As the Alaska Legislature continues to debate the coming year’s operating budget, some lawmakers are proposing yet another layer of government. It’s a so-called “Welcoming Alaska Office” that would be aimed at supporting newcomers, including foreign-born workers and immigrants.
But with the state barely able to afford its existing commitments, some Alaskans will question the timing and necessity of such an expansion, especially because the concept of “welcoming cities” and “welcoming states” has been used as a “Sanctuary State Light” label, meaning that it offers services to illegal immigrants but does not directly fight immigration enforcement by the federal government.
The welcoming office would “provide to new immigrants and newcomers employment information, referrals to employment services, including job placement services, and information about how to use labor unions, administrative agencies, and court actions to pursue claims or charges of job discrimination, illegal termination of employment, sexual harassment, and unsafe working conditions” and more.
The legislation was introduced last week by Rep. Genevieve Mina and Sen. Loki Tobin, both Democrats from Anchorage. House Bill 188 and Senate Bill 169 would establish the Welcoming Alaska Office inside the Department of Labor and Workforce Development. An executive director appointed by the governor would lead the office, with guidance from a nine-member advisory council.
At its core, the office would coordinate services for people relocating to Alaska including immigrants, refugees, and individuals moving from other states or countries, and help them apply for public benefits. It would pave the way for what the two lawmakers envision would happen next: the creation of an Alaska Welcoming Center, complete with staff to act as a centralized hub for support services, union organizing, and entitlements.
The proposed Welcoming Office would replace the Office of Citizenship Assistance, a defunct program that was revived only recently, nearly 20 years after it was first authorized. Now, instead of a modest restart, the legislation seeks to blow it up into a full-blown agency with sweeping responsibilities and long-term financial implications, which are still not yet known.
Let me help you ” sweeping responsibilities and long-term financial implications, which are still not yet known.”
TOO MUCH FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS!
Illegals will bring votes to Democrats. More Democrats = more Lisa Murkowski.
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
Thumbs pointing wrong way. Please turn them downward. Thank you.
When you are facing a budget deficit, a housing crisis, and a rampant homeless problem, why would you consider this idea?
EXACTLY!! Irresponsible representation.
Finiti!
Leftists have become emboldened as our corrupt election system via RCV and cheat by mail almost guarantees their continued re-election and power. What better way to then pad the votes with more entitlement dependent voters. Third paragraph pretty much sums it up. Highlight ‘ ….and help them apply for public benefits.’
What was that about ending DEI? Free cell phones, stipend to get settled, free legal services… – all the “services” given to the illegal border crossers during the last administration ended by President Trump, now resurrected by the alt-left in the Alaska Senate in lieu of budget work…
What part of “we don’t want this” don’t they understand?
Here’s a suggestion for this government expansion!
If this idea is paid for by our tax dollars, mandate that all staffing, and any and all buildings are to accompany our homeless population first ! That way we take care of two problems at once !
Awesome idea!
I feel sorry for you, Scott. I really do pity you.
I have no problem with immigrants and refugees, if they are coming here to be
Americans. I think it’s downright neighborly to welcome them. However, when Democrats address that issue, it seems to turn into giving tax dollars to support illegal behavior, including illegal voting and other crimes.
The corrupt union democrats and rino traitors are still spending money they know we don’t have. All you city and bush democrats, the corrupt legislators are spending your PFD, to help others instead of allowing you to pay your bills, buy food and oil.
How about this novel idea? Let’s focus on our own people for a change.
We need more of this:
“provide to new immigrants and newcomers employment information, referrals to employment services, including job placement services, and information about how to use labor unions, administrative agencies, and court actions to pursue claims or charges of job discrimination, illegal termination of employment, sexual harassment, and unsafe working conditions”…because we don’t have enough now?
And we need, “a centralized hub for support services, union organizing, and entitlements” why? Why are these two clowns focusing on ‘entitlements’ for foreigners? What bovine scat!!
