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Alaska House and Senate members who make up a budget conference committee are shown before starting a meeting in Juneau, Alaska, on Sunday, June 13, 2021. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

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Lawmakers decry ‘bully tactics’ in budget proposal

The proposal allocates an Alaska Permanent Fund dividend payment of $1,100 but splits the funding sources for the…

Without a budget to vote on, many lawmakers were absent from the Alaska State Capitol on Monday, June 7, 2021, as negotiations continue in committee. But even the conference committee isn't scheduled until later in the week as deep divisions among lawmakers remain. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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Divisions slow budget work as deadline looms

Two weeks left in special session.

The Alaska State Capitol was quiet on Wednesday, June 2, 2021, with several lawmakers excused even as negotiations over the state's budget continue. Lawmakers said they couldn't say when the budget might be put to a vote, but talks were moving to the more contentious items in the budget.

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With nothing to vote on, many lawmakers head home

Session ends June 19.

Members of a bicameral conference committee of lawmakers, seen here at their first meeting on Wednesday, May 26, 2021, will meet again Wednesday, June 2. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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Budget talks to resume Wednesday

19 days left.

The Alaska State Capitol was quiet on Friday, May 28, 2021, as several lawmakers returned to their home districts for the Memorial Day weekend. Negotiations on the state's budget won't begin again until Tuesday, June 1. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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Divided Legislature takes holiday break

Special session ends June 19.

Members of a bicameral conference committee of lawmakers, seen here at their first meeting on Wednesday, May 26, 2021, met again Thursday to negotiate the final version of the state's budget. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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Budget committee adjourns until after holiday

Lengthy process.

Rep. Neal Foster, D-Nome, at center, chairs the first meeting of a bicameral conference committee tasked with negotiating the state's final budget bill in the Senate Finance Committee chambers on Wednesday, May 26, 2021. Lawmakers had said they wanted to finish before Memorial Day, but Foster said that didn't seem like a possibility. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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Budget negotiations begin, will likely continue into June

One day at a time.

From left to right: Sens. Jesse Kiehl, D-Juneau; Gary Stevens, R-Kodiak; Mia Costello, R-Anchorage, and Bert Stedman, R-Sitka, speak on the floor of the Alaska Senate on Monday, May 24, 2021, the first day of one of two special sessions called by Gov. Mike Dunleavy. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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Lawmakers: Budget negotiations to begin Wednesday

Buttoning up the budget.

Senate President Peter Micciche, R-Soldotna, spoke to reporters in his office on Thursday, May 20, 2021, to discuss next steps after the Senate debated the state budget until just before midnight the night before. Senators voted for a Permanent Fund Dividend of $2,300, the largest in history, but negotiations with the House of Representatives are still to come. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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Senate votes for $2,300 PFD, but the amount could change

It would be the largest PFD in state history.

Rep. Tiffany Zulkosky, D-Bethel, urges her colleagues to vote for a bill to have the state recognize the Alaska's 229 already federally recognized tribes on Wednesday, May 19, 2021. The bill was one of dozens heard Wednesday as lawmakers tried to pass as much legislation on the last day of the legislative session. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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Budget debate takes lawmakers into evening

More time for debate.

Members of the Senate Finance Committee discussed the state's capital budget bill in a meeting on Monday, May 17, 2021, but it's not clear when it might be debated on the floor. Lawmakers had been pushing to finish the bill before May 19, but a special session from the governor has given them more time. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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With more time, lawmakers take step back on budget

Work to be done.

Peter Segall / Juneau Empire Masks were made optional Friday in the Alaska House of Representatives, but lawmakers are still trying to get their work done. Gov. Mike Dunleavy called two special sessions Thursday, but the proposal was met with mixed reactions.

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Lawmakers mixed on governor’s special sessions

A lot of work to do.

Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, gave his annual address to the Alaska State Legislature on May 3, 2021, but some Democratic lawmakers said the speech brought the partisanship of Washington D.C. to Alaska. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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In letter, Alaska Democrats say Sullivan brought D.C. partisanship to Juneau

Not what Alaskans do.

Alaska House Speaker Louise Stutes, a Kodiak Republican, looks out on the floor of the Alaska House on Monday, May 10, 2021, in Juneau, Alaska. The Alaska House on Monday resumed debate on a version of the state operating budget. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer, Pool)

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Dunleavy calls 2 special sessions

Dunleavy cited the inability of the Alaska House of Representatives to formally organize until more than one month…

Sens. Shelley Hughes, R-Palmer, left and Lora Reinbold, R-Eagle River, questioned Attorney General Treg Taylor about the administration’s approach to legal matters at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday, March 23, 2021. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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Alaska lawmakers confirm attorney general, department heads

Taylor was the only Cabinet-level appointee who generated debate among lawmakers meeting to consider Dunleavy’s nominees.

Alaska House Speaker Louise Stutes, a Kodiak Republican, looks out on the floor of the Alaska House on Monday, May 10, 2021, in Juneau, Alaska. The Alaska House on Monday resumed debate on a version of the state operating budget. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer, Pool)

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Alaska House passes budget; dividend amount unsettled

The budget next goes to the Senate.

House Minority Leader Rep. Cathy Tilton, R-Wasilla, seen here speaking with Rep. David Eastman, R-Wasilla, speak in the hall of the Alaska State Capitol on Feb. 16, 2021, said the minority caucus is working on proposals for the annual Permanent Fund Dividend. The Legislature is approaching the end of the session, but has yet to allocate an amount for a PFD. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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As budget work continues, PFD question remains

A dividend divide.

Photo courtesy of Peter Micciche Sen. Peter Micciche (R-Soldotna) listens to testimony in Juneau in this undated photo.

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Alcohol regulation bill gets hearing

Senate Bill 9, sponsored by Micciche, R- Kenai/Soldotna, has been nine years in the making.

Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, met with reporters after delivering an address to the first joint session of 2021 for the Alaska State Legislature on Monday, May 3, 2021. Sullivan was critical of the Biden administration in his remarks to lawmakers, saying his environmental policies were punative to Alaska. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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Sullivan talks tough on jobs, China

Sullivan to lawmakers: Biden’s policies ‘war on Alaska’

Members of the Alaska House of Representatives spent hours in floor sessions Saturday and Sunday inside the Alaska State Capitol, seen here on Monday, April 26, 2021. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

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House moves budget back to committee

Marathon floor sessions over weekend end in bill rollback