 with 930 passengers.

tease
‘Tomorrow — remember you are still a learner’

Kachemak Bay Campus graduated 49 students during its 55th annual commencement hosted on May 7.

Mt. Redoubt rises above Cook Inlet and the Anchor River drainage as fireweed is in bloom, as seen from Diamond Ridge Road on Friday, July 22, 2022, near Homer, Alaska. (Photo by Michael Armstrong/Homer News)
Native plants provide lifeline for local songbirds

Shorebird Festival talk highlights importance of native plants.

Sterling Elementary School students collect trash from the banks of the Kenai River near Bing’s Landing in Sterling, Alaska, during the 10th Annual Kenai River Spring Cleanup on Wednesday, May 14, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Cleaning up the mess that’s left behind

Students from six local schools combed for litter during the 10th Annual Kenai River Spring Cleanup.

Kenai City Hall on Feb. 20, 2020, in Kenai, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Kenai land sales proposal delayed amid council concerns

The ordinance would amend city code to add new language allowing officers and employees to participate in property sales.

Greg Springer delivers a presentation on sockeye fishing during A Day at the River at Centennial Park in Soldotna, Alaska, on Saturday, May 10, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Gearing up for summer fishing

Trout Unlimited and the Kenai Watershed Forum host “A Day at the River.”

Tyson Cox speaks during a meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly in Soldotna, Alaska, on Tuesday, May 6, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Borough awards Homer schools improvements contracts

Funding for improvements to the Homer High School entrance comes out of the 2022 bond package.

Most Read