What is up with the trend to not prioritize Alaskans? Alaskan politicians like Murkowski, most liberals, & the persistent parade of mercenary RINOs in the state legislature will always sacrifice constituents for reelection via outside dollars & it’s so frustrating for those of us who just want authentic representation. Mina & Tobin need to be reminded that they were elected to take care of ALASKANS. We have enough to do on the homefront without increasing the taxpayer burden for more government & noncitizens with the inevitable lack of accountability that always seems to accompany this type of legislation.
Democrats are the textbook on how to be stupid with taxpayers money or everything else for that matter. They are so lucky they can hide in Juneau. They are destroying Alaska and don’t care BTW Yes get the illegals up here in one group, Easier to find
No. We need less government, not more. Stop wasting our money.
If we could just come up with a system where we could pick the people who make these decisions….
An obvious attempt to bring in more future Democrat voters. Alaska already has too many deadbeats moving in for the PFD and generous welfare. Anchorage looks pretty shabby compared to 20 years ago. Hard to believe it still votes Republican (and probably not much longer).
The politicians in Juneau continue to advance this crap so they can push money through to their political supporters. Think mini USAID. Our government is broken because WE THE PEOPLE are no longer the priority of these scammers and self promoting malcontents.
MOVE THE CAPITAL TO WILLOW AS IT WOULD HAVE BEEN VOTED IN IF A SNIPER DID NOT SHOOT THE ELECTRIC LINES OUT IN EAGLERIVER AT 5pm ON THE LAST ELECTION TO MOVE THE CAPITAL TO WILLOW!!!
I was there they found 30-06 shell casings that proved it ☝️🤷🏼✍🏼🤔
Did they ever find the “idiot!!”..
Happiness is 250,000 uhauls heading south.
Along with seeing every politician and NGO that enabled this invasion in prison.
Are they out of their minds? Do they think money grows on trees? Stop the spending nonsense! There is no need for this ridiculous idea! Alaskans need to make better choices about who they vote to represent them!
But this program is a huge waste of time and money. Why give priority to immigrants over citizens? This just creates more division…but that’s what liberals are best at.
The great replacement will have every community flooded with foreigners.
What have the immigrants been doing without her? Is it immigrants I see overdosing at the circle K? Are our schools failing because immigrants don’t know how to file for sexual harassment?
Shallow ego driven virtue signaling to the max. I say keep going with this rhetoric and keep losing voters. I’m all for it.
If Mina and Tobin want to welcome refugees and assorted illegals, they are free to take them into their own homes and feed and care for them.
As for spending MY money on this….oh HELL no.
We have Americans laying in their own shit on the street. How about you focus on Americans first.
That doesn’t mean we have to be nice to them once they’re here.
Welcome to our state (and country) invaders!
You have been brought in by our corrupt politicians who we pretend were fairly elected in our fraudulent election system. You’ll be happy to know that they also legalized drugs that help keep the population that isn’t already on multiple prescription drugs and alcohol anesthetized and compliant. Don’t worry if you hear rhetoric against your invasion….you’ll find that is just a way to make money for our GOP…they are led by Dunleavy who is all on board with your invasion. Our children are not educated so they won’t grow up to create issues either – the most interest their parents have in their schooling is bussing them around the state and country to play games and fulfill some sort of vicarious longing for entertainment and accomplishment that the parents have. As for jobs, you’ll find that most are either directly working for the government or part of a parasitical system of businesses that exist because of government. Everyone is deeply in debt driven by a federal government that has to keep interest rates artificially low so they can keep up the pretense that we won’t default on $30+ trillion in debt. Most importantly, remember that we punish anyone who is skeptical that this house of cards will fall collapse….we have a great system of social media bots and mainstream media that are here to reassure us to pit ourselves against each other instead of realizing that everything in this post is true and that they could actually do something about it.
Alaska already has a fake resident problem with Down Southers buying vacation properties here and then claiming residency without ever actually living in the state. They claim residency to get the benefits that real Alaskans deserve.
