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Facing our earthquakes together

Columns

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December 10, 2018

By CHUCK KOPP
GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

On Friday, Nov. 30 at 8:29 am I was on the fourth floor of the Legislative Information Offices in Anchorage meeting with one of my coworkers and two constituents when the building violently trembled on its foundation.

And then it shook again, with much greater force.

The next 20 seconds seemed like two minutes as ceiling panels dropped, the floor heaved, and furniture toppled. We held on to each other, braced ourselves, and prayed, silently calling out to the One who is omnipotent.

In that moment all sense of self-sufficiency was gone. The quake subsided and we were shaken, humbled, and grateful.

Over the past week we have all cheered the now nationally renown work of our Department of Transportation and Public Facilities personnel as they worked 24/7 to repair critical roads, bridges and other transportation infrastructure. The social media posts of their work is the stuff of legends. It appears they do the difficult immediately, while the impossible takes a couple days.

Countless more stories have surfaced of heroic work by good people quickly coming together to watch over each other, and sacrifice their time and resources to help restore their neighbors homes, businesses and houses of worship.

As Alaska enters the season of Christmas and Hannukah which tell the greatest stories of love and rescue in all of human history, we have so much to be thankful for. We faced a powerful and damaging earthquake, yet were spared much greater loss that could have easily engulfed us. And I am reminded that we still face other, life-shaking earthquakes.

We have neighbors, friends and strangers all around us who are enduring personal and emotional earthquakes – the loss of health, loved ones, housing, work and financial stability. All leading to a sense of despair, desperation, abandonment and…questions. “Does anyone hear my SOS? Will I survive? If I do, will it matter to anyone? Am I too broken?”

I remember as a young boy falling out of our family fishing boat into the icy waters of Bristol Bay during a storm. I cried out “Daddy! Help me!” My father quickly and unceremoniously yanked me by my hood out of the water and back up on the deck. I thank God he was watching and listening.

Am I watching and listening? Am I ready and willing to step in and rescue my neighbor? I hope so, I pray I am. We are the ones that demonstrate how far God’s grace and love can reach.

There is no individual brokenness that doesn’t impact all of us as a whole. And the truth is, we all need rescue, because we all fall down.

Let’s face our earthquakes together.

Chuck Kopp serves in the Alaska House of Representatives and makes his home in District 24. A lifelong Alaskan, he is the son of educators and entrepreneurs who moved from Anchorage to Iliamna, near Bristol Bay. He chose a career in public safety that spanned over 20 years. He served in the Anchorage and the Kenai Police Departments, including seven years as the chief of police for the City of Kenai, and as acting city manager.

Who will replace District 13’s Dahlstrom?

Politics

Suzanne Downing

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December 9, 2018

3

Who will replace District 13’s Dahlstrom?

EAGLE RIVER SEAT MUST BE FILLED BY APPOINTMENT

Nancy Dahlstrom easily won her race for House District 13 on Nov. 6. Then, Gov. Mike Dunleavy tapped her to lead the Department of Corrections.

She won’t be sworn in as a legislator in January. She’ll go through the legislative confirmation process instead and is acting commissioner until her confirmation.

But the Eagle River Republicans are busy coming up with names for her replacement.

So far, ~~four~~ three individuals have expressed interest in being appointed by Gov. Mike Dunleavy to fill the seat until the next election — which is in two years.

Sharon Jackson – Jackson ran for lieutenant governor this year. She is a U.S. Army veteran who recently served as a constituent relations staff member for U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan. Before that, she was the Alaska point person for National Write Your Congressman, the National Legislative Research Organization.

Myranda Walso – Walso ran for the District 13 seat in 2016 against former Rep. Dan Saddler, losing to him in the primary. She has been working on the transition team for Gov. Mike Dunleavy and worked for the Alaska Republican Party this year.

(Walso has withdrawn.)

Ken McCarty – McCarty is founder and executive director of Discovery Cove Recovery and Wellness Center, a center for counseling for mental health, outpatient substance abuse, and psychiatric services.

Craig Christianson – Christianson was a candidate for this seat earlier this year, but lost to Dahlstrom. He is a retired colonel and is a veteran of the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force. He is a retired physician and was deputy commissioner of the Department of Health and Social Services under Gov. Sean Parnell.

