Senator Jesse Bjorkman, R-Nikiski, and Representatives Justin Ruffridge, R-Soldotna, and Bill Elam, R-Nikiski, hosted a legislative town hall on Saturday, Dec. 13, in the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly Chambers and virtually via Zoom. Bjorkman said he and the other lawmakers wanted to hear constituents’ ideas before the second regular session of the Alaska Legislature begins on Jan. 20.
Education
Education was a hot topic.
Nikiski business owner Vern Smith first asked why the state is “paying people a ton of money to not teach our children,” saying Alaska sits at “either 48th or 49th” in terms of education. He said the state should be investing in more trade schools and teaching skills.
“What are we getting ready to build?” Smith said. “A huge pipeline. What does that take? That takes truck drivers, welders, fitters. Can you go to any high school right now and ask any student to take out a tape (measure) and read it to me? I believe if you tried, you’d find out that 90% of them can’t read a tape (measure). They don’t know what a half inch is.”
Bjorkman said he was confident the majority of high school students know how to read a tape measure and added that new teachers are observed twice per year during their first three years of teaching.
“Twice a year, your job depends on it,” Bjorkman said. “Are you good at teaching kids or not — yes or no. If the answer is no, you have another semester to get your act together, or we’re going to transition you to a different career — you’re fired. That’s the way it works.”
Bjorkman did say he’d like to see the High School Graduation Qualifying Exam reinstated. The state-mandated test was repealed in 2014 and replaced by the requirement to pass a College and Career Ready Assessment.
“I think we need to set a clear goal for what we expect students to know, understand and be able to do when they graduate from high school,” Bjorkman said. “When kids graduate, I think the public has an expectation that they have learned a certain amount as graduates, and I think that we should measure that.”
Homer High School social studies teacher Kendra Nelson said she was concerned about the federal government’s efforts to dismantle the Department of Education and asked if the legislature had any plans to “help safeguard special education services.” Bjorkman said the state is not currently considering any legislation to answer changes made at the federal level.
Healthcare
Resident Megan Mueller said her 16-year-old son, Aaron, was diagnosed with leukemia last year. Since then, neither of them have been able to access any test results from his labs because of a state ruling that protects teenagers seeking medical care without the consent of their parents.
“I’ve talked with people at the hospital, I’ve talked with people from MyChart and I’ve talked with people at Providence Hospital in Alaska,” she said. “I feel like that protects a very small minority of people, and it harms those of us who have teenagers who are medically fragile.”
Mueller said because neither herself nor Aaron can view his charts, they have to rely on nurses to give them the results of various biopsies and tests. She added this is a state problem, saying she was able to view her other child’s chart after treatment in Seattle.
“That’s really dumb,” Ruffridge said. Ruffridge has worked in healthcare in Alaska since 2004, and he serves on the Health and Social Services Committee. “I mean, if there’s a law preventing that, that shouldn’t be difficult to fix, I don’t think. I’m going to text the commissioner right now and ask her what’s going on.”
Industry
Rep. Elam said he’s been advocating to make Alaska a “more appealing” environment for corporate industries. Alaska’s corporate tax rate, which is typically in the “high nine percent,” according to Ruffridge, is one of the highest in the country.
“So as far as large corporations coming to Alaska to do business, we aren’t high on the list of places to go to save money,” Ruffridge said.
Businesses that aim to reduce the cost of living, however, are in luck. Bjorkman pointed to Senate Bill 237, also known as the Alaska Affordability Act, which allows businesses related to energy, food security and housing development to claim a 50% tax reduction on eligible expenditures.
All three lawmakers mentioned the proposed trans-Alaska gas pipeline as a potential major economic generator, which would transport liquefied natural gas to the Kenai Peninsula from the North Slope. The developer Glenfarne owns 75% of the proposed AKLNG, which would begin construction in 2026. Elam said he expects the Resources Committee to have “a number of conversations about that specific topic” during the upcoming legislative session.
Transportation
Sen. Bjorkman said he’s continuing to put pressure on the Alaska Department of Transportation to steer clear of using brine on roads in the Kenai Peninsula.
“I am continuing to help DOT the best that I can through my role as chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, and to move our highway projects along in a meaningful way so we can get those highway projects done and they’ll cost less money,” he said.
Phase one of the Cooper Landing bypass project was put into the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program at the beginning of 2025. The projected project completion date is now slated for 2028. Bjorkman said before the project was put in the STIP, the bypass wasn’t expected to be completed until 2032.
The Kenai Spur Highway project is entering phase two. Expected completion for the construction of a segment of the highway from milepost 2.4 to 8.1 is 2028.
PFD
Commercial fisherman and lifelong Kenai resident Gary Hollier asked why Alaskans forfeit the right to receive the PFD and hunt or fish in Alaska if they leave the state for more than 180 days.
“My residence and my two businesses are in Alaska,” he said. “But if I’m gone for 181 days, then all of a sudden I don’t have the ability to hunt and fish in Alaska. I think this is wrong.”
Sen. Bjorkman and Rep. Ruffridge thanked Hollier for his question.
“I have no response other than to say thank you, Gary,” Ruffridge said. “I’m with you — loud and clear.”