For example, we’ve got “residents” in my community getting state heating oil assistance to heat their “home” while they spend every winter in the Lower 48.
Others claim the senior citizen tax exempt benefits offered by local communities…but only during the summer months because they never stay over the winter.
Then we’ve got “residents” who’ve never spent more than their summer vacations in state who cycle out of state friends and relatives through like they’re running a guide service. Then they pack it up at summer’s end to return home to their Lower 48 actual primary residence.
Our governor and legislature don’t care and efforts to stop these abuses never go anywhere.
One of the last things we need are a bunch of foreign immigrants coming here. They’ll just make the situation even worse.
Dumbleavy pushed this stupid idea and, naturally, the Democrats support it. Kind of tells us something about our awesome governor.
RINOs and weak conservatives are allowing Democrats to run this state into the ground.
Anchorage is a lost cause. Fairbanks and Juneau are on the same road to perdition.
Our new welcome center will probably be stocked with literature on how to apply for state and federal welfare benefits, the generosity of Medicaid and advertisements for liberal lawyers who’ll sue everyone if our new residents don’t get their slice of the government pie.
Once they qualify for the PFD our idiotic system will automatically register them to vote.
What we really need is a home grown governor and a legislature who want to keep Alaska for Alaskans instead of bringing outsiders who don’t belong here into our state.
Alaska has a lot to offer but it should be Alaskans First…in all things.
Spending money on a retreating episode of life under the criminal Biden admin but not for a Dept of Agriculture means their priorities are wrong.
At last count, Biden shipped into Alaska 10,000 illegals from around the country. This will only bring in more. As is The Plan. With reduced PFD’s for the expensive rural and Bush lifestyle, more people will become “a week away from homelessness”; more of The Plan. There’s a sales tax, an income tax, and the added Anchorage Port Rejuvenation tax of 7.5% to be paid by every Alaskan on every incoming product. As if a $7,000,000,000 outstanding liability for PERS/TERS from 2006 isn’t enough, the legislature wants to provide a pension plan for 24,000 state employees. Things are looking just great!! In less than a dozen years and lost of outside Dark Money, Anchorage has a Liberal Marxist mayor, 9 of 12 Woke liberals on the Assembly, 5 of 6 Liberal “Progressives” on the school board and a gay, unqualified DEI hire from TX as a school superintendent – the transformation is almost complete. If they can only get Senator Dan Sullivan in their sights. Oh wait, look how his social media has blown up in 60 days. Targeted? For replacement? By a faux Republican?
Anything to undermine, discriminate against, and disfavor American citizens and NORMAL people, that is what the Democrats will automatically support. Democrats are at war with US.
Don’t let the fact that we don’t have the money for current services stop you from spending tons more on the most pointless garbage.
Yet another money laundering scheme by people who were elected by dumb Alaska voters.
Don’t forget to issue them a Commercial Drivers License asap since illegals have been hired to undermine our citizen truck drivers wages throughout the country. Don’t read or speak English–no problem. Have a record of hazardous driving or crime related incidents–no problem.
“Trucker arrested in fatal Colorado crash was deported 16 times before accident”
By John Worthen – The Trucker Media Group, June 17, 2024
On a recent cab ride back from dropping my car at the mechanic the driver (spoke Chinese) almost got us sideswiped by starting to pull out in front of oncoming fast traffic. I told him to watch out and he told me to mind my own business and that he was the ‘driver’!!
Strange, They do not have enough money so rather than cut they move to spend more. We can not afford to move the legislature but we would spend money here, Meanwhile they are raiding the PFD. They had testimony on the carbon capture and the rest of that grift the overwhelming said no and they voted for it anyway, Ever wonder why they insist on putting Florida in your water? So they can pull this crap without fear!
How do we stop this outlandish waste of money?
The last major wave of immigrants to Alaska were Republicans. Send them back to Texas with an Okie under each arm.