District 13 and 14 Republicans operate jointly and will provide Gov. Mike Dunleavy with three names that they will choose on Tuesday during their regular meeting.

[Read: District 13-14 organizes to replace Dahlstrom]

The governor will then interview the three and may pick someone from those names as Dahlstrom’s replacement, or bypass them and choose someone else. By tradition, governors work with the local party leaders in finding a replacement.

Dunleavy continues filling out team

Politics

Suzanne Downing

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December 9, 2018

0

Suzanne Cunningham has been named legislative director for Gov. Mike Dunleavy. She’ll be tasked with moving the governor’s bills and budget through the legislature.

Cunningham is a longtime aide in the Legislature, serving most recently for five years as the chief of staff for Sen. Kevin Meyer, who is now Alaska’s lieutenant governor.

Cunningham took a position with Sen. Lisa Murkowski last year as senior oil and gas policy adviser to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, but is returning to Alaska to serve in the Dunleavy Administration.

Others named to the Office of the Governor include:

Laura Cramer: Deputy Director of the Office of Management and Budget. Cramer was the chief of staff to Sen. Anna MacKinnon.

Ed King: Chief economist. King is the former principal of King Economics Group.

Brandon Brefczynski: Special assistant to the governor’s policy advisors, providing research, analysis, reports, and logistical support to the key policy team of John Moller, Brett Huber, and Ben Stevens. Brefcynski was most recently at the Alaska Oil and Gas Association.

Mary Ann Pruitt: Acting Communications Director; on contract to set up communications team. Pruitt is the principal of PS Strategies and has other clients.

Jeff Turner: deputy communications director. Turner has worked for legislators including former Rep. Charisse Millett.

Austin McDaniel: Digital strategy manager. McDaniel most recently was the digital marketing strategist at GCI and worked in a similar role in the Parnell Administration.

Jordan Shilling: Communication specialist. From Fairbanks, Shilling most recently worked as a legislative aide to Sen. John Coghill.

Jeremy Price: Deputy chief of staff. Price, from Salcha, was the founding state director of Americans for Prosperity Alaska.

Amy Demoboski: Deputy chief of staff. Demboski has most recently served on the Anchorage Assembly, had a radio talk show and a long career in business management.

Janice Mason: Executive scheduler. Mason continues in this role she has had since the Palin Administration, handling the complicated schedule of the governor.

Health insurance sales lag in Alaska this year

Suzanne Downing

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December 9, 2018

0

Health insurance sales lag in Alaska this year

AROUND THE NATION, OBAMACARE PARTICIPATION IS DOWN 11 PERCENT

The cost of health insurance plans at HealthCare.gov are down for Alaskans, but so are the sales.

The five-week snapshot of Premera Blue Cross plans sold in Alaska on the HealthCare.gov platform show that 7,065 plans were sold Nov. 25 through Dec. 1. That compares to the same timeframe last year when 8,349 plans sold — a 15.39 percent drop in sales.

Open enrollment runs from Nov. 1 through Dec. 15. Those without health insurance have until Saturday to purchase coverage on the HealthCare.gov “marketplace,” which in Alaska is Premera.

The drop in sales could be attributed to two changes:

No individual mandate: The Trump Administration has eliminated the tax penalty in Obamacare that was part of the original legislation. If you don’t have health insurance and you choose not to buy it, the Internal Revenue Service will no longer penalize you.

No marketing by the feds: The Trump Administration spent only about $10 million marketing the health insurance open enrollment period. Before Trump took office, the Obama Administration was spending more than $60 million to encourage Americans to get covered.

What about prices? The Cost plans have improved this year. Premera filed with the State Division of Insurance for an average rate decrease of 3.9 percent for its 2019 plans. Last year’s decrease was 22.4 percent for individual plans.

The average monthly premium dropped from over $1,000 in 2017, to $770 in 2019.

But the trend for enrollment is also dropping.

During open enrollment last year, 18,313 Alaskans signed up, four percent fewer than in 2017.

Around the country, enrollment in Obamacare health insurance plans is lagging more than 11 percent from last year, but in Alaska it’s a more than 15 percent drop. Of course, this could be made up in the last week as the deadline approaches as consumers rush to get it before the enrollment period closes.

