On Day 10 of the 2022 legislative session, the Alaska House of Representatives voted unanimously to oppose a plan by the State Officers Compensation Commission, which would have restructured pay for legislators, commissioners and the governor and lieutenant governor. The Senate had already voted to reject the commission’s salary and per diem schedule.
The bill is expected to head to Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s desk late Thursday or Friday; he has 15 days — subtracting Sundays — to sign it, veto it, or allow it to go into law without his signature.
With an unanimous House and Senate, it’s unlikely Dunleavy will want to get into a veto fight so early in the session, when it’s clear the Legislature has the votes to override a veto.
The State Officers Compensation Commission earlier this month voted to cut the per-diem allowances for legislators from $307 a day to $100, and at the same time raise salaries from $50,400 to $64,000 a year.
The way the math would have worked is that for the legislators claiming the most per diem, the commission was giving them a haircut of about $11,000 per year.
The commission’s proposal would have gone into effect next January if the Legislature had not taken action.