Nearly 85 percent of Alaskans who purchase health insurance through the federal website receive government subsidies through tax rebates.

Rep. Dan Saddler resigns, takes post in DNR

Politics

Suzanne Downing

-

December 8, 2018

2

Rep. Dan Saddler, the outgoing representative for District 13, has resigned his seat to take a communications post in the Department of Natural Resources. He’ll handle external communications and some legislative liaison duties.

He ran for Senate but was beat by Sen.-elect Lora Reinbold. His District seat was won by Nancy Dahlstrom, who has since also taken a position in the Dunleavy Administration as commissioner of Corrections. The District 13 seat is now up for appointment, and his acceptance of a position in the administration signals he is not throwing his hat in the ring to return to the House.

He made the announcement on Facebook on Friday.

“It is with bittersweet feelings that I let you know that I have resigned my seat representing District 13 in the Alaska House of Representatives, effective close of business today (Friday), he wrote.

“Though my fourth term would ordinarily run until members of the 30th Legislature are sworn in on Jan. 15, 2019, I wanted to get to work quickly helping Gov. Mike Dunleavy fulfill his promise to use our state’s resources to create jobs and a stronger economy for Alaskans. And with my friend Nancy Dahlstrom’s decision to take on the important challenge of keeping our state safer as Corrections commissioner, I wanted to clear the path forward for those seeking to succeed us in the House seat,” Saddler wrote.

A Democrat blogger stated that Saddler cannot legally move from the House into a professional job in the Administration. However, Saddler has a written opinion from the Department of Law that says he can:

DOL re- Saddler accepting employment

Saddler said the position was not created for him and there is no raise attached to it.

House Republicans lose Knopp from caucus

Politics

Suzanne Downing

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December 8, 2018

15

House Republicans lose Knopp from caucus

Kenai Republican House member Gary Knopp has left the Republican caucus. He has not exactly joined the Democrats, but is holding out for a new leadership structure in the House.

The word of his decision has spread quickly through political circles.

Knopp represents a very conservative part of Alaska, District 30. It’s so conservative, that Rep. Knopp ran unopposed.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy won 5,383 votes in this district, compared to Mark Begich, who got 2,169 votes, and Bill Walker, who got 134.

Ballot Measure 1, the Stand for Salmon initiative, failed in this district 5,805-1,883.

Weeks ago, Knopp stood as part of the caucus but had demands. The group didn’t go along with them, so he has stepped out, possibly looking to accept the best offer.

[Read: House Democrats have caucus of 17 — here’s how they take over]

As a man without a caucus, Knopp leaves the House as a 20-20 split between Republicans and Democrats (plus two Republicans who joined with Democrats).

Without one group being able to prevail and own the Speaker’s gavel, the lieutenant governor would have to preside or appoint a Speaker pro tem until such a time as a viable caucus emerges.

The Legislature convenes on Jan. 15, 2019.

Was Fairbanks race tainted by ‘League of Women Vote Harvesters’?

Suzanne Downing

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December 8, 2018

17

Was Fairbanks race tainted by ‘League of Women Vote Harvesters’?

Vote harvesting — a practice by special interest groups to gather ballots from people and turn them into polling stations — may be a factor in the District 1 House race between Democrat Kathryn Dodge and Republican Bart LeBon.

LeBon won that race by one vote, but Dodge has mounted a legal challenge of four votes, hoping to get a judge to overturn the decision of the Division of Elections.

Ballot harvesting is gaining more attention nationally. An investigation is now underway in North Carolina, where political operatives collected and may have stolen absentee ballots in a congressional race.

[Read: Absentee vote changes may have led to vote harvesting.]

A political operative in North Carolina employed a crew to go door to door urging people to request absentee ballots. Later, his team collected the ballots, purportedly to deliver them to election officials but handed them over to another political operative first, destroying the chain of custody for the ballots and introducing a possibility of corruption.

WHAT HAPPENED IN FAIRBANKS?

In Fairbanks, the League of Women Voters collaborated and coordinated with the Division of Elections to gather absentee ballots from the hospital and Pioneer Home, where elderly people reside.

Dozens of absentee ballots were delivered to the Fairbanks Elections Office by League of Women Voters volunteers.

That collaboration is in question, since the League is no longer acknowledged as a neutral group by conservatives.

In fact, conservative political advisers now counsel candidates to avoid debates being moderated by the League, because members from coast to coast have a record of supporting Democrats and harassing Republicans.

The Alaska Division of Elections still considers it a neutral group.

[Read: Florida League of Women Voters objects to governor’s appointment to schools post]

The Tanana Valley League of Women Voters has a record of supporting Democrats and their causes and opposing Republicans, as seen in their social media account:

Ann Brown elected vice chair of Alaska Republican Party

The Social

Suzanne Downing

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December 8, 2018

0

Ann Brown elected vice chair of Alaska Republican Party

Ann Brown, formerly of Fairbanks and now of Anchorage, has been elected vice chair of the Alaska Republican Party.

After former Chairman Tuckerman Babcock resigned last month, Glenn Clary became chair, leaving the vice chair empty. The election of Brown occurred Saturday at the State Central Committee quarterly meeting in Anchorage.

Brown is an experienced trial lawyer and was the managing partner of her firm’s branch office, concentrating her work on labor and employment law. Notably, she has done a significant amount of work for churches and representing free speech and First Amendment cases.

Glenn Clary is the administrative pastor at Anchorage Baptist Temple. He was a delegate to the 2016 Republican National Convention from Alaska.

Dunleavy starts with budget discipline

Politics

Suzanne Downing

-

December 7, 2018

7

OMB TEAM: LAURA CRAMER, MIKE BARNHILL, ED KING, MICAELA FOWLER

In order to get Alaska’s budget under control, it’s important to have a cohesive budget team.

This week, Gov. Mike Dunleavy took the first big step — bringing budget directors for all the departments under the direction of his Office of Management and Budget, so they can work on policy together as a group.

Budget officers in the departments will remain in their departments and report to their commissioners, but policy budget people will be part of a new team in the Governor’s Office.

The news was first leaked to James Brooks, a political reporter for the Anchorage Daily News.

Donna Arduin, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, will direct the work of the budget team.

It’s the only way to really get a quick budget ready before the statutory deadlines. The first deadline is Dec. 15, when the budget is due.

If the Dunleavy OMB team can’t produce a budget in this one week that it has, it will have to submit the as-is Walker budget with a note that says the document is only a placeholder. Budget amendments are expected to be significant.

Normally, the budgeting process starts immediately after the last budget is signed into office. But Dunleavy is, it appears, putting the budget process into overdrive.

The administrative order that consolidates budget functions and puts the new OMB director in the driver’s seat to restructure the state budget makes Alaska’s budget structure similar to how it’s done in several states, including Florida, California, and New York. Quite often these budget teams in governors’ offices are large — at times in the hundreds of people for states with very large budgets.

Read: Administrative Order 302

The new work group, composed of administrative services directors, started working together on Friday. All the positions except one were already in Juneau, and that one, for the Department of Public Safety, will be relocated to Juneau.

The OMB leadership team also includes Laura Cramer, deputy director for OMB (and former chief of staff to Sen. Anna MacKinnon); Mike Barnhill, policy director (and former deputy commissioner of Administration under Gov. Bill Walker); and Ed King, chief economist. Micaela Fowler, a long-time political insider from Juneau, is a policy analyst.

Arduin is also closely dovetailing her work with Revenue Commissioner Bruce Tangeman to make sure the budget matches expected revenues.

Those administrative services directors who are now part of the Governor’s Office include these partially exempt employees:

Gov. Dunleavy had not signed the administrative when it was leaked to the media. Complaints from those used to controlling budget information without working as a team with the Governor’s Office leaked the restructuring to opposition bloggers, who are sharpening their knives to slice at the new administration.

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Facing our earthquakes together

Who will replace District 13’s Dahlstrom?

Dunleavy continues filling out team

Health insurance sales lag in Alaska this year

Rep. Dan Saddler resigns, takes post in DNR

House Republicans lose Knopp from caucus

Was Fairbanks race tainted by ‘League of Women Vote Harvesters’?

Dunleavy starts with budget discipline